- "Tradition that lives" - Queen of Wine title to remain
From the latest dispute over the tradition of the Palatine Wine Queen, winemakers in Baden and Württemberg are little impressed. While winegrowers on the other side of the Rhine have been recently debating the title of Germany's oldest wine monarch, the winegrowing associations of Baden and Württemberg prefer to stick to the tradition of crowning and the well-established name.
Modernizing the Tradition
"It's a tradition that's alive," said Hermann Morast, managing director of the Württemberg Winegrowers' Association, to the German Press Agency. "And it won't change because of an external societal debate." For the Baden winemakers, their association emphasized that a contemporary design of the office of the wine queens is more important than a potential new title.
In Germany's second-largest growing area, the title should no longer be "Palatine Wine Queen" in the future, according to the Pfalzwein association responsible for regional wine promotion. Instead, it should be "Pfalz Wine Ambassador" or "Pfalz Wine Ambassador". Instead of crowns, there should now be badges in the competition, which is also open to men. The mayor of Neustadt, Marc Weigel, spoke out against this, saying it would devalue the brand.
After the election of the Palatine Wine Queen on October 4 in Neustadt, a long-term concept is to be created. According to Pfalzwein, the election should be put on a broader footing. Either a queen will be crowned who will also wear a crown, or, in the case of a man winning, a wine monarch who will receive a golden badge. Depending on the outcome of the election, there will also be princesses with a crown or a wine monarch with a silver badge, as explained by Pfalzwein.
Württemberg's winemakers stick to the title
The question of a change of title was also discussed in the Württemberg Winegrowers' Association, admitted managing director Morast. And of course, the association is facing the challenge of bringing tradition into the modern age without changing its fundamentals. "But titles also make up tradition," said Morast. "That's why we're sticking to the title and tradition in Württemberg."
The future competition for the wine crown will also be open to women. "If there are still serious applications from men, we will of course look at them," promised Morast, whose association has around 12,500 members in the growing area of Württemberg and represents over 95 percent of producers and wine volume. "But that hasn't happened in all these years."
The Baden winegrowers also want to modernize the office of the wine queens
Similarly, the neighboring Baden winemakers, whose wine region elected Lucia Winterhalter from Bad Krozingen (Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district) as the 74th Baden Wine Queen just a few weeks ago, said: "For us as the Baden Winegrowers' Association, the contemporary design of the office of the wine queens is more important than a potential new title," said managing director Holger Klein. The association places great value on the professional qualifications of its wine queens. They are important multipliers for Baden wine and wine culture in the region and for the association with its over 450 members.
The office is not merely a representative task due to the committee work. "Besides the established tradition, that's also one of the main reasons why we see the office in female hands," said Klein. "Our industry is still rather male-dominated. In our understanding, the time as Wine Queen is also a gateway for female up-and-coming professionals."
The Baden winegrowers' association expresses interest in modernizing the office of their wine queens, Prioritizing a contemporary design over a potential new title. Meanwhile, Württemberg's winemakers, like their counterparts in The Netherlands, prefer to preserve their tradition, maintaining the title and associated crown in their competition.
