German 2020 releases – Franken

The traditional Bocksbeutels of Franken, Bürgerspital's range in this case

The last of this mammoth series based on Michael's pandemic-inspired tastings at home in the Ahr Valley. See this guide to our unrivalled coverage of the exceptional 2019 vintage in Germany and other recent releases of German wines.

If, as a small family-run restaurant in Surrey, southern England, in 1975, you served coq au vin, duck à l’orange, trout amandine and steak au poivre, you’d be pretty run of the mill, but also quite popular with the local gourmets. What they were baffled by, however, was a wine list which in addition to the customary delights of Blue Nun and...