Kölner Weinkeller
Historic 1937 barrel cellar with fully preserved enamel tanks, a “treasure chamber” and a barrel designed by Ewald Mataré – today a specialist wine shop.
The retailer Cornelius Stüssgen had a vaulted cellar built beneath his company headquarters, where wines for the firm's own brands were stored and bottled. Part of the original equipment has survived to this day.
Source: Wikipedia
At a Glance
- Type
- Historic barrel cellar, now a specialist wine shop run by the Rewe Group
- Location
- Stolberger Straße, Köln-Braunsfeld, Lindenthal district
- Year built
- 1937
- Access
- 51 steps down to a depth of 13 metres
- Dimensions
- 95 metres long, 26 metres wide
- Stock
- over 150,000 bottles
- Heritage status
- Listed cultural monument in North Rhine-Westphalia
The Kölner Weinkeller lies 13 metres underground beneath the Stüssgen headquarters and was added in 1937 using shaft construction beneath the building already completed in 1928/29; thanks to its design, the temperature never exceeds 18 degrees even in hot summers, without any artificial air conditioning.
History
Stüssgen wanted a barrel cellar with constant temperatures and a high-quality bottling plant to supply his branches with wine. To make room for it, a basement was added beneath the headquarters, which had been built in 1928/29. The conversion was carried out by Walter Dißmann, who had already worked on the original building. During the Second World War, the cellar also served as an air-raid shelter for local residents of Braunsfeld. After the Rewe Group took over the Cologne Stüssgen stores in 1984, the company headquarters were closed and wine bottling was discontinued.
Construction and Climate
The cellar was built using the shaft method as a solid concrete structure. It is lined with special bricks and spanned by a self-supporting vault. This construction provides humidity levels well suited to storing wine. Even in hot summers, the temperature stays at 18 degrees at most, with no need for artificial climate control.
Preserved Equipment
The old enamel tanks are fully preserved, as are some of the large wooden storage casks. Pipework and electrical installations from the early years are also on view. A lift dating from 1937 runs down into the cellar and is one of the oldest lifts still in operation in Cologne.
The Treasure Chamber
At the end of the east side, behind an old wrought-iron gate by August Kotthoff, lies the so-called “treasure chamber”. It holds a barrel that the sculptor Ewald Mataré designed in 1947, commissioned for the 50th anniversary of the Stüssgen stores. It depicts God the Father along with Adam and Eve amid grapevines and bears the inscription “God gave us wine for joy”. Stüssgen himself already kept special wines here, and rarities are still stored in the room today.
Today
Following a renovation in 1992, the cellar has served as a specialist retailer, mainly for higher-priced wines. The source gives the floor area as over 2,500 square metres. The shop's name derives from Cologne usage, where people spoke of the “Kölner” or the “Stüssgen wine cellar”. In addition to sales and advice, the vaults host events and trade fairs. The wine shop was named “Wine Merchant of the Year” in 2011, 2012 and 2025, among other honours.
Timeline
- 1928/29Stüssgen headquarters built in Köln-Braunsfeld
- 1937Wine cellar built by Cornelius Stüssgen (Walter Dißmann)
- 1947Ewald Mataré creates barrel for 50th anniversary of Stüssgen stores
- 1984Rewe Group takes over Stüssgen stores; bottling ends
- 1992Cellar renovated
- 2011Named Wine Merchant of the Year (Weinwirtschaft)
- 2012Named Wine Merchant of the Year (Der Feinschmecker)
- 2025Named Wine Merchant of the Year 2025 (Meininger Verlag)
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Sources & links
Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-11-08
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