In the Sign of the Eagle

A Brief History of German Wine As Viewed Through the Eyes of the Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP)
By Dr. Daniel Deckers

1910: Foundation of the Verband Deutscher Naturweinversteigerer (VDNV)

On 26 November 1910, four regional wine-growers’ associations joined forces to form the Verband Deutscher Naturweinversteigerer (i.e. estates that sold their “natural” [unchaptalized] wines at auction): “Vereinigung Rheingauer Weingutsbesitzer” (founded 1897), “Verein der Naturweinversteigerer in Rheinhessen” (believed to have been founded 1910), “Trierer Verein von Weingutsbesitzern von Mosel, Saar und Ruwer” (founded 1910), and “Verein der Naturweinversteigerer der Rheinpfalz” (founded 1908).

Background:
At that time, the “improvement” of wines with sugared water as well as the blending of wines of various origins and designations were widespread practices. The “estates that sold their ‘natural’ wines at auction” were advocates of other principles such as:

• Rheingau: to refrain from the purchase of grapes and/or wine from third parties for commercial purposes; member estates are guarantors for the absolute purity and authentic origin of their wines;
• Pfalz: to emphasize quality to promote sales; member estates have holdings in the region’s top vineyard sites; to foster and protect the quality ideals of non-chaptalized, natural wines.

It was common practice for the renowned estates to sell their quality wines (in cask) at individual wine auctions to which wine brokers and merchants were invited. The union of the regional auction consortia in 1910 served to prevent scheduling conflicts as well as eliminate competition among VDNV members trying to attract brokers and merchants to their respective auctions. At the same time, it enabled differences in regional auction conditions to be coordinated with one another.

The prices achieved for the “Originalabfüllungen” (estate-bottled wines) during the auctions of natural wines at the start of the 20th century were the highest ever fetched for German wines, and they decisively influenced the entire wine market.

1914 - 1921: World War I • Vintage of the Century as a Nest Egg

Even during the war the auctions continued to be held. On account of increasing inflation, the outstanding 1921 vintage was not released immediately, but held back as a nest egg. It was sold later, during the Great Depression.

1926: The “VDP Eagle” is Born

The association was entered into the official registry of associations and gave itself a “trademark”: a stylized eagle bearing a cluster of grapes. In conjunction with an estate’s cork brand, the VDP eagle was to guarantee a wine’s natural purity and function as an internationally recognized logo for high-quality German viticulture.

As of 1 April 1926, the VDNV comprised 6 regional associations, with 216 members (incl. wine-growers’ cooperative wineries in the Pfalz). They collectively cultivated some 3,600 hectares (nearly 9,000 acres) of vines. Newcomers since 1910 were the associations of natural wine producers in the Nahe and Baden regions.

During the depression, numerous VDNV members left the association in order to avoid its restrictions regarding the exclusive sale of wine by auction, both in cask and in bottle. End of membership also opened the way to market “improved,” or chaptalized, wines under proprietary names.

1930: A New Wine Law

The wine law of 1930 strengthened the concept of natural wine and defined the meaning of the Prädikats (special attributes indicating ripeness of grapes at time of harvest) that the natural wine producers used to label their “Creszenzen” (growths).

1933: Hitler Assumes Power • The Trade Collapses • Forced Integration of the VDNV into the “Reichsnährstand”

After Hitler was named chancellor of the Third Reich, Jewish wine merchants were ousted from all functions within the German wine industry, thereby closing off one of the most important marketing channels for quality wines. In the course of the development of the Reichsnährstand (an umbrella association that was created and approved by the new government and responsible for the interests and activities of all agricultural producers), all viticultural organizations were dissolved – with one exception: the VDNV remained legally independent and was only “affiliated” with the new association. At the end of 1934, the Reichsnährstand saw to it that Jakob Werner, district farmers’ leader of Rüdesheim/Rheingau and member of the Nazi party, was named president of the VDNV. The new VDNV statute of 1935 documented the formal incorporation of the association into the Reichsnährstand, and stated that this move was to have no influence on the VDNV’s activities. The VDNV was successful in its efforts to repudiate the inclusion of an anti-Jewish passage in the statute.

1939: World War II

In December 1939, the VDNV’s Mosel, Saar and Ruwer members – by then, collectively known as the Grosser Ring – held their last wine auctions. Viticulture was not spared from the ravages of the war. Allied bombs laid waste to vineyards, estate buildings and centers of the wine trade (Mainz and Bingen). With the currency reform of 1948, circumstances began to return to normal in the western occupation zones – also in the wine trade.

1949: “VDP Renaissance”

Shortly before the foundation of the Federal Republic of Germany, the first post-war wine auctions were held in Trier and in the Rheingau. Outstanding wines fetched high prices. The VDNV reestablished itself. Dr. Alfred Bürklin/Pfalz, vice president of the VDNV under Jakob Werner, was elected president. He remained in office until 1967.

Once again, the proprietor of a VDNV member estate assumed responsibility as (honorary) president of the German Wine-growers’ Association (1950 - 1964):
Richard Graf Matuschka-Greiffenclau/Rheingau.

Later, other VDNV members also took on honorary positions in national and/or regional viticultural associations:
Freiherr von Neveu/Baden, president, Baden Wine-growers’ Association (1953 - 1964)

Dr. Albert Bürklin/Pfalz, vice president, German Wine-growers’ Association
Werner Tyrell/Mosel, president, German Wine-growers’ Association
Dr. Reinhard Muth/Rheinhessen, president, German Wine-growers’s Association.
Over the years, though, these double mandates led to tensions, not least because the viticultural-political issues of the German Wine-growers’ Association and those of the VDNV were at odds: the German Wine-growers’ Association increasingly favored the interests of cooperative wineries, and these interests played a minor role in the overall VDNV membership (only represented in the Pfalz regional association).

Regional overview in terms of acreage:
Rheinpfalz (1992, renamed “Pfalz”): 2,500 ha = ca. 6,200 acres
Rheingau: 542 ha = 1,340 acres
Baden: 383 ha = 950 acres
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer (2007, renamed "Mosel”): 271 ha = 670 acres
Rheinhessen: 194 ha = 480 acres

1955: First “Fine Wines and Rarities Auction” • End of Cooperative Membership • Foundation of the Association of Natural Wine Producers of Franken

The first VDNV auction of top wines and rarities – including those of the newly founded Association of Natural Wine Producers of Franken, but excluding those of the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer producers – took place in Wiesbaden’s Kurhaus. It was followed by similar special auctions in 1969, 1974, 1978, 1981 (see below), 1985, 1991, and 1997. Increasingly, wines were auctioned in bottle rather than in cask.

The statute was amended to read: “Membership in the national association is limited to those associations whose members exclusively produce natural wines from their own grapes; store them in their own cellars; and auction and/or sell them as such.” In other words, membership was open only to those who produced estate-bottled wines, thereby precluding the membership of cooperative wineries.

1958: Quality Rather than Quantity

During the “economic wonder” years, the growing demand for sweet, simple wines led to emergency measures among natural wine producers. As an exception, members were allowed to sell chaptalized wines. The association’s first internal quality controls were introduced, and members were obliged to maintain the traditions associated with natural wines with regard to vineyard layout, choice of varietals, and cellar setup. The Grosser Ring, Trier, did away with its regular spring auctions. The outstanding 1959 vintage enabled the natural wine producers to regain entry to markets in the West, above all in the USA.

Regional overview in 1962:
Rheinpfalz: 1,455 ha = ca. 3,600 acres
Franken: 479 ha = ca. 1,200 acres
Rheingau: 474 ha = ca. 1,200 acres
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer: 260 ha = ca. 650 acres
Rheinhessen: 177 ha = ca. 450 acres
Baden: 82 ha  = ca. 200 acres

1967: The End of Natural Wines

A new wine law was to supersede that of 1930. Among the topics under discussion within the DWV (German Wine-growers’ Association) was the legality of the term “natural” in conjunction with a product that contained additives – in wine, for example, sulfur. Also controversial was the issue of chaptalization, which the VDNV traditionally rejected as a method of “improving” wines, and thus at odds with the production of natural wines.  Despite its strong presence in the leadership of the DWV, the VDNV’s petitions to retain the concept of “natural wine” failed to win a majority backing. Neither the concept nor the term could be saved, and with the new wine law of 1969/1971, they were replaced by the Prädikat system and designation “Quality Wines with Prädikat.”   

1971: Item on the Agenda: Dissolution of the Association

The ban on natural wine effectively eliminated the VDNV’s reason for being. Against this backdrop, and despite the association’s long tradition, VDNV president Wolfgang Michel of the Domdecant Werner estate/Rheingau called the member estates – now only 75 in number – in the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Rheingau, Rheinhessen, Rheinpfalz, Baden and Franken regions to a general meeting in Wiesbaden. The only item on the agenda was the dissolution of the association. However, thanks to an impassioned speech by Peter von Weymarn of Weingut Heyl zu Herrnsheim/Rheinhessen, dissolution was averted. Michel and von Weymarn were commissioned to sound out whether the association could survive. Ultimately, the association received a new seat; a new name (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter [VDP], or Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates); a new president (von Weymarn); and a new statute with higher standards for members.

1972: The Nahe Returns; Württemberg’s Producers Form an Association

The VDP-Nahe reestablished itself and rejoined the national association. Württemberg producers followed suit in 1975, with their newly formed VDP-Württemberg.

1973: Foundation of the Mainzer Weinbörse

The Mainzer Weinbörse trade fair was founded during Peter von Weymarn’s term of office. Over the years, the auctions had increasingly lost their importance. The Weinbörse was to serve a similar purpose, i.e. provide an annual forum in early spring where wine buyers and VDP members could meet to do business. In 1973, ten Rheinhessen estates held the first Weinbörse in the electoral palace in Mainz. Since then, it has become THE trade fair for top-quality German wine. Today, some 150 of the VDP’s nearly 200 member estates welcome the international wine trade to the Weinbörse in Mainz every spring.

1978: Erwein Graf Matuschka-Greiffenclau Elected President of the VDP

Domestically and abroad, Count Matuschka of Schloss Vollrads/Rheingau developed into an ambassador on behalf of Germany’s finest wines. His tireless efforts to promulgate German wines as ideal partners with food opened new horizons.

1981: Fine Wines and Rarities Auction

In 1981, at the height of mass wine production and the sweet wine boom, the VDP conducted another fine wines and rarities auction, this time in the Rheingoldhalle in Mainz. In the commemorative catalogue, the VDP underscored the importance of vineyard site and traditional varietals as prerequisites for the quality of German wine.

At this point in time, the association had 161 member estates with a total of 2,575 ha (6,363 acres) of vines.

1982: Enough is Enough

VDP members agreed to adhere to binding, in-house, higher quality standards, including higher starting must weights for Prädikat wines and the mandatory use of the VDP logo (stylized eagle bearing a cluster of grapes) on packaging.

In addition to growing and processing their own grapes to produce estate-bottled wines, numerous members had founded successful wineries that purchased grapes and/or wines from third parties. In order to avoid confusion or deception, the VDP insisted that its members keep the two businesses (estate and winery) strictly separate. The labels of a member’s estate-bottled wines were to be clearly distinguishable from those of its “winery-produced” wines, and the wines were to be separately marketed and distributed. To acknowledge this distinction, the association changed its name: Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter.

1985: Regaining Market Share Abroad • New on Board: VDP Baden and VDP Mittelrhein

Several VDP regional associations had begun to conduct regular presentations of their wines in the most important foreign markets, e.g. the Grosser Ring’s “London Wine Tasting.” In 1987, ambitious wine producers in Baden reorganized and Mittelrhein growers formed a  new regional association, thereby increasing the total number of regional associations in the national organization to nine.

1991: A New Era

With the election of Michael Prinz zu Salm-Salm of the Prinz zu Salm-Dalberg’sches estate/Nahe as new president of the VDP, a new era began. In the years that followed, new strategies led the VDP to a leading position within the German wine industry and set its members on a par with the finest wine estates of the world. Among the measures undertaken: strict production (setting maximum yields, increased starting must weights) and marketing (mandatory use of the VDP logo on capsules) regulations. Compliance was checked in the course of regular estate inspections. The association increased its focus on ecologically friendly viticulture.

The VDP’s uncompromising efforts to improve quality resulted in membership changes. At the start of Prinz Salm’s term of office, the VDP had 161 members. Since then, 73 estates left the association. At the same time, however, 108 estates became members. At this writing (2010), 196 estates belong to the VDP.

The average size of a member estate is ca. 20 ha (50 acres).
In 1991, VDP members joint vineyard holdings were about 3,000 ha (7,400 acres);
in 2010, about 4,000 ha (9,900 acres).

1994: Annual Meeting at Schloss Reinhartshausen/Rheingau • Self-restraint and Parting Ways with the German Wine-growers’ Association

In an ongoing effort, VDP members continued to try to remedy shortcomings in the German wine law of 1971 through their self-imposed quality standards. They voted to abstain from the use of the misleading “Grosslage” (collective vineyard site) designations. They guaranteed selective harvesting, by hand. They decided to develop an independent classification of German vineyards. Finally, in the wake of numerous conflicts with the German Wine-growers’ Association, the VDP renounced its membership in the organization.

1996: Securing Viticultural Heritage for the Future

After extensive debate, the members agreed to “a classification of vineyards, the advantages of which have long been recognized by other wine-growing countries, in order to secure our common viticultural heritage for the future.” Herein lie the uniform principles for classified growths of German origin.

2002: The Classification Statute of the Prädikat Wine Estates

At an annual meeting in Castell/Franken, members voted for an internal vineyard classification system. Since then, VDP estates have used the following designations to identify the origin and quality level of their wines: Guts- und Ortsweine (basic house wines); Klassifizierte Lagenweine (wines from classified sites); and Grosse oder Erste Gewächse (great or first growth wines). The system combines the best elements of Romance and German viticultural tradition. A capsule bearing the “VDP eagle” signifies an estate classification based on the Bordeaux model. The logo    (a stylized numeral one that partially frames a cluster of grapes) on the label and/or embossed on the bottle symbolizes a classification of the Erste Lagen (top sites) based on the Burgundy model. Bottle labels with the name of a vineyard site, varietal and Prädikat (optional) are an adaption of the German labeling law.   

2006: Vision “2015”

The decisions agreed upon at the annual meeting in Marienthal/Ahr marked an additional milestone in the VDP classification. “Erste Lage” became the uniform umbrella term in all regions for all wines of the top category, thereby enabling wines with residual sweetness to be integrated into the classification system. Wine designated as a “Grosses Gewächs” must be vinified dry in style, i.e. have a maximum residual sugar level of nine grams per liter, as prescribed by law. The use of a vineyard name is to be reserved for wines from top sites. These measures are to be implemented no later than 2015.

Members also took a clear position on new oenological practices permitted in Germany: the “VDP eagle” on every capsule signals a handcrafted wine stamped by terroir and produced by traditional winemaking techniques.

2007: A New President

Steffen Christmann of Weingut A. Christmann/Pfalz was elected to succeed Michael Prinz zu Salm-Salm as the president of the VDP.

2010: In the Sign of the Eagle - One Hundred Years of VDP

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