Responsibility
with
foresight

Good to know.

Acting with commen sense.

For us, responsibility is not just a label. It is reflected in many specific decisions: in our location, the way we store our wines, our sourcing, our packaging and our day-to-day shipping operations. Much of this has evolved over the years, while some things were deliberately planned that way from the outset. What matters to us is designing processes that are sensible, efficient and mindful of their long-term consequences. Here, we show you what that means in practical terms at SUPERIORE.DE.

Solid and steeped in tradition.

A historic industrial building instead of a new build on a greenfield site.

In 2009, SUPERIORE.DE GMBH acquired the former headquarters of "Elektrowärme Sörnewitz". After three years of careful renovation, our warehouse and offices moved into the more than 4,000 m² listed industrial building. Rather than constructing something new, we created a modern company site within a building around 100 years old, combining historic character with contemporary infrastructure.

The approximately 10,000 m² site surrounding the building is part of that story too. A further 28 trees have since been planted there. The generous green spaces are mown only once a year; in spring and summer in particular, numerous butterflies and other insects can be found there. And because wine naturally plays a role here beyond the warehouse, 99 Solaris vines grow on the south-facing side of the building. Their grapes are processed each year by a neighbouring winegrower. A place, then, that brings together workplace, wine storage and a small patch of vineyard.

Just the right climate.

Our wine warehouse knows no summer or winter.

Great wines need the right conditions. That is why all our bottles are stored year-round at a constant 15 °C, in the dark, free from vibration and without significant temperature fluctuations. This is due not only to the climate-control system, but also to the building's special construction, with its double-walled, ventilated outer shell around the warehouse.

Our on-site energy supply includes a 74 kWp photovoltaic system on the roof and a 20/40 kW combined heat and power unit. Any additional energy required at peak times is supplied by the local utility company. In this way, we combine the specific requirements of professional wine storage with a technically well-designed energy supply at our site.

From Italy to our warehouse.

Sophisticated and efficient sourcing logistics.

We work with more than 350 winegrowers from all over Italy. To help the many wines reach our warehouse as efficiently as possible, we consolidate a large proportion of the goods in regional warehouses and regularly collect the pallets from there in batches.

For the final 900 kilometres or so from Verona to Dresden, the goods are preferably transported by rail. This structure helps us consolidate shipments efficiently, keep delivery routes predictable and organise sourcing effectively, even with a range of more than 3,500 wines.

Safe and well thought-out.

It all comes down to the right packaging.

A bottle of wine should arrive at your door exactly as it left our warehouse. That is why we use sturdy shipping cartons made from double-wall corrugated cardboard, specifically designed for bottle shipping and certified by both DHL and UPS, with precisely fitted inserts. They keep the bottles securely in place and protect them during transport and handling. This also means that we can do without additional plastic padding.

For us, it is a solution that is as simple as it is tried and tested: as much packaging as necessary, as little as possible – and above all, reliable protection for what really matters.

Returns.

All the better if they can be avoided.

With around 40,000 parcels dispatched each year, we have a very low returns rate. And that pleases us for more than just organisational reasons. The better information, advice and selection come together, the less often an order needs to make its way back to us.

Detailed wine descriptions and transparent information play their part – as, of course, do customers who know pretty well what they are looking for. A heartfelt thank you for that.

To conclude.

Why are we telling you all this?

Because, for us, responsibility does not begin with a single project, nor does it end with a logo. It is reflected in many decisions that may seem unspectacular in everyday life: developing an existing building further, storing wine under the best possible conditions, consolidating shipments sensibly, selecting packaging carefully and continually questioning the way we do things.

For us, there is more to all this than organisation. It is about the things that have driven us since 2002: great wines, reliable quality, meticulous work and the ambition to serve our customers a little better every day. That takes attention, experience and sometimes the willingness to rethink familiar ways of doing things.

We do not want to win people over with grand promises, but with what we actually do. Step by step, decision by decision – and with the same passion with which we have spent many years selecting the wines that ultimately make it all worthwhile.