WINE WITH VALUES

The company Wine.Diamonds from Scharnstein in Upper Austria supplies top wines with individual designs for companies, parties and restaurants. Now the Austrians are launching a special edition for a good cause with the Hope.Diamonds project. The goal: 5 million euros for the Jugend Eine Welt Foundation. The elegantly embossed and individualized metal badges and other emblems for the 3600 bottles come from RATHGEBER. An interview with CEO Christian Katzengruber about quality, values and his revolution of the wine market.

Enjoy good things and talk about them - the Hope.Diamonds project aims to raise 5 million euros for the Youth One World Foundation. You have set your sights high.

We run Hope.Diamonds as a non-profit company and already donate 60 percent of our sales. This is a project close to my heart and that of my partner Roman, where anyone who wants to help can help.

But it's also about a new way of doing business.

We want to show that even in today's world, a company can operate on a sound financial footing and do good for society at the same time. We have therefore launched a special edition under the motto "Donate and enjoy": Limited to 6,000 bottles, a special Austrian portified wine is available exclusively for our supporters ...

... quasi Austrian port wine.

In terms of type, yes, but the term is geographically protected, as with champagne, hence the term "portified wine". This was carefully handcrafted over five years in the old Portuguese tradition. The difference is that we use pure Grüner Veltliner grapes from the best vineyards in Austria.

But not everyone who wants to help can spend over 800 euros on a bottle of wine

That's true. That's why we have a special pricing model in which each bottle has a different price - from 60 cents to 3,600 euros. This allows people from all income levels, from students to board members, to invest an amount that is appropriate for them.

Special attention is also paid to packaging and labeling. Why is this so important for the Hope.Diamonds project?

Not only the wine, but also the bottles themselves should be part of a total work of art, each bottle a unique piece. That's why each label bears an individual serial number.

A cliché says that elaborate bottles are needed to conceal weak wines.

I know that. But in our case, that's nonsense. Our Portified wine comes from Lower Austria, from the absolute top sites in the Kamptal. I would go so far as to say that our wine is a true work of art. And that's how the label fits in: as part of this overall work of art.

What makes the label so unique?

In addition to the individual serial number, it is the elaborate design with the raised embossing. The label shows the values we stand for, emphasizes innovation and diversity, shows animals and plants of the world and conveys spirituality. That is something very special.

The three-dimensional emblems and the elegant certificates are from RATHGEBER. How did you come together?

We ended up at RATHGEBER because we were looking for high-quality emblems. We were looking for the best quality, high-quality packaging that looked and felt good. We had a good feeling about RATHGEBER right from the start - the expertise with which we were advised here is simply something very special.

The topic of climate protection certainly also played a role

Of course. The focus was initially on the product itself, as well as the simple and highly professional processing at RATHGEBER. The fact that our label is now also completely climate-neutral naturally suits us very well, which makes us very happy.

How was the collaboration with RATHGEBER?

I like the fact that I'm always picked up exactly where I am. That's no exaggeration: my expectations were exceeded every time I called. We were looking for a special label and found it. A company with great values, top quality, a good price structure and really good delivery times. It hardly gets any better than that.

Wine.Diamonds is behind Hope.Diamonds. There, too, you are all about change: in production and in consumption.

That's right. We are always on the lookout for special sites and special reserve wines, only the best is bottled. There are so many great small winegrowers with very high quality - we work with them. We don't just help with marketing, we take over entire vintages. We want to change the wine market. It's no longer the winemaker who has to take care of advertising, design and sales at wine fairs. We bottle and sell under the name Wine.Diamonds. In this way, we guarantee our customers the highest quality and enjoyment. We guarantee the winemaker's income.

Values are particularly important to you. Why does this apply to wine in particular?

We want to create a product that changes the market. We want people to think about values again. This is particularly fitting for wine. Here, consumption and appreciation are inextricably linked. We consciously enjoy and appreciate the work of the winemakers.