Franconia/Franken

The central part of Franken, and the one that is best known, is the Maindreieck (Main triangle), with its soils of shell limestone, and its steep slopes rising majestically above the Main River. The first of the notable vineyard sites may be found at Thüngersheim, although the first stop for most visitors will probably be in Würzburg, where the perhaps most famous site in Germany rises directly behind the main train station: the Würzburger Stein. This imposing steep slope produces the most elegant and racy wines of the Maindreieck. Although they are powerful, they are never heavy or unbalanced. The wines have a finely structured but very firm mineral backbone, which gives the wines an almost aristocratic appearance as well as tremendous maturation potential. Part of this site is the Stein-Harfe, which is owned exclusively by the Bürgerspital winery. Further south, on the opposite bank of the Main, lies the Marienburg castle, and directly below it the south-facing Innere Leiste, the second top.class vineyard site of Würzburg. The wines of the Innere Leiste present themselves as being more juicy and more full-bodied than those of the Stein. However, they are in no way inferior, and in difficult years can actually surpass the Stein wines. The three major producers – Bürgerspital, Juliusspital and Staatlicher Hofkeller (state-owned) – have been competing against each other for decades as to who is the best producer.
Only a few kilometres to the south of Würzburg the visitor will come to the town of Randersacker. A collection of top-class vineyards on slopes facing south or south-east stretches to both sides of the village. While most observers would argue about which is the better site: the Abtsleite (which is still part of Würzburg), the Teufelskeller, Marsberg or Sonnenstuhl, there is absolutely no argument about the privileged position of the Randersackerer Pfülben. However, since the Pfülben site was the last to be replanted after the completion of the land enclosure reforms, most of the vines are still too young to reliably produce first-class wines each year. Particularly in difficult years, when there is the threat of drought, such as in 1999, the youthfulness of the vines becomes evident, since the wines are clear and fruity, but lack a little in depth and length.
The wines of Randersacker impress by their powerful and full-bodied structure, and generally have a more robust mineral structure than do the top Würtzurg sites, and in this they conform more closely to the cliché of typical Franken wine, which is perceived of as earthy and rustic. It is remarkable how many producers manage to produce seriously good wines with great regularity from Randersacker vineyards. In spite of all the common factors of terroir, wines of very different styles are produced here. The most extreme opposites can be seen in the wines of Bruno Schmitt (Robert Schmitt estate) on the one side, which are uncompromisingly dry and pithy wines that need a quite a few years in bottle to develop their charm, and on the other side those of Karl Martin Schmitt (Schmitts Kinder estate), which are brilliantly clear and juicy, and can be enjoyed while they are still young and fresh, although they too will develop stronger terroir notes over time, increasingly showing their spicy and mineral components.
Among the leading producers in Randersacker one must also count Ruth and Armin Störrlein, who have a long reputation for producing first-class, full-bodied and extract-rich white wines from Silvaner and Riesling grapes, and more recently have shown that they are also capable of producing excellent red wines.
The next station on a trip through the region is Sommerhausen, with its top-ranked Steinbach vineyard site, which stretches behind the village, quite some distance from the Main river. This site had for a while lost its touch, but more recently Martin Steinmann of Schloss Sommerhausen has again been producing first-class Silvaner and Pinot Blanc wines here.
Further along the Main one drives through numerous villages with good vineyard sites. In Frickenhausen, Reimund Stumpf sources grapes from the Kapellenberg site to produce robust and fruity dry wines, and has more recently also made some remarkably good sweet botrytis wines. The Luckert brothers are located in the neighbouring town of Sulzfeld, who have developed their reputation over a number of years, producing white wines, matured either in stainless steel tanks or in barriques, remarkable reds as well as superb sweet botrytis wines from the Maustal and Cyriakusberg vineyards. Travelling on, one comes to Kitzingen, Dettelbach and Sommerach. Wolfgang Glaser of the Glaser-Himmelstoss estate has built up an excellent reputation in recent years, and is now counted among the absolute elite of wine producers in Franken. He sources his grapes mainly from the Sommeracher Katzenkopf and Dettelbacher Berg Rondell sites.
Behind the town of Eschendorf, the huge amphitheatre of the Lump mountain rises in a loop of the Main river, one of the most privileged sites in Franken. Protected from winds by the shape of the steep slopes, as well as by the presence of the Kreuzberg to the south, which acts as a windbreak, the Lump vineyard enjoys a particularly warm microclimate, ensuring that the grapes will regularly grow to be fully ripe even in difficult years. In very good vintages, the Lump produces exceptionally full-bodied, extract-rich wines characterised by an intense minerally and spicy note, which can be enjoyed when they are young, but which only show their full potential after two or three years. The site is particularly famed for its rich, full-bodied Silvaners, while the Riesling is often also exceptionally good. Currently the best Escherndorf wines are made in the cellars of Michael Fröhlich and Horst Sauer. However, one senses a general spirit of renewal, and it is safe to predict that Escherndorf will soon be known for an increasing number of quality-driven producers.
One of the most popular wine-producing villages in Franken is the picturesque little town of Volkach. Unfortunately, the town is mostly known for the huge Kirchberg vineyard site, and the wines that are produced there, which vary from only boring to downright nasty and umpleasant. Of much greater interst is the excellent Ratsherr site, which produces wines generally lighter than thos of the Lump, but which certainly provide sufficient fruit, power and mineral structure to provide enjoyment at a very high level. The two leading producers, Zur Schwane and Max Müller I., are not yet producing top-quality wines with absolute dependability, but generally there is a positive mood, and the young family of Düker von der Schwane has set an important sign in the shape of its recently completed new cellar facility, which bodes well for a further improvement in quality.

(translation by Peter Gebler)