GERMANY’S FRANKEN WINE REGION
The wine city of Würzburg, Franken
Source: Winekeller
Winekeller wine travel and wine tour experiences in the Franken wine region:
An introduction to the Franken wine region
The Franken wine region, or Franconian wine region in English, is located in the northwest of Germany's historic state and former kingdom of Bavaria, south-east of the city of Frankfurt, on the south-facing slopes lining the Main River and its tributaries.
Most people would associate Bavaria more with beer, but Franken has a long and rich wine history that dates back at least 1,200 years. It may not be so well known, but Franken is one of the most historic wine regions in Germany, producing some of the best German wine.
The Franken wine region is probably best-known for its highly distinctive ‘Franconian wine bottle’ - the flat, squat ‘Bocksbeutel’ - which has become the hallmark of Franken’s finest wines and Franken's leading grape variety is Silvaner, making Franken one of the only places where it outperforms German Riesling.
The centre of the Franken wine region is the baroque festival town of Würzburg with the heritage-listed ‘Würzburg Residence’ and medieval ‘Marienberg Würzburg’ fortress. Famous historical vineyards surround the town, for example the ‘Würzburger Stein vineyard’.
The Franken wine region is flourishing and vibrant. Franconians are very passionate and proud of their rich history and fine wines and maybe this is why the majority of Franken wines are consumed in Franken and not many are exported.
The historic 'Alte Mainbrücke Würzburg'
The famous Würzburger Stein vineyard
The distinctive Franken 'bocksbeutel' bottle
The Franken vineyards
The Franken wine region comprises more than 6,000 hectares of vineyards, following the winding course of the River Main in Bavaria, which along with its many tributaries helps to mitigate the cold winter temperatures resulting from the continental climate.
The best vineyard sites are on the steep, well-protected, south-facing slopes, which also enjoy the direct sunlight reflecting off the water’s surface in the hot summer months.
There are 3 distinct vine-growing areas in the Franken region:
Steigerwald in the south-east of the region, the Mainviereck (Main ‘square’) in the west and the heart of the region, the Maindreieck (Main ‘triangle’), nestled in the triangle between the two rivers.
In the Maindreieck region, there are several world-famous vineyards in the Franken wine region, for example the ‘Lump vineyard’ in Escherndorf and the ‘Würzurger Stein vineyard’, in and around Würzburg.
What distinguishes these top Franken vineyard sites along the south-facing hillsides of the River Main is the unique limestone soils, rich in fossil shells, known in German as ‘Muschelkalk’.
Franken wine map
The Würzburg Stein vineyard is the largest single vineyard in Germany, with some 85 hectares of vines and Würzburg is one of the only European cities to have vineyards (Vienna is another).
The MainViereck region is warmer with more sandstone soils and it has fewer vineyards, however it is home to the exceptional vineyard ‘Homburger Kallmuth’ and Franken’s red wines.
The Steigerwald region has fewer vines but produces some very fine, strongly-flavoured wines. Some of the finest wines come from around the town of Iphofen, which comprises three top vineyard sites: Julius-Echter-Berg, Kronsberg and Kalb. The steep Julius-Echter-Berg vineyard is known for producing the Silvaner Beerenauslese wine, which was served at Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953.
The world-famous Würzburger Stein vineyard
Franken vineyards around Stetten
The famous limestone 'Muschelkalk'
Franken Wine
Some 83% of wines produced in Franken are white wines and as mentioned earlier, Franken Silvaner is the flagship grape variety. Silvaner in particular thrives on the limestone soils here and is increasingly popular with winemakers. It’s a very flexible grape variety, it ages well, it’s not too acidic and it produces very dry, elegant and food friendly wines. Historically Franken was known for its deliciously sweet Silvaner wines, but today the vast majority of wines produced are dry.
In terms of the number of vines, the Müller-Thurgau grape variety is as widely planted as Silvaner, followed by Bacchus, a regional specialty akin to Sauvignon Blanc - but Silvaner is what Franken is known for today.
Riesling is grown but not in comparable quantities to Franken Silvaner. Sweet ‘Rieslaner’ wines are a cross between Riesling and Silvaner.
Steinwein Franken wines
The name ‘Steinwein’ was used historically for all Franken wines (‘stein’ is German for ‘stone’ )and this is also the name of Würzburg’s most famous vineyard). These wines tended to be very long-lived, sweet wines. Famously a ‘Steinwein’ from the 1540 vintage was still drinkable in the 1960s and the last remaining bottle lies in the cellars of the Bürgerspital Würzburg today! The top, historic Franken wineries (see below), all have vineyard plots here and produce ‘Steinwein’ wines.
Marienberg Fortress overlooking Würzburg, in the ‘Innere Leiste’ vineyard
Source: Winekeller
Franken wineries
Franken is unique in that the top vineyard sites, which produce some of the region’s finest wines, are in the hands of a few top, prestigious Franken wine estates in Würzburg, who all offer tours and wine tastings in their impressive and extensive cellars.
These world-famous, historic Würzburg estates include:
Bürgerspital - a VDP wine estate with 120 hectares of vineyards and over 700 years of history and tradition (one of the oldest wine estates in Germany and Europe.) Founded as Bürgerspital zum Heiligen Geist in 1316 as a hospital and home for the poor and elderly. As a civic charity today, wine sales still support the charitable activities.
Juliusspital - a VDP wine estate with 180 hectares of vineyards. The Juliusspital Foundation was founded in 1576 and the profits from the sale of wines continue to support its charitable mission. The The Juliusspital ‘Princes' Building’ (Fürstenbau) is a major landmark in Würzburg.
Staatliche Hofkeller - with a nearly 900-year history, Staatliche Hofkeller is one of the oldest wineries in Germany and the world. Since 1128, this VDP wine estate has always been in the hands of the respective rulers of Bavaria. Located in a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, Würzburg.
Weingut am Stein/Ludwig Knoll - 5th generation family winery with its modern winery located right in the middle of the Würzburger Stein vineyard. A VDP wine estate with top vineyard locations including the Würzburg Stein and Innere Leiste vineyards in the city and the top Stettener Stein vineyard, north of the Würzburg, one of the best locations in Franconia.
Bürgerspital
Staatliche Hofkeller
Wein am Stein vines
Juliusspital vines
Franken travel guide and useful information
The Franken wine region is so worth visiting and if you are a wine lover, then you absolutely have to visit historic Würzburg, one of the greatest wine cities in the world. Würzburg is also a popular starting point for touring the ‘Romantic Road’ through Southern Germany.
The beautiful rolling countryside is dotted with green forests, vineyards and pretty wine villages, which similar to Würzburg, take you back to the time of the Middle Ages, with their cobbled streets, busy courtyards and half-timbered houses.
How to get to Würzburg - Frankfurt to Würzburg
Würzburg is one of the main cities in Germany’s Franconia region, which covers much of northern Bavaria. The closest international airport to Würzburg is Frankfurt, approximately 120km away. Würzburg also has good rail connections from most German cities.
Things to do in Würzburg
The vibrant university city of Würzburg is set in a beautiful hilly location on the Main river and it offers a delightful mixture of history, charm, and culture.
As a Baroque city Würzburg features several architectural masterpieces including the imposing St. Kilian Cathedral (the fourth largest Romanesque church in Germany), the amazing Würzburg Residence with its Court Gardens and Residence Square (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), the Marienberg Würzburg Fortress overlooking the city below and the 180-metre-long ‘Alte Mainbrucke’ bridge, lined with impressive statues of saints and a popular place to meet friends and enjoy a glass of Franken wine!
Visiting one or all of the historic Würzburg wine estates as mentioned earlier is an absolute must, as is taking time to enjoy the convivial atmosphere in the many ‘weinstuben’ (wine bars) that line the streets of this magical city, offering excellent wines and traditional food.
Discovering the countryside
Outside of Würzburg we suggest following the many wine walking routes which take you through the vineyards - notably, north of Würzburg the Franconian wine landscape is very special and has been named "terroir f", with signed walkways (‘wanderweg’) and viewpoints encouraging you to enjoy the magnificent views.
Würzburg Residence
Marienberg Würzburg Fortress
Walk through the Franken vineyards
The centre of Germany’s Franken wine region is the baroque festival town of Würzburg, one of the greatest wine cities in Europe and home to some top vineyard sites and several iconic, world-famous, historic wine estates. One of these is Weingut Bürgerspital - check out our visit!