It is thanks to pioneers like Albrecht Schwegler from Korb near Stuttgart, Fürst Hohenlohe-Öhringen, Gerhard Roth from Wiesenbronn in Franconia or Paul Fürst that the image of the red wine cuvée has gradually changed. As early as the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, they began producing high-quality red blends that claimed to be at least equal in quality and price to the best Pinot Noirs in the country.
As a result, more and more producers were inspired to create high-quality red cuvées, mostly as a niche product in the range, but a few also built a large part of their success on this type of wine.
But there is no such thing as a "wine type". The range is wide. Some imitate classic models, especially Bordeaux, others assemble mainly indigenous varieties. The growing interest in fungus-resistant new varieties is expanding the field even further. A small niche is occupied by the "old set" or "mixed set", in which the individual varieties grow together on one plot from the outset and are harvested and vinified together.
This is perhaps also the shortcoming that red wine cuvées still have in Germany: they have no identity of their own, no comprehensible common character of origin or region. You have to know the individual wine to get an idea of what to expect. But they all benefit from the idea that the whole is better than the sum of its parts. That is the art of assemblage. Of course, not everyone masters it equally well. But more and more are doing it.
We tasted around 100 red cuvées from Germany this year, of which we present the best here. Unfortunately, not all the important representatives of this wine category accepted our invitation, which is why one or two well-known names and their wines are sadly missing. Wines that are still to be presented to us will automatically be added here. Links to all the wines tasted with detailed descriptions and their producers can be found at the end of each list.