Parliamentary State Secretary honors Prof. Dr. Koch with Niklas-medal

 “Dr. Koch has compiled the only comprehensive commentary on the wine law. Furthermore, he contributed significantly to the cultivation and better understanding of the law and the wine culture through his various educational activities in the past decades,” said Julia Klöckner at the award ceremony which took place in the German Wine Institute in Mainz today. The Professor-Niklas Medal is the highest award of the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection. Prof. Dr. Hans-Jörg Koch, who was born and raised in Rheinhessen, has spent 60 years with the subject of wine out of professional and personal passion.

He has taught wine law at the University of Applied Sciences in Wiesbaden and at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz for many years. As a member of many scientific advisory boards, for example, the German Wine Protective Association, Prof. Dr. Koch has taken a stand for the law and the culture of wine. The Rheinhessen region and the wine law are the focus of his literary work, lectures and teaching. “With his judicial subtlety, Prof. Dr. Koch draws a line between what is allowed and prohibited. He describes the culture of wine, which develops from everyday life and which – moderately consumed - may contribute to pleasure and enjoyment,” said the Parliamentary Secretary of State.

The wine-law commentary, which was first published by Prof. Dr. Koch in 1958 and was continuously updated and expanded, can be considered as his life’s work. The opus is not only nationally, but also unique throughout the world in terms of its abundance of wine knowledge and its balanced interpretation of the law. (red.yoopress)