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Tomislav Marković
Baden, Germany7 wines3.9 avg
43
German-born winemaker of Croatian heritage in Baden - trained at de Montille and in the Douro, now growing Sauvignon Blanc from Loire stock and Touriga Nacional in Germany.
Tomislav Marković's story follows a familiar pattern - banker turns winemaker - but the details are specific. Born and raised in Germany's Rhine/Main region to a Croatian family from Slavonia, he spent his early career in Frankfurt's financial world. The pull toward wine came on home leaves in Croatia, where his uncle walked him through bottles and vineyards until curiosity took hold.
In 2011 he left banking and enrolled at Weincampus Neustadt to study viticulture and oenology. Practical training followed in two places with very different gravities: Vieira de Sousa in the Douro, and Domaine de Montille in Volnay. He then worked as a consultant in organic viticulture before launching his own label.
In 2016 Tomislav set up as a négociant-éleveur - a model borrowed from Burgundy and the Douro, where a winemaker without land buys fruit and works it in the cellar. For a newcomer without vineyards of his own, it was both the obvious move and the difficult one: access to good sites is exactly what newcomers don't have. He found 0.5 ha worth of grapes in Rheinhessen (Goldenes Horn, Heerkretz) and built from there.
In 2019 he planted his first own vines - 0.5 ha in Baden, Sauvignon Blanc on Loire rootstock. In 2021 he added Touriga Nacional, reportedly the first planting of the variety in Germany. The winery is based in Breisach am Rhein, on the Kaiserstuhl.
