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Helmut Mathern with his family

Modesty was not only an adornment for him, but an attitude to life. Without much fuss, Helmut Mathern - at first together with his father Oskar, who died in 1993 - established the estate in Niederhausen, which had grown to 12 hectares over time, in the top of all wine estates on the Nahe. He was less driven by ambition than by the desire to be able to offer his customers as good wine as possible at moderate prices. His Rieslings were to be drunk with pleasure and a good conscience and not to be put away and worshipped in the back corner of the cellar.

Nevertheless, even the simplest of Mathern's wines often had class and character. In a blind tasting of Nahe Rieslings, they could always be identified by their firm structure, clear fruit and spicy minerality. Without the slightest obtrusiveness, they made their mark and each sip contained an invitation to the next.

The increased quality did not go unnoticed by the Regional Association of Prädikat Wine Estates (VDP), whose requests for membership he steadfastly resisted. Here, too, he put the needs of his clientele before the gain of money and prestige.

Therefore, the Mathern wine estate remained completely unknown to pure "label drinkers". Helmut Mathern's wines were not suitable as status symbols. Those who found their way to Niederhausen were driven by the desire to enjoy, not by the desire to show off. The community of Mathern fans may not have been particularly large, but it was always pleasant company. This was also the case when I visited Helmut Mathern at his winery a few weeks ago. Time was short and the big wooden table in front of the house was full of good-humored people, he himself - friendly and modest - in the middle of it.

I didn't know Helmut Mathern well enough to say I would miss him personally. But for the German wine scene with its loud professions and much too often meager results, the death of this man, who combined restraint with passion and great skill, is without a doubt a great loss

Even though most people might never notice this.

Helmut Mathern died of cancer last weekend. He is survived by his wife Gloria and their two children Luisa and Henning.

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