20213041_WGDE2021_ENGL

Fortress Marienberg: an impressive
historic monument, adorned with vines
FRANKEN
IS ACTUALLY COOL
Is wine from Franken for old men wearing old hats? Of course not,
says our 1998-born writer in her love letter to this wine region
and its stubborn winemakers.
WORDS ELENA SCHEER
Istarted studying psychology in
Würzburg. Thus I bid farewell to my
wonderful hometown in the Free Federal
State of Bavaria. Courageous. Not that
readers elsewhere misunderstand me;
while Franken (Franconia) belongs to the
Federal state of Bavaria, Franken most
definitely is not Bavaria. I left Würzburg
as a student of wine economics and trainee
sommelier.
Well, all that is possible in Franken,
especially in the wine region of Franken.
And this is exactly what I want to write
about. Because it is glorious. As you can
tell from these initial words, I think that
Franken is rather cool. Alright, the
winemakers are not exactly easy-going,
sometimes they are even a little stubborn.
But hey, a Silvaner without a certain
seriousness makes no sense either.
Which is how we get to wine. Where wine
is concerned, Franken probably is the most
underrated region you can imagine. Let me
tell you: things are happening! From
long-established super-producers to many
lunatics creating pretty crazy stuff, anything
goes here. There is a rainbow of winemaking
diversity and numerous names spring to
mind. In the former camp you will certainly
find the Sauers, the Schmitts, Fürst, Castell,
Wirsching. The list is long. And you can
always rely on our Spitäler (ancient charitable
foundations with wine production)
when you are on the lookout for a salty,
bone-dry Silvaner or a racy, fresh Riesling.
Those looking for the “lunatic” category
140 falstaff Wine Guide Germany 2021