BOCHOLT WINE FESTIVAL 2026 on St Georg's Square

Bocholt. The 30th anniversary edition of the Palatinate Wine Festival was celebrated in Bocholt this year - and once again, the people of Bocholt and their guests, as well as us at the town's marketing department and the winegrowers from the Palatinate, thoroughly enjoyed to experience and organise the wine festival in Bocholt. It was absolutely the right decision to extend the site towards Ravardistraße, as the wine stalls there were also well attended and the overall area was spread out a little more. This was certainly necessary given the huge crowds on Friday and Saturday. The new winemakers from the Palatinate - Lammering and Eberley - were pleased and are keen to return in 2027. "Friday and Saturday brought perfect wine festival weather - not too warm and not too cold. There were so many people there: brilliant! On Sunday, unfortunately, there were the odd shower and it was windy, but even that didn't put visitors off," sums up Ludger Dieckhues, Managing Director of Stadtmarketing.

As for the winegrowers from the Palatinate, they're always delighted and keen to come back to Bocholt. "Guests and winegrowers, restaurants, pubs, food stalls and ice-cream parlour owners had a really good time and plenty to do around the Historic Town Hall and St George's Church - and this year, our water features on the market square were also part of the wine festival. For us at the town's marketing department, it's a highlight of the summer holidays in Bocholt, where people meet up and chat about what they've been up to or what's coming up," says Ludger Dieckhues once again. "A festival where people celebrate in style and where, once again this year, plenty of wine was drunk in a great atmosphere, especially on Friday and Saturday evenings."

As early as Friday afternoon, the square filled up very quickly and there was a relaxed, almost Mediterranean atmosphere. By the time the opening ceremony began at 5.00 pm, led by Mayor Christian Mangen, Wine Queen Mona I and City Marketing Managing Director Ludger Dieckhues, all the tables and bar stools were already occupied, with numerous guests of honour gathered in front of the stage, along with just as many former wine queens. As is traditional, the Sporker Musikanten played on the day, and an enthusiastic (regular) crowd was in attendance. There was a merry celebration with wine, dancing and singing. Wines were sampled, and young and old alike enjoyed themselves chatting, tucking into tarte flambée, tapas, snacks and the odd glass of wine. Later on, St. Georg's Square and the extended area towards Ravardistraße were absolutely packed: bar tables, bar stools, chairs and benches on and around the fountain were extremely well occupied.

A proper wine party was then held - as it is every year - on Saturday evening: by the afternoon, St Georg's Square was already a constant magnet for wine lovers and visitors to the city centre. And by early evening, the square was already so full that visitors were scrambling for tables and bar stools, gathering in groups and enjoying the evening in a convivial, wine-fuelled atmosphere. It was warm; nothing stood in the way of the wine party. Young and old mingled in a colourful mix.

""It's brilliant how the people of Bocholt know how to party - time and time again!"," said winemaker Gerd Pfaffmann from Impflingen. The wine flowed freely, and the winemakers gave it their all. And thanks to Klaus McKing, there was dancing at the wine festival later in the evening! "People are enjoying the wine, the atmosphere is brilliant, and unlike other festivals, there are loads and loads of young people!", added winemaker Ute Sommer from Klingen. At around 1.00 am, the winemakers and the town's marketing team began the big clear-up, as the square had to be cleaned up in time for the first Sunday Mass at St George's. The amount of rubbish generated has now also risen dramatically at the wine festival.

On Sunday, the festival began at 11.30 am in mixed and windy weather, straight after the end of Sunday Mass at St George's. Father Matthias Hembrock had arranged for wine vouchers, so the wine stalls were immediately busy with guests. And so a cosy afternoon of wine unfolded, featuring the duo "Boogie & More%$, though unfortunately marred by wind and showers. ""But after Friday and Saturday, nobody here - neither the winegrowers nor the town marketing team - is complaining,"" said Ludger Dieckhues from the town marketing team. ""It's just a shame for the guests.""

Dana I. (Christians) is Bocholt's new Wine Queen. She was drawn on Sunday lunchtime from the large champagne bucket containing a total of 75 applications: 60 female applicants and 15 male applicants. There have never been so many applications! This year, too, people could apply not only using the forms provided but also digitally by scanning a barcode. As always, the winegrowers had taken the precaution of selecting three application forms in case of any withdrawals. When she received a call from Ludger Dieckhues, managing director of Stadtmarketing, Dana I. replied enthusiastically: ""Of course - I'm in and I'm really looking forward to it!""

Dana I. lives in Bocholt; she is 35 years old and single. She works as a freight forwarding clerk at a large logistics company in Bocholt. Dana's hobbies include spending time with her two dogs and her many friends, with whom she spends a lot of her free time: ""Some of them will be celebrating with me - with us - as the evening goes on!"" says the new Wine Queen, looking forward to Sunday evening at the wine festival. "I'm definitely a wine lover; I've even been on wine tours," says Dana I. "And we love going to the Bocholt Wine Festival time and time again - I used to work as a waitress there quite often years ago," she explains. Dana I. enjoys drinking dry white wine and rosé. On Sunday evening, she went from wine stall to wine stall, chatting to the winemakers and accepting congratulations from visitors to the wine festival.

The outgoing Wine Queen, Mona I., presided over the coronation of the new Wine Queen at 6 pm on Sunday on St. Georg Square, together with Ludger Dieckhues, managing director of Stadtmarketing. Even the onset of a shower did nothing to dampen the mood. Dana I received a voucher for a weekend in the Palatinate, a case of Palatinate wine, a valuable surprise in the form of a necklace, donated by jeweller Hermeier (Max and Julia Bollwerk were there in person), tickets for the Bahia concert in September and a bouquet of flowers - and as she made her way round the square from stall to stall, she received many warm congratulations. In the coming months, she will be attending events such as the opening of the funfair and the Christmas market.

Partners

The wine festival is organised by the Bocholt Economic Development and City Marketing Association. Many thanks to Stadtwerker, Volksbank Bocholt and Getränke Fako-M for their generous support of the wine festival.