(Manfred Klimek / Editorial team / pic: royalityfree)
There are always good moments to pause. For Wineparty, that moment has now arrived. Today, we are taking our summer break, which will last until 1 September. There will be one exception: the major wine features for WELT am SONNTAG will of course continue to appear here (especially the Markgräflerland articles). And should something happen in the wine world that no one should overlook, we will also report back. Otherwise, however, the rule is: we are taking a break. Because we are preparing for autumn.
Because when Wineparty returns at the beginning of September, it will be a different one.
Not when it comes to journalism – that will remain as it is and what it is. Wineparty 3.0 will have a new look, become clearer and more modern, while at the same time focusing even more strongly on what has mattered to us from the outset: precise texts, clear opinions and the conviction that wine is far more than a drink. In parallel, the Drink app will also launch with a new look, which we have been working on for many months. It will add another dimension to Wineparty and connect our content more closely with the world of wines, bars and restaurants.
Above all, however, in autumn we will take a step that even major media companies have not taken so far. For years, the digital media world has been discussing how quality journalism can be funded in the future. Many talk about it. Only a few actually change anything. We have decided to stop waiting for other people’s answers. Wineparty will try out a new model. One that leaves readers the greatest possible freedom while at the same time once again directly tying good journalism to its value. Will it work? We do not know today. But we are convinced that innovation always begins where someone is prepared to take a calculable risk.
That, incidentally, has always been the story of wine too. Every significant development began with people who were prepared to work against established habits. New grape varieties, new cellar techniques, organic viticulture, natural wine, low-alcohol wines – none of these came about because everyone was immediately enthusiastic. They came about because a few people had the courage to try something out.
We also want to preserve that courage as a media outlet.
Wineparty was never intended as a pure news platform. We were always interested in the stories behind the vessels, the people behind the wineries and the cultural changes that can often be recognised earlier through wine than elsewhere. That will not change in the future either. On the contrary. We want to pursue this idea even more consistently.
Until then, we wish you a summer that holds precisely what wine has stood for for thousands of years: time. Conversations. Friends. A good meal. Perhaps a bottle you have been wanting to open for a long time. Perhaps just a simple Schoppen beneath a shady tree. Wine knows no hierarchies. It works everywhere people come together.
We will see you again on 1 September.
With new ideas.
With renewed energy.
And with Wineparty 3.0. 🍷