Weingut Georg Müller Stiftung is located in Hattenheim in the Rheingau. It was founded in 1882 by Georg Müller, who was part of the well known sparkling wine house Matheus Müller in Eltville. In 1913 the estate was donated to the local community of Hattenheim and became the Georg Müller Stiftung. The estate later came under the town of Eltville before being privatised in 2003, when Peter Winter purchased it and invested heavily in restoring the historic buildings and modernising the winery.
Since 2013 the estate has been managed by Tim Lilienström, who previously studied in Geisenheim and Bordeaux and worked in the Nahe and Provence. The family’s next generation joined in 2016, when Daniel and later Katharina Winter began contributing to sales, marketing and export. The estate is a long standing member of the VDP and was among the founding members in 1910.
Today the winery farms about 20 hectares of vineyards across Hattenheim, Hallgarten, Oestrich and Assmannshausen. Vine age averages more than twenty five years, and around sixty percent of the holdings are classified as VDP Grosse Lage or VDP Erste Lage. Soils include loamy loess, alluvial deposits, slate and quartzite. Annual production is about one hundred and twenty thousand bottles.
Viticulture and Vineyard Management
The estate follows sustainable and careful vineyard work. It avoids mineral fertilisers and instead focuses on humus building measures and diverse plant cover to maintain healthy soils. Work is mostly by hand, including pruning, canopy work and harvest. The estate limits yields to well below legal limits, with a maximum average of 55 hectolitres per hectare. The vineyards are managed according to environmentally responsible and integrated viticulture practices.
This approach supports loose and healthy fruit and allows each site to express its character. The winery also holds FairChoice sustainability certification.
Winemaking and Ageing
Grapes are processed gently with long pressing times at low pressure. Pumping is reduced as much as possible to protect the fruit purity of the wines. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks, in French oak barriques and in traditional large oak casks. Red wines ferment and mature in small oak barrels. Some wines receive batonnage, and the maturation period for barrique aged wines ranges from 10-18 months.
White wines ferment at controlled temperatures, which helps preserve natural sweetness when required. Auxerrois is partly fermented in oak and also used for sparkling wine without oak contact. The estate aims to let each wine develop naturally with minimal intervention.
Grape Varieties and Wine Style
Riesling is the main variety, covering about 72% of the estate holdings. Pinot Noir covers around 15%, and 4% is Auxerrois. Smaller plantings include Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Scheurebe, Roter Riesling, Ehrenfelser, Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
Riesling forms the core style of the estate, expressing freshness, clear fruit and marked site character. The range includes dry, off dry, sweet and noble sweet styles. Wines from Grosse Lage sites show depth and long ageing potential. Pinot Noir is harvested by hand, destemmed and fermented on the skins for about 2 weeks before ageing in small oak barrels, producing structured and site driven wines across the different villages.
Estate Sites
The estate farms many recognised sites, including Wisselbrunnen, Hassel, Nussbrunnen, Jungfer and Lenchen, along with several Erste Lage vineyards such as Schützenhaus, Engelmannsberg, Hendelberg, Klosterberg and Frankenthal. These vineyards range from quartzite rich slopes to deep loess and marl, allowing the estate to produce a wide range of Riesling and Pinot Noir styles that reflect their origin.
Awards and Recognition
The winery has received many national and international awards. Recognised distinctions include the Bundesehrenpreis, Best Riesling of Europe at the International Riesling Challenge in Canberra, Best dry Riesling at Mundus Vini and the award for Best red wine collection by the DLG.
More recently, the estate was named Best German Winery for the seventh time at Mundus Vini in 2024 and received three stars in the Eichelmann wine guide. It was also named Family Business of the Year by the China Wine and Spirits Awards.
Wine and Art
The estate offers a combined wine and art experience through rotating exhibitions in its event space and permanent installations in its art cellar. Wine tastings are organized to match selected artworks, bringing together creative expression and the character of each wine. This reflects the estate’s philosophy of combining tradition, culture and wine.
