"We've brought Pinot Noir to our walls and floors," says Michael Werner, pointing to the dark blue color that surrounds us. The deep purple-blue indeed reflects the color of the red grapes that grow on the hills around Ingelheim, a small town in Rheinhessen that is nicknamed the "red wine town." Leaves from grapevines float in the deep dark blue sea at our feet, forming swarms in front of the doorsteps of the rooms.

Yes, the IBB Hotel in the heart of Ingelheim exudes wine culture wherever you look. The door frames glow in bright green, a color reminiscent of spring leaves in the vineyards. Comfortable armchairs and sofas in bright red invite you to sink into the cushions and enjoy a glass of the region's excellent red wines. "We live in one of the most dynamic wine regions in Germany," says Werner, "and we have these magnificent Pinot Noirs here."

In August 2017, the IBB Hotel Ingelheim opened its doors, brand new and right at the central intersection of Ingelheim. Opposite are the town hall and the "King," as they call the new convention center here—the name also recalls the king who once ruled from here: Charlemagne.

The IBB is part of an international hotel chain with 13 hotels in four countries. Normally, hotel chains are not necessarily known for their individual design; most of them rely on the same brand standard wherever the guest happens to be staying. This hotel is different, and perhaps that's because they have Michael Werner. The 48-year-old hotel manager has been living and breathing wine culture in Rheinhessen for years. With his hotel in Alzey, he won the Best of Wine Tourism award for his wine picnics and wine discovery tours in a vintage bus through the region's vineyards.

The new hotel in Ingelheim now offers him the opportunity to express his enthusiasm for wine throughout an entire building. In the hotel rooms, everything is bathed in the colors of wine. The deep red of Burgundy covers the walls and carpet, the small shelves are just as red and green as the rings around the lamps—white wine and red wine swirl around every edge. Old wine engravings hang on the headboards behind the beds. No wonder they won the Best of Wine Tourism Award for accommodation in their very first year.

The four-story building has 109 rooms with 215 beds, and the restaurant at the top under the roof offers a sweeping view over the fields from Ingelheim to the vine-covered hills. Ingelheim is a booming town in the backyard of the large capital Mainz, home to the global corporation Boehringer Ingelheim. Just up the road, however, lie the ruins of Charlemagne's medieval imperial palace – Ingelheim was already a center of power in the 8th century.

It was at this very time that the first red wine vines were planted on the hills of Ingelheim, for which the town is now famous in the middle of the white wine region of Rheinhessen. "It is the special microclimate and the limestone soils that make these wonderful white Burgundies and spectacular red wines possible," said Werner. Indeed: Arndt F. Werner, Wasem, Bettenheimer, Neus – the hotel is literally surrounded by the big names in the wine-growing guild.

On weekends, Werner's guests come here to Ingelheim to discover these wineries, the numerous wine festivals, the variations of Sauvignon Blancs, Chardonnays, and Pinot Noirs – or the sparkling wine made from Gelber Muskateller. Several dozen of these heavenly products are on the hotel's wine list, and with a little luck, the host himself will open the hotel bar for a very personal tasting.

Otherwise, there is always the culinary calendar with wine tastings with winemakers or the 5-course spring menu with matching wines. And in May and July, the vintage bus rolls through the region once again, following in the footsteps of Rheinhessen's wine delights. Each course of the menu is then served at a different location, with every hotel, restaurant, or winery itself a Great Wine Capital award winner. "We try to live this connection," says Werner: wine, gourmet food, and the spirit of the Great Wine Capitals.