The plaque lists them all: Gunderloch, Gehring, Schätzel—they’re all here. Right in front of me, on the table—the best German winemakers from the Rheinhessen region, engraved on a beautiful plaque made of various types of wood, with a cooling rail down the middle. How fitting: The wine bottles literally stand on what this place is all about: winemakers, diversity, and natural origins. 

Along the walls: bottle after bottle of wine crowd the shelves in this room with its high ceilings. “We have wines from about 150 winemakers from Rheinhessen here,” says Sigrid Hahn, “three wines per winery.” While that sounds like a lot, it’s actually just a small selection: After all, Rheinhessen is Germany’s largest wine-growing region, with hundreds of tiny wine villages, each home to various wineries. “In some villages, we had to draw lots to decide who would be represented here,” says Hahn. She used to be the managing director of the farmers’ association, where she was also in charge of the rural youth group—“all potential candidates for a spot here,” she says, glancing at the wine rack.

Thörle, Manz, Kühling-Gillot, Sigrid Hahn knows them all. The managing director of the Rheinhessenvinothek grew up on a winery herself, in Ober-Hilbersheim, one of those tiny wine villages with beautiful half-timbered houses in the hinterland of Mainz. “I actually wanted to become a veterinarian,” Hahn says with a laugh; the family had five horses. A graduate in agricultural engineering, she studied agriculture and married a winemaker. Today, her sons run the “Weinmanufaktur Brummund,” which also owns an old blacksmith’s shop. Hahn herself went into the wine business—and discovered a talent.

"Something light, aged in oak, or a real heavyweight?" she asks just as a customer strolls into the wine shop. The young woman is looking for a wine for Saturday dinner with friends; they’ll be having Spanish quiche. “There’s such a wide selection here,” she marvels. “You definitely won’t be buying a pig in a poke,” Hahn reassures her, “all the wines here are excellent.” In the end, the customer buys a light Pinot Noir aged in stainless steel and also picks up a “Lässisch Rhoihessisch”—a light white wine blend from Mainz.

She could also have chosen a genuine Spanish wine, or one from South Africa, Chile, or Argentina. “We have at least two wines here from every Great Wine Capital worldwide,” Hahn says proudly. While most wine shops showcase their own products or those of the region, the Rheinhessenvinothek is different: This is the true home of the Great Wine Capitals in all their diversity. No wonder they won the Best Of Wine Tourism Award in the wine tourism category in 2017—not just in Germany, but internationally as well.

It was 2015 when the restaurant next door in the old Proviantamt ran into trouble: The managing director died unexpectedly, and the restaurant itself struggled with its large, open spaces that had a slight train station vibe. “The city of Mainz had always wanted a Rheinhessen wine bar,” Hahn recalls, “and in my boss, they had someone who listened.” Her boss is Karl Strack, a building contractor with a big heart for Rheinhessen and its delights.

Strack didn’t just listen—he took action: Part of the huge restaurant halls was partitioned off and transformed into a wine sanctuary, where the lamps are made of hanging wine bottles and a large table right at the entrance invites guests to linger. “You can’t buy happiness and joy, but you can buy a bottle of wine…,” reads a sign right next to it.

Riesling and Scheurebe, as well as Bacchus, Würzer, and Accolon, are available here, along with Roter Muskateller, which people were already drinking back in Martin Luther’s day. “From Worms to Alzey and up to Bingen, you can sample wines from Rheinhessen here,” says Hahn, “and many people don’t even realize that there are good wineries in the farthest corners as well.” And so it’s by no means just tourists who visit the Rheinhessen Vinothek—locals come too, and the wines are sold at the same prices as at the wineries.

There are also readings and wine tastings, and Hahn reveals that an open-air play is even in the works: Markus Müller, artistic director of the State Theater, has written a play specifically for the Vinothek. What will it be about? “Oh, everything,” says Hahn: “Wine, culture, joie de vivre, relaxation, enjoyment—everything that makes Mainz what it is.”