Franken · Vinous

What is made here

Wine colours

Colours the rules allow. Pick a colour to filter the rules and grapes below.

Where it is

Franken in Germany

Latitude: 49.3°–50.2° N
Vineyard altitude: 178 m to 354 m
Production zone: 392,545 ha

Contains 2 appellations (outlined on the zone map)
Bürgstadter Berg, Würzburger Stein-Berg

Worked out from the boundaries (smallest container first). They follow whole communes, so a neighbour sharing a commune can show up here too.

Boundary drawn from whole communes, so it is a little larger than the legal zone. Boundary: Eurac Research PDO inventory (CC0). Country outlines: Natural Earth. Dots on the zone map are the vineyard points used for climate.

Showing every colour The colour filter changes the rules and grapes. Climate, vintages and soils describe the vineyards, so they stay the same.

01 · What the law says

The rules

Limits on grapes, yields, ripeness and ageing that every wine labelled Franken must meet.

25 wines in the rules, all colours.
Wine	Main grape(s)	Max wine hl/ha	Must weight min.	Grape ripeness min. % pot. alc.	Wine min. % alc.	Actual alc. min. %	After enrichment max. % alc.	Acidity min. g/l
Franken White wine	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Partially fermented grape must, Rotling	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	11.5	–
Franken White wine ‘Erstes Gewächs’	Grüner Silvaner, Blauer Silvaner, Riesling +7	60	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Red wine	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Red wine ‘Erstes Gewächs’	Grüner Silvaner, Blauer Silvaner, Riesling +7	60	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Rosé wine, Blanc de Noir(s)	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Rotling wines	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	7	15	3.5
Franken Prädikatswein Kabinett	Riesling, Rieslaner, Scheurebe +1	90	78 °Oe	10.3	–	7	–	3.5
Franken Prädikatswein Spätlese	–	90	87 °Oe	11.7	–	7	–	3.5
Franken Prädikatswein Auslese	–	90	100 °Oe	13.8	–	7	–	3.5
Franken Prädikatswein Beerenauslese/Trockenbeerenauslese	–	90	125 °Oe	17.7	–	5.5	–	3.5
Franken Prädikatswein Eiswein	–	90	125 °Oe	17.7	–	5.5	–	3.5
Franken Liqueur wine, white	–	90	–	12	17.5	15	–	–
Franken Liqueur wine, red	–	90	–	12	17.5	15	–	–
Franken Quality sparkling wine, white	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Quality sparkling wine, red	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Quality sparkling wine: rosé, Blanc de Noir(s)	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Quality sparkling wine, Rotling	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Semi-sparkling wine, white	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Semi-sparkling wine, red	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Semi-sparkling wine: rosé, Blanc de Noir(s)	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Semi-sparkling wine, Rotling	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	15	–
Franken Partially fermented grape must, white	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	11.5	–
Franken Partially fermented grape must, red	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	11.5	–
Franken Partially fermented grape must, rosé	–	90	63 °Oe	8	–	–	11.5	–

From the official production rules (EU single document, Official Journal). Hover a figure to see the clause it comes from. A dash means the rules set no figure, or it is not captured yet.

Other varieties allowed

Besides the main grapes, the rules allow these varieties in some wines. Grape names link where a profile exists.

101 varieties · 14 wines

Accent, Acolon, Albalonga, Allegro, Arnsburger, Auxerrois, Bacchus, Blauburger, Blauer Frühburgunder, Blauer Limberger, Blauer Portugieser, Blauer Silvaner, Blauer Trollinger, Blauer Zweigelt, Bolero, Bronner, Cabernet Carbon, Cabernet Carol, Cabernet Cortis, Cabernet Cubin, Cabernet Dorio, Cabernet Dorsa, Cabernet Mitos, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Dakapo, Deckrot, Domina, Dornfelder, Dunkelfelder, Ehrenbreitsteiner, Ehrenfelser, Faberrebe, Findling, Fontanara, Freisamer, Früher Roter Malvasier, Gelber Muskateller, Goldriesling, Grüner Silvaner, Hegel, Helfensteiner, Helios, Heroldrebe, Hibernal, Huxelrebe, Hölder, Johanniter, Juwel, Kanzler, Kerner, Kernling, Mariensteiner, Merlot, Merzling, Monarch, Morio Muskat, Muller Thurgau, Muskat Ottonel, Muskat Trollinger, Müllerrebe, Neronet, Nobling, Optima 113, Orion, Ortega, Osteiner, Palas, Perle, Phoenix, Pinot Noir, Piroso, Prinzipal, Prior, Regent, Regner, Reichensteiner, Rieslaner, Riesling, Rondo, Rotberger, Roter Elbling, Roter Muskateller, Roter Traminer, Rubinet, Ruländer, Saint Laurent, Saphira, Sauvignon Blanc, Scheurebe, Schönburger, Siegerrebe, Silcher, Sirius, Solaris, Staufer, Tauberschwarz, Weißer Burgunder, Weißer Elbling, Weißer Gutedel, Würzer

In the vineyard and cellar: rules for every wine

Allowed

Enrichment (chaptalisation)

02 · Climate fingerprint

The climate

The growing season averages 15.0 °C, intermediate on Gregory Jones's scale, with 1,107 growing degree days (Winkler Ia).

The average year 1991–2020, vineyards at about 245 m

Monthly mean, °CRain, mmGrowing season

Growing-season temperature: 15.0 °C; Intermediate · 15–17 °C (Jones)
Growing degree days: 1,107; Region Ia: under 1,111 degree days
Growing-season rain: 497 mm; Of 855 mm a year
Harvest rain: 134 mm; September–October

Copernicus ERA5-Land monthly averages at 5 vineyard points (Vineyard point 1, 269 m; Vineyard point 2, 179 m; Vineyard point 3, 269 m; Vineyard point 4, 372 m; Vineyard point 5, 138 m), moved to each point's height from the model's terrain. Indices that need daily data are not captured yet. How the climate figures are made.

Lower confidence:Monthly reanalysis in moderately complex terrain; not yet checked against a weather station.

Closest climates in the database

Picked by the data, not by hand: the profiles nearest on season warmth (counted twice), degree days, rain, ripening-month nights and day–night range. Neighbours within 30 km are left out, as they share the same weather.

1. SachsenVery similarCompared with Franken: same season warmth, similar rain.

2. MittelrheinVery similarCompared with Franken: same season warmth, similar rain.

3. Maasvallei LimburgVery similarCompared with Franken: same season warmth, similar rain.

Growing-season temperature

Franken

15.0 °C

Sachsen

15.0 °C

Mittelrhein

15.0 °C

Maasvallei Limburg

15.0 °C

Growing degree days

Franken

1,107

Sachsen

1,128

Mittelrhein

1,106

Maasvallei Limburg

1,099

Growing-season rain

Franken

497 mm

Sachsen

496 mm

Mittelrhein

473 mm

Maasvallei Limburg

473 mm

03 · Year by year

35 vintages

Each column is one growing season: heat above or below the 1991–2020 average, and rain at harvest. Pick a year for the details.

Warmer than averageCooler than averageHarvest rain (Sep–Oct)Average harvest rain, 134 mm

2025

Growing-season temp.
Growing degree days
Harvest rain
Growing-season rain
September nights
Hot days and frosts

Seasons are labelled by harvest year (April–October). Year-to-year changes from ERA5-Land; tested against station records in Alto Adige (r = 0.94 for season temperature at Bolzano). Rain varies more locally, so treat single-season rain with some caution. Vintage ratings, harvest dates and frost or hail events have places in the data model but are not loaded yet.

04 · Where the numbers come from

Sources

A geospatial inventory of regulatory information for wine protected designations of origin in Europe · Candiago et al., Scientific Data 9, 394 (2022); Eurac Research · CC0
ERA5-Land monthly averaged data (reanalysis-era5-land-monthly-means) · Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), Climate Data Store · CC BY 4.0 (Copernicus licence)
OpenStreetMap vineyard areas (landuse=vineyard), from Geofabrik country extracts · OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0
Copernicus DEM GLO-90 (AWS open data tiles) · European Space Agency / Copernicus · Copernicus DEM licence
Single document: Franken (Official Journal C, C/2025/6794, 30.12.2025; and the product specification 'gU Franken_111213.pdf' from the EU register) · European Union, Official Journal (C series) · EU law (Commission reuse policy)
Appellation nesting worked out from boundaries (pipeline/build_nesting.py) · Vinous, from the Eurac PDO boundaries · CC0 (source data)
Climate profiles calculated by Vinous: method

Still to check (3)

Generated from EU reference data: check against the current product specification.
From the specification: Maximum yield is 90 hl/ha for all products, 70 hl/ha with a single vineyard or open-field name and for Erstes Gewächs on slopes of at least 30 % (60 hl/ha otherwise). Kabinett is limited to Weißer Riesling, Rieslaner, Scheurebe and Roter Traminer with an actual alcoholic strength stated as 11.5 %; Spätlese and higher Prädikat levels need a single vineyard or open-field name. Single-vineyard wines must be dry quality wines or Prädikatswein from 13 named varieties; 'Fränkischer Satz' needs at least five varieties harvested together and 'Alter Fränkischer Satz' at least 40 % Silvaner plus ten other white varieties. Minimum natural alcoholic strengths follow general law; the document sets no analytical limits. From the national product specification: Qualitätswein, Qualitätsperlwein, Sekt and Federweißer need 63 °Oe (8.0 % vol), Bocksbeutel wines 72 °Oe (9.4 % vol); Kabinett 78 °Oe for Riesling and Silvaner (80 °Oe other whites, rosé and Rotling, 85 °Oe red), Spätlese 87 °Oe for Riesling and Silvaner (90 °Oe others), Auslese 100 °Oe, Beerenauslese and Eiswein 125 °Oe, Trockenbeerenauslese 150 °Oe (the lowest is recorded per product). Liqueur wine may have at most 22 % vol actual alcohol; Prädikatswein may not be enriched and no enrichment may use concentrated must or cryoconcentration; bottle-fermented Sekt must spend at least 9 months in bottle. The minimum actual strength of 7.0 % vol for Kabinett differs from the 11.5 % stated in the single document.
National tier (DOC/DOCG) not captured yet; rules extracted from the specification text.