Eva Eppard is shaking up Rheinhessen cuisine at the time-honored Kupferberg restaurant

The ancient trees in the park have witnessed famous figures like Otto von Bismarck, endless champagne parties—but also the horrors of war that swept over Mainz. The wonderful, enchanted old garden once belonged to the Kupferberg sparkling wine cellar; the large, old brick building overlooks the rooftops of Mainz. Inside, rooms like the “Gold Room” or the “Chardonnay Hall” preserve memories of a time of splendor and grandeur, when Germany’s most famous sparkling wine—Kupferberg Gold—was produced here.

“You can sense that people celebrated—or experienced sad moments—in these rooms,” said Eva Eppard, “every room here tells a story.” This contemplative side doesn’t seem to fit at all with the slender, dynamic woman—the restaurant manager has led an eventful life and runs two restaurants: the Kupferberg and the 100-Gulden-Mühle in Appenheim. A native of Rheinhessen, she is one of Germany’s most talented chefs and has already won numerous awards in the kitchen. In 2016, she won the Great Wine Capitals’ international “Best of Wine Tourism Award” for her cuisine.

Rabbit sandwich with peach horseradish, trout fillet with heirloom carrot purée and basil foam—Eppard’s cuisine is both extraordinary and down-to-earth. For six years, she headed the gourmet kitchen at the Atrium Hotel in Mainz; in 2012, she fulfilled her dream of opening her own restaurant—the new Kupferberg. It was 1850 when Christian Adalbert Kupferberg founded the sparkling wine cellar, which quickly became one of the most famous and finest in the world. The cellars extend 60 stories deep into the mountain above Mainz; they are the deepest sparkling wine cellars in the world. Sparkling wine production has long since been relocated; a museum now preserves the old rooms and treasures.

The space that once housed the boutique now seats 80 guests. Warm browns and golds fill the old vaulted ceilings, accented by cushions in fresh green. Behind the bar: a long row of wine bottles, most of them from Rheinhessen. “We’re a melting pot of fine wine here,” says Eppard, singing the praises of the region’s young winemakers, who have made Rheinhessen one of the most dynamic wine-growing regions. Kühling-Gillot, Gutzler, Thörle—Eppard’s wine list features the best of the best.

What does Rheinhessen taste like? “Salty,” says Eppard, “earthy, green, and fruity—just like life.” Eppard knows what she’s talking about: Born in Mainz, she grew up in Appenheim, a small village in the heart of Rheinhessen, surrounded by vineyards as far as the eye can see. The people here are down-to-earth, direct, and uncompromising. “And they love to celebrate,” says Eppard, “the people here are full of joie de vivre.”

It must be partly due to the French heritage, which is so rich here in Rheinhessen; the French left behind a clear preference for good cuisine. Eppard herself has traveled the world—Switzerland, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean—but it was her reinterpretation of her own local cuisine that really caught people’s attention. “I’ve always wanted to cook,” she says, shrugging her shoulders: “The joy of combining flavors has simply always been there.”

Cutting-edge cuisine with top-notch regional products—that's Eppard's style. The beef comes from a farm in Bad Kreuznach, the herbs from a herb school in Mainz. "We need to value regional products more," says Eppard, and if anything can break through her iron grip, it's the Germans' "cheap is cool" mentality when it comes to food.

"Meat wasn't eaten every day in the past," she says decisively, "we could have fewer lifestyle diseases and healthier bodies." In the land of schnitzel and roast meat, this is still a radical view.

Nevertheless, schnitzel and wild garlic bratwurst are of course also part of Eppard's menu, especially when it comes to barbecuing in the old Kupferberg gardens or in the vineyards. "We need more courage to break new ground in cooking and in the region," says Eppard—yet she raves most about her grandmother's culinary skills. "The best," she says, "the best salad dressing ever." She pauses and adds, "And I just can't get it right." Perhaps we haven't seen the best of Eva Eppard yet.