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The history of wines from Franken Terroir of wines from Franken The grapes of wines Franken wines

The best wines from Franken

Franken lies to the east of Frankfurt, Germany. Franken's hilly terrain follows the Main River, framed by the Rhön Mountains, Steigerwald Forest, Tauber Valley, and Spessart Mountains.

Franken is distinguished by the Bocksbeutel, a unique flat, round-bellied bottle, emblematic of the region's dry wine styles. Over 40% of Franken wines are encapsulated in this distinctive flask, with exclusive bottling rights in Franken and certain areas in Portugal, Italy, and Greece for their Portuguese wines, Italian wines and Greek wines.

Franken's winemaking is delineated into three distinct areas defined by the Main River and topography: Maindreieck, Mainviereck and Steigerwald. The region's varied soils and microclimates contribute to the individual character of each wine, even within the same grape varieties. Emphasizing its renowned high-quality, notably dry white wines, Franken prioritizes showcasing the unique terroir of each vineyard.

Subregions within Franken include Burgstadt, Castell, Escherndorf, Frickenhausen, Grossheubach, Homburg, Iphofen, Klingenberg, Michelbach, Randersacker, Rodelsee, Sommerhausen, Thungersheim, Volkach, and Wurzburg.

Suppliers in Franken

Rudolf Furst
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Wines from Franken have an average of 4.6 stars based on 22 professional reviews

The history of wines from Franken

Franconia has a 1,200-year winemaking heritage, dating back to Charlemagne's 779 records. The region's high wine consumption reflects its deep affinity for viticulture. In the 1960s, Silvaner was the dominant grape, but its demand for prime sites led to its decline. Ironically, its popularity led to deforestation, leaving the vines vulnerable to harsh, freezing winds.

The terroir of wines from Franken

Franken's vineyards are strategically located on north-facing slopes along the Main River from Haßfurt to Aschaffenburg. These vineyards even occupy the steepest slopes ( up to 60%). The region's cool climate and short growing season, characterized by a dry continental climate with significant seasonal temperature contrasts and unpredictable spring and fall weather. This climate presents challenges but also allows for the production of distinctive dry, full-bodied wines.

Franken differs from other German wine regions in that there are no formal sub-regions. The Mosel River delineates three areas: Mainviereck, Maindreieck, and Steigerwald. The Triassic soils of Franken are very diverse, including sandstone, limestone and marl, each contributing unique characteristics to the wines. The Mainviereck area, with its variegated sandstone and gneiss soils, is famous for Riesling in its westernmost part. However, this area is mainly characterized by shell limestone and accounts for over 70% of Franken wines. Notable vineyards in Mainviereck are found around Würzburg and Volkach. The easternmost Steigerwald area, with its Keuper (marl) soils, produces wines with a distinctive minerality influenced by a continental climate.

The grapes of wines Franken wines

Müller-Thurgau is currently the leading grape variety in the region, but efforts are underway to revive Silvaner, which is well suited to Franken's diverse soils. Other white varieties include Bacchus, Scheurebe, Kerner, and Riesling. However, Riesling is limited due to its late ripening, which is incompatible with the region's short summers.

For red wine, the grapes cultivated include Domina, Pinot Noir and Portugieser, and also, Blaufränkisch, is being reintroduced, characterized with its distinctive minerality and soft tannins.

The classifications of Franken wines

Franken emphasizes vineyard-specific classifications based on grape ripeness and sugar content at harvest. Wine quality levels range from Tafelwein (the basic table wine), to Trockenbeerenauslese (a sweet wine made from botrytised grapes). Qualitätswein and Kabinett denote quality wines made from fully ripe grapes, while Spätlese and Auslese denote late harvested and selected ripe grapes, respectively. Beerenauslese represents wines made from individually selected over-ripe grapes.

Winemakers emphasize terroir, highlighting the unique characteristics of each vineyard, often reflected on the labels. Esteemed vineyards (or "Einzellagen") line the steep slopes of the Main River, celebrated for distinctive qualities such as Würzburger Stein and Escherndorfer Lump.

In November 2011, the Franconian Winegrowers' Association introduced a new regulation, as the historic districts have long since lost their importance in the marketing of the Franconian table wine industry. They replaced the old districts with 12 smaller ones that are aligned with the criteria of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).

The three old sections will be replaced by 12 significantly smaller ones. Also, they will replace the large 23 vineyards into medium and long term. The old areas once played a role in the predominant marketing of Franconian table wine, but they had lost that role some time ago. The 12 new zones are identical to the PDO wine designation, which has been valid since 2009.



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