The winners of the individual categories of the Fair Wine Awards 2026

During the EUROVINO networking evening on Sunday evening, the winners of the Fair Wine Awards 2026 were announced and presented with their prizes in the five different categories on the main EUROVINO stage.

The results in detail:

(There were two 3rd places several times due to equal points)

Wines from sustainable production and organic wines

• 2025 Riesling Kabinett “Sappalot”, Scherr Winery, Hainfeld, Germany
• 2023 acústic blanc, Acústic Celler, DOP Montsant, Spain
• 2023 Grüner Veltliner Ried Felser Brunnthal, Winery Magerl, Wagram, Austria

Wines from resistant grape varieties

• 2024 Souvignier Gris “Heart and Hand”, Weinmanufaktur Gengenbach-Offenburg eG, Baden, Germany
• 2024 Souvignier Gris “Auftakt”, Weinhof Abthof, Rheinhessen, Germany
• 2024 Muscaris, Weinhof Stefan Mally, Styria, Austria
• 2025 Souvignier Gris “Zeichensetzen”, Eva Vollmer, Rheinhessen Germany

Wines from historical grape varieties

• 2025 Adelfränkisch dry, local wine, Winzerkeller Sommerach, Franconia Germany
• 2024 Grüner Adelfränkisch “Vintage”, Genheimer Kiltz Winery, Nahe, Germany
• 2024 Roter Veltliner, Winery Magerl, Wagram, Austria

Sparkling wine and sparkling wine from classic bottle fermentation

• 2019 Pinot Réserve extra brut, Moosmann Winery, Baden, Germany
• 2018 Brut Vintage, Michel Littiere, Champagne, France
• 2018 Riesling dosage zéro, Köpfer Winery, Baden, Germany
• 2021 Pinot Blanc brut nature Durbacher Steinberg, Durbacher Winzer eG, Baden, Germany

Natural wines, orange wines, experimental wines and wines from alternative fermentation and ageing containers

• 2022 Orange dry, VDP.Gutswein, Lämmlin-Schindler Winery, Baden, Germany
• 2024 Chardonnay Amphora, Sander Winery, Rheinhessen, Germany
• 2024 Silvaner Sommeracher Katzenkopf “Wilm”, Weingut am Vögelein, Franconia, Germany
• 2024 Orange Wine, Grüner Veltliner dry, Weingut Baumgartner, Weinviertel, Austria

Congratulations to all the winners!

The winners Best Retailer, Best Collection and Wine Bar of the Year 2026 

On the Monday of EUROVINO, the initiators of the Fair Wine Awards selected the Wine Merchant of the Year and Best Collection as well as the Wine Bar of the Year 2026.

The following retailers and restaurateurs were delighted to receive an award:

– Specialized wine trade category: vinocentral GmbH, Darmstadt
– Online trade category: Silkes Weinkeller GmbH, Mettmann
– Wine bar category: Gräfes Wein & Fein, Radebeul
– Special prize of the jury: Weinkellerei Höchst, Frankfurt.
– Prize for the best collection: Groupe Grand Chais de France (GCF)

Congratulations to all the winners!

In the historic wine town of Radebeul, just a few minutes from Dresden, lies a place that embodies a love of wine, a culture of enjoyment and genuine hospitality like no other: Gräfes Wein & Fein at Hauptstraße 19, 01445 Radebeul – run by host, wine expert and visionary Matthias Gräfe.

The motto of this special place is “Simply enjoy. And good.” – an attitude that has grown over the years and is reflected in every detail. This attitude has now been honored with the “Best Wine Bar of the Year 2026” award. And rightly so.

Wine, knowledge and world-class selection

With a range of around 500 wines, sparkling wines and champagnes, Gräfes Wein & Fein is much more than just a wine shop. Here you will find a carefully curated selection from all over the world – with a special focus on German wines and close relationships with the producers.

In the adjoining bistro, guests can not only choose from 25 wines by the glass, but also enjoy each bottle directly on site for a moderate service charge of 15 euros. This opening of the vinotheque to the wine bar creates an atmosphere of openness, discovery and conscious enjoyment.

More than wine: enjoyment, culture and community

What makes Gräfes Wein & Fein special is the combination of wine with culture and community. The house regularly enriches its program with:

• Openings with local artists that give the place a cultural depth.
• Cooking evenings and culinary themed events focusing on creative, seasonal delights.
• Wine tours and vineyard visits, where guests can experience the origin of their favorite wine first-hand.

A relaxed winter garden also invites you to enjoy mulled wine, non-alcoholic punch or a glass of sparkling wine during the season.

Alcohol-free – a topic for 25 years

Wine lovers are not the only ones who are welcome here: Non-alcoholic enjoyment has been an important part of the range for over two and a half decades – with more than 40 non-alcoholic products today. A real special feature that shows how comprehensively all the senses are addressed here.

Creative projects, podcasts and regional identity

“Gräfes Wein & Fein” is a pioneer – not only in the glass, but also in communication:
The podcast “Auf ein Glas”, which now has over 150 episodes, regularly attracts new listeners. Here, people talk about wine, people and stories and fill the topic of enjoyment with life.

Regionality and solidarity are reflected not least in the fact that close, personal relationships are maintained with the producers, many of whom have been associated with the company for many years. In addition, the company creates an experience that goes far beyond the classic wine bar with activities such as Vespa picnic tours through the Elbe Valley.

Philosophy, sustainability and social commitment

The atmosphere at Gräfes Wein & Fein is characterized by one guiding principle: We create a space in which people feel safe, can discover new things and be inspired. For Matthias Gräfe, everything that happens here is not “just work” – it is life time that is shared.

Sustainability is considered holistically: from respectful treatment of employees and suppliers to resource-saving measures and waste avoidance in out-of-home sales. Social commitment, for example to vocational training centers or special schools, is also an integral part of the company’s identity.

A place where you want to stay

What makes Gräfes Wein & Fein so special is the combination of expertise, cordiality and experience. Here, wine knowledge meets hospitality, enjoyment meets community, culture meets joie de vivre.

For this holistic approach, for enthusiasm and inspiration, for an outstanding wine and culinary experience – we wholeheartedly congratulate Matthias Gräfe on being named “Best Wine Bar of the Year 2026”. 🍷

You have to see with your own eyes what Bührmann Weine GmbH has created from the specialist wine shop with the traditional name “Weinkellerei Höchst” in the Frankfurt district of the same name since the takeover in May 2022. The result is impressive. Inconspicuous from the outside, a functional industrial building, it turns out to be a well thought-out specialist wine shop with a gigantic range of wines on the inside.

Weinkellerei Höchst by Bührmann, as its full name is, stocks around 3,000 items for its customers on 800 square meters of sales space. The selection is international and ranges from Germany, which accounts for over 40 percent of the range, to France, Italy, Spain and wines from all overseas countries and Southern and Eastern Europe. Even wines from Lebanon or Israel can be found here. The international clientele of the banking city of Frankfurt am Main allows it to offer such a wide range of products that one can only take heart from it.

It takes a great deal of courage to dare to make such an offer. The success proves the people behind the Höchst winery right. Branch manager Melih Günsel and owners Julia Bührmann and husband Christian Nesbeda have achieved great things here.

But it’s not just the range of products on offer that is impressive – the implementation that committed specialist wine retailers demand is also exemplary at Weinkellerei Höchst. The focus is not just on sales, but on making wine tangible and offering it in partnership with winegrowers and suppliers. Service in every respect and advice are the top priorities for the dedicated team of employees, as are all ecological issues such as waste and energy saving and their social commitment to the Frankfurt am Main children’s palliative care team.

I am delighted to join you in presenting Weinkellerei Höchst by Bührmann with the Wine Retailer of the Year award in the category “Successful new start in the specialist wine trade”.

There are few wine shops in Germany that can offer their customers a comparably large and varied range. The product range comprises over 2,500 items, of which over 1,900 belong to the wine segment. The variety is huge and ranges from classic, conventional wines to sustainably produced wines, organic wines, natural wines, a wide range of PIWI wines and exotic niche wines from Eastern European countries.

The team behind our award-winning specialist retailer is just as diverse as the product range. Fair cooperation and initiatives such as the employment of people with severe disabilities or migrants with experience of flight characterize the company’s high level of social commitment. The company is proud of its family-friendly approach, flexible working hours and part-time models.

The relationship with the large number of suppliers is also based on partnership. Fair and transparent pricing with farm-gate prices are a matter of course. Moon prices and the usual discount battles are avoided. Integrity in every respect is our top priority.

We were delighted when such an exemplary and multi-award-winning company applied for the Wine Retailer of the Year award in the “Specialist Retailer” category. We are delighted to award this year’s prize to the company vinocentral in Darmstadt.

What sounds like a small wine bar or your neighbor’s wine cellar is one of the largest and most successful online wine merchants in Germany.

Founded by Silke Spruch and her husband Wolfgang 25 years ago, it started out as a living room store with a small online store – which grew rapidly in the years that followed. With more than fifty employees and its own logistics, the company has developed into a successful e-commerce company.

The online market has cooled significantly in the last three years following the gold-rush atmosphere during the pandemic, and many online retailers have become disillusioned.

The challenges in the “online” sales channel are high and the general conditions – as in the entire wine industry – have become difficult.

Silke’s wine cellar is well equipped in these challenging times:

• an extensive range of more than 1,500 wines
• exclusive wines, branded wines and top award-winning wines
• our own highly professional logistics, which guarantee reliable deliveries

and perhaps the most important thing:

• a highly skilled team of employees who – and I was able to experience this myself in several seminars with you – work together closely and personally – and have fun together at the same time!

This is no coincidence. Success has a name.

Dear Katja, you have been managing Silke’s wine cellar for 6 years now – initially as a dual manager, and for the last two years even alone. You have formed a team that sticks together, that is successful, that has fun.

You are part of the team, lead with flat hierarchies and see yourself more as a player coach than a team boss. In my view, this is a very important building block for success! Because in the end, it’s always the people who matter.

The founding of meravino was a major step towards better reaching the young target group – with a different online presence, different wines and different communication.

That too – a great success.

At this point, I would also like to mention – and welcome – Henner Arning , who successfully manages wine purchasing as the strategic head. Certainly another important building block in your success.

Dear Katja, dear Henner,

You have been “Best Wine Merchant of the Year” 12 times so far – today you are the 13th time!

Congratulations on being named Online Retailer of the Year 2026!

At the tasting of the Fair Wine Award, the international competition for forward-looking and environmentally friendly wines, the winners of which were announced at the EUROVINO trade fair in Karlsruhe on 01. and March 02, the SENSISPLUS glasses from EISCH were used with great results.

SENSISPLUS glasses from EISCH GERMANY are equipped with a special inner coating that multiplies the perception of aromas in the wine. The very light and elegant drinking glasses are made from brilliant crystal glass using the latest technology, giving them an almost handmade appearance.

They are characterized by their high breaking strength due to the stems pulled out of the calyx. The glasses are also dishwasher-safe. Blind tastings by experts confirm the unique glass function of the SENSISPLUS glasses from EISCH.

In numerous specialist presentations, scientists and experienced practitioners will present new findings and research results from current research as well as new innovations.

Dr. Hermann Pilz from Fair Wine established and intensified contacts with the winegrowers present in numerous discussions. The main focus was on resistant grape varieties, so-called PIWIs, such as Cabernet Blanc, Sauviginac, Calardis Royal, Souvignier Gris and others.

With the Fair Wine Award, Fair Wine offers an important platform for the assessment and marketing of these resistant grape varieties.

These are assessed qualitatively in a separate category. The award ceremony for the winning wines will take place during EUROVINO 2026 – including a presentation of all award-winning wines in a tasting zone for trade and gastronomy.

In addition to information on the Fair Wine Award and EUROVINO in Karlsruhe, which takes place on 01. The PIWI event, which took place from March 2 to 2 in Karlsruhe, offered the opportunity to taste PIWI wines from resistant grape varieties such as Calardis Blanc, Calardis Royal, Sauvignac and Cabernet Blanc as well as historical grape varieties such as Gelber Kleinberger.

Special thanks go to Professor Dr. Oliver Trapp, Director of the JKI Institute for Grapevine Breeding Geilweilerhof, who provided first-hand information on the resistant grape varieties bred by the institute.

The Institute for Grapevine Breeding Geilweilerhof is one of 18 research institutes of the Julius Kühn Institute (JKI) – Federal Research Institute for Cultivated Plants. The main task of the institute is to breed new grape varieties that are adapted to the German climate and are resistant to pests and other stress factors while maintaining high wine quality. The fungus-resistant new varieties originate from this breeding work

• Calandro,
• Calardis Blanc,
• Calardis Musqué,
• Felicia,
• Phoenix,
• Reberger,
• Regent and
• Villaris.

The resistant grape varieties Calardis Blanc and Calardis Royal bred by the JKI Institute were of particular interest to Austrian winegrowers. Both grape varieties are highly resistant to the dangerous fungal diseases oidium and peronospora, true and downy mildew, and thus reduce the necessary spraying by up to 70% compared to established grape varieties.

Fair Wine has set itself the task of making the PIWI grape varieties better known in the German wine market and increasing their acceptance.

Resistant grape varieties are therefore judged qualitatively in a separate category at the Fair Wine Award. The award ceremony for the winning wines will take place during EUROVINO 2026 – including a presentation of all award-winning wines in a tasting zone for trade and gastronomy.

What connects us? Quite simply:

Both initiatives have the word fair not only in their name, but also in their claim.

Why this partnership is important

The desire to think of wine as “fair for people and the environment” is becoming ever stronger in the industry. With FairChoice, we are bringing in a partner that has been credibly evaluating sustainability and making it visible for many years. Together we create new impulses:

• More visibility for sustainability in the wine industry
• Exchange between expertscompanies and consumers
• Further development of criteria and knowledge relating to sustainable wine production

And very importantly: there is no room for greenwashing. Our communication should inform and inspire – but never distort.

We promise ourselves a partnership that lives from mutual added value – not from monetary interests. FairChoice is visible as an official partner in various places – and we open up our network, platforms and events to each other.

We are particularly looking forward to building on our values and common ground. We are open to new ideas and hope that this will provide impetus for the further development of our future projects, from which everyone involved can benefit.

FairChoice can participate in our industry contacts and gain a European reach through trade fair activities and ambassador networks. And Fair Wine benefits from the expertise in assessing sustainability with greater credibility.

A common goal

This cooperation not only strengthens our brand – it also helps to ensure that a fair, sustainable wine industry receives more attention, relevance and impact.

We are convinced:
With FairChoice, we have gained a strong partner that complements and enriches our work.

Welcome on board – to a fair future for wine!

P.S.: More information on the work of DINE e.V. at www.dine-heilbronn.de and www.fairchoice.info

We have completed our Hamburg leg of the roadshow and it was a complete success. We weren’t in a virtual meeting room or on the phone, but actually out in the stores, at the retailer’s shelves. From business to business, with real conversations, honest feedback and a lot of genuine curiosity about what we do and what we plan to do.

Our hook was clear and strong:

The Fair Wine Award and the EUROVINO trade fair. And that was the door opener. The Fair Wine Award was perceived as a competition that is different, one that sees the retailer not as a “customer” but as a relevant partner in the process. This rethink was perceived positively – and it aroused interest.

Many people were already familiar with EUROVINO. It became clear in every conversation: the industry is looking for precisely this credible, clear specialist format. Award + trade fair in the context of sustainability + future, are a strong signal – and precisely this combination was the right decision as a starting point.

Exemplary wines from the award:

What Hamburg has shown us: Retailers don’t want the usual sales pitch. They want meaning, relevance, orientation. And – this was very clear – they don’t want the next wine made from well-known grape varieties, of which there are already enough on the shelves. Things got exciting as soon as we talked about historical grape varieties and future grape varieties (such as PIWIs). A real switch went on: a new market discourse is emerging here that works with content and identity, not with standard goods.

Our first conclusion:

The roadshow is not yet complete. Berlin, Cologne, Munich and Frankfurt are further destinations for the organizers of the Fair Wine Awards. With the kick-off in Hamburg, however, it is already clear that this campaign will be a strategic tool in its own right. We will continue to expand this, add more cities and consider at least two roadshow routes per year.

What makes it special: Proximity, presence and genuine dialog are not an “add-on option”. Today, they are one of the strongest differentiators in the wine market. Hamburg is just the beginning – other cities (Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne and Munich) will follow. The Fair Wine Award and EUROVINO are the engine, the roadshow is the ignition – and we can already see how well this is working. Dealers listen. Dealers talk to us. Retailers open doors.

Finally, we would like to say how much we appreciate the wineries that have embraced this new format and entrusted us with their wines. We at Fair Wine did not conduct any sales talks and it was never about “selling” shelf space – but we took the opportunity to present exemplary wines from the Fair Wine Award to show retailers what our winemakers stand for.

Perhaps these initial contacts will lead to new, concrete relationships between retailers and producers. If that happens, then that would be the best effect of this whole tour for us. That’s exactly why we go out. That’s exactly what we do it for.

Fair Wine goes City

The Fair Wine Award took place for the 4th time and is an integral part of EUROVINO.

It not only honors outstanding wines, but also focuses on topics such as sustainability, innovation and diversity. But the organizers don’t want to stop at just handing over the certificates. In fall 2025, the Fair Wine Road Show will therefore be launched for the first time – an initiative that brings award-winning wines directly to leading retailers in Germany.

More than just a competition: from the award to retail

Many wine prizes end with an award that confers prestige but often creates only limited visibility in the trade. This is exactly where the Road Show comes in. Between October and mid-November 2025, the Fair Wine team will be touring the five largest German cities and presenting selected wines from the award where purchasing decisions are made: in specialist shops.

“We want to show that there is also a real marketing concept behind the award,” explains co-organizer Michael Kugel. “The Road Show offers winegrowers the opportunity to present their wines in a professional setting without having to travel themselves.”

Personal contacts, real opportunities

The special feature: The tastings take place exclusively by appointment with interested retailers. This creates a targeted exchange without wastage. The presentation is supported by experienced wine and sales experts such as Denis Duhme, Michael Kugel and Dr. Hermann Pilz, who present the wines competently and at the same time obtain valuable feedback from the retailers.

For the wineries, this means that they learn directly how their wines are perceived in the trade – and can make new contacts for long-term cooperation. For retailers, in turn, the Road Show offers the opportunity to discover exciting products that have already undergone a certain pre-selection and quality assurance through the Fair Wine Award.

A sign of visibility and sustainability

The Road Show underlines the idea that wine prices today have to be more than just symbolic. In an increasingly diverse and competitive market, direct sales opportunities and personal contacts are crucial.

In addition, the tour creates awareness for the Fair Wine Award itself, which will be held for the fifth time in 2026 as part of the EUROVINO trade fair. This closes the circle: competition, visibility, trade – an overall concept that benefits winegrowers and retailers alike.

Outlook

The Fair Wine Road Show 2025 is an exciting experiment and at the same time a signal: those who receive awards should also be heard – not only by jurors, but also by the people who pass wines on to consumers. For the participating wineries, it is an opportunity to position themselves in major German cities. For the trade, this opens up a curated view of what is currently moving the wine world.

If you would like to know more, write to michael.kugel@fair-wine.com and we will send you detailed information.