Blog wine store JAoderWEIN
Take a walk on the wine side
"Welcome to our WineWalk 'In the Shadow of the Cathedral'." With a glass of Secco, a winning smile, and a friendly greeting, Thorsten and Volker Griebel begin their thematically diverse WineWalks through Mainz's old town. Equipped with a branded handcart with wine bottles in a cooler, the two passionate wine experts guide groups of up to 20 people through Mainz's old town.
"We have around 85 wines in our range!" – Volker Griebel has counted them. "Mainly from Rheinhessen, but also from surrounding wine-growing regions such as the Rheingau, the Nahe, and the Middle Rhine," adds his husband Thorsten. Both have always loved wine – for Thorsten, it was his father who appreciated Bordeaux wines and champagne, for Volker, it was his trips to the Rheingau.
There are eight different themed walks to choose from, such as the inventor of printing Johannes Gutenberg, the photo walk with a smartphone, the winemaker walk, or the Mainz carnival. In addition to interesting stories about the chosen theme, guests can taste up to four wines at selected stops during the two-hour WineWalk.
Career changers in the wine industry
Since 2020, Thorsten from North Frisia and Volker Griebel from Mainz have turned their hobby into a business: in 2023, they added a wine shop in Mainz's old town as their "base camp." The lawyer and economist are now certified wine experts. "We are always on the lookout for up-and-coming, as yet unknown small wineries and often surprise our guests with insider tips!" – this is how they express their love of wine. The two often have wineries on their radar that are later named "Discovery of the Year" in wine guides – something they are very proud of.
on a first-name basis with the wine experts
Companies often sign up for WineWalks, but private groups do too. "Guests appreciate the low threshold—there are no stupid questions about wine here!" explains Thorsten. What is the difference between Prosecco and Secco? How is "Blanc des Noirs" made? The Griebels create an atmosphere on their wine tours that makes asking questions fun. Wine knowledge is conveyed in a playful and charming way. They explain even complex topics such as orange wine in a clear and vivid manner – for example, by simply talking about their own orange wine project with a winemaker friend. Communication is simply in their blood.
The tour guides who accompany Thorsten and Volker on the WineWalks are all highly qualified wine experts: many are cultural and wine ambassadors, and wine royalty are also sometimes among them. The Griebels value quality – they don't see themselves as a mobile wine bar, but as representatives of a relaxed, modern wine culture.
Guests come from all over Germany – for foreign-language visitors, the WineWalk is also available in English. Half of the customers come from Mainz and the surrounding area – they are rediscovering their homeland in a vinological way. Incidentally, the currently most popular wine is tongue-in-cheek called "SCHAPPLI," a Sauvignon Blanc from the Nahe wine-growing region from the Schappert winery in Sponheim.
The Great Wine Capitals Best of Wine Tourism Award 2025 in the category "Wine Tourism Service" goes to the wine shop JAoderWEIN and WineWalks in Mainz. The jury honors the regional wine selection and the communication of city history and wine culture "to go" in the historic city of Mainz.
About the blogger
TV and wine journalist Wolfgang Junglas works for SWR television in Mainz in the entertainment department, where he is responsible for programs such as "Wahl der Deutschen Weinkönigin" (German Wine Queen Pageant). He is an author, chairman of Weinfeder eV, president of FIJEV, and lecturer at Geisenheim University—and, since 2021, blogger for GWC Mainz | Rheinhessen.