Franken Flashcards
Franken
Bereiche: Mainviereck, Maindreieck, Steigerwald
Grosslage:
Mainviereck: Heiligenthal, Reuschberg
Maindreieck: Burg, Engelsberg, Ewig Leben, Hofrat, Honigberg, Kirchberg, Marienberg, Markgraf Babenberg, Ölspiel, Ravensburg, Rosstal, Teufelstor
Steigerwald: Schild, Zabelstein, Schlossstück, Herrenberg, Burgberg, Schlossberg, Steige, Burgweg, Kapellenberg
Major Villages (Mainviereck): Bürgstadt, Miltenberg, Marktheidenfeld, Erlenbach
Major Villages (Maindreieck): Karlstadt, Thüngersheim, Würzburg, Randersacker, Sommerhausen, Frickenhausen, Escherndorf, Volkach, Nordheim, Fahr
Major Villages (Steigerwald): Rödelsee, Iphofen, Castell, Wiesenbronn
Total Hectares Under Vine: 6,125 ha (Source: Statistisches Bundesamt, 2013)
Principal Grape Varieties: Red Grapes (19%) - Spätburgunder: 251 ha White Grapes (81%) - Müller Thurgau: 1,718 ha - Silvaner: 1,406 ha - Bacchus: 730 ha
Leading Producers: Rudolf Fürst (Burgstadt), Horst Sauer (Escherndorf), Hans Wirsching (Iphofen), Juliusspital Würzburg (Würzburg), Castell’sches Domänenamt (Castell)
Franken: Riesling
Kabinett: 78 Oshlse Spatlese: 87 Auslese: 100 BA/ Eiswein: 125 TBA: 150
Franken: Silvaner
Kabinett: 78 Oschlse Spatlese: 87 Auslese: 100 BA/ Eiswein: 125 TBA: 150
Franken: All Other White Grapes
Kabinett: 80 Oschlse Spatlese: 90 Auslese: 100 BA/ Eiswein: 125 TBA: 150
Franken: Red Grapes (for rose)
Kabinett: 80 Oschlse Spatlese: 90 Auslese: 100 BA/ Eiswein: 125 TBA: 150
Franken: Red Grapes (for red wines)
Kabinett: 85 Oschlse Spatlese: 90 Auslese: 100 BA/ Eiswein: 125 TBA: 150
Franken
Franken or Franconia lies due east of Hochheim on the Main River. Although the region is known for its outstanding beer some excellent wines are made particularly from Silvaner. In fact, many argue the best examples of the Silvaner grape come the Franken region. In the spring during spargel season (white asparagus) Silvaner is the go to wine. Some Riesling is also grown here but the grape is challenged by the region’s cooler, wetter climate. Generally the wine styles produced in Franken are dry.
Top vineyards: Würzburger Stein, Iphofener Julius Echter Berg, Bürgstadter Centgrafenberg
Producers: Hans Wirsching, Horst Sauer
Tafelwein
Table wine as in any wine bottled in Germany from grapes grown on planet earth.
Deutscher Tafelwein
Wine bottled in Germany from German grapes.
Landwein
Land wine. The equivalent of the French Vin de Pays. There are Landwein regions and requirements you can look up later but for now just know this category exists.
Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete (QbA)
This is where everyone’s hard drive starts to freeze up because of the long words. Stay with me! As always a quick examination of the language reveals quite a lot. In this case Qualitätswein, or quality wine, bestimmter which means “from,” and Anbaugebiete—as in quality wine from one of those 13 designated regions.
QbA wines are important to us in the U.S. market. Estate wines (especially Rieslings) and Pinot Noirs from top producers are almost always designated QbA because—this is important—they can legally be chaptalized. FYI chaptalization is also legal for the other three previous classifications as well
Prädikatswein
Quality wine with “attributes” or confirmed by the degree of ripeness at harvest. As I alluded to above, German wine laws are completely different from the French AOC/AOP model in that grape ripeness instead of place of origin is used as the sole arbiter for quality. Most of the top German wines we see in the U.S. are designated as Prädikatswein which means they cannot be chaptalized. Many are also produced from single vineyards.
Where is Franken?
It is centred along the Main River as it flows westward from Bamberg toward Frankfurt, to the east of Hochheim
What is the grape that Franken is most known for?
Silvaner. It is smoky, full, mineral- tinged dry white Wines.
What is the centre of Franken‘s wine production?
Wurzberg, the vineyard Stein within Wurzberg lends its name to “Steinwein”, an old nickname for Frankish wine in general.
