The German wine-growing region of Franconia used to be divided into the three areas of Maindreieck, Mainviereck and Steigerwald with 23 Großlagen and 216 Einzellagen. In 2011, the members of the Franconian Winegrowers' Association decided on a new arrangement. The three old areas will be replaced by 12 much smaller ones. These will also replace the 23 Großlagen in the medium to long term. The old areas once played a role in the predominant marketing of Franconian table wine, but they had lost that role for some time. Before this conversion, the following description applied to Maindreieck:
The largest Franconian area, Maindreieck, is located in the centre and covers almost 4,200 hectares of vineyards. It is named after the landscape formed by the curved course of the Main River in the shape of an upwardly open triangle between Schweinfurt, Ochsenfurt and Gemünden. The vineyards extend for the most part along the V-shaped large loop of the Main. Also included is the section of the Tauber valley between Klingen and Tauberrettersheim, as well as the area of the Franconian Saale 30 km from the Main. A special feature is the "wine island" created by human influence with Sommerach and Nordheim. The predominant soil type is shell limestone. The most common varieties are Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner, Bacchus and Riesling. The area is divided into 12 major vineyards: Burg, Engelsberg, Ewig Leben, Hofrat, Honigberg, Kirchberg, Marienberg, Markgraf Babenberg, Ölspiel, Ravensburg, Roßtal and Teufelstor.
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Dr. Christa Hanten
Fachjournalistin, Lektorin und Verkosterin, Wien