France: The major wine
producing regions
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The country of France
has many wine producing regions. The most famous and important include:
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Loire: The Loire river is the longest in
France. In the length of its valley are produced some of the finest
white wines made anywhere in France. Near the coast, Chenin Blanc is the preferred grape and Vouvray is the
wine produced. Further up the river, Sauvignon Blanc is the grape of choice with Sancerre and
Pouilly Fume as the wines that are produced. Rose d'Anjou is a popular
semi-dry rose that is also made in the Loire Valley.
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Rhone: The Rhone river valley in
southeastern France is a grape growing and wine producing area
famed for its red wines. The region is just under 150 miles long (north
to south) and lies between the cities of Lyon in the north and Avignon in the
south. There are 16 specific appellations that cover an area of more
than 41,000 hectares. All qualities of wine are produced here from Appellation Controllee to Vin de Table. Production is 2% white, the
rest being red and rose. Wines from the Rhone can achieve outstanding
quality. There has been opportunity to achieve greater value in the purchase
of many Rhone wines versus those of Bordeaux or Burgundy.
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Alsace
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Alsace is in the far northeastern corner of France and is noted for it's excellent white wines. It is
the only AOC region in France that is allowed to produce
wines designated by the name of the grape variety from which they are produced.
While varietal naming is common in many other countries, the practice in
France is to name the best wines for the region in which they are produced
(i.e. - Champagne, Bordeaux, Beaujolais, etc.)
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The Alsace region
benefits from the shielding it receives from the Vosges Mountains. This
mountain range is located to the northeast of Alsace and shields the region
from winter weather.
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Among the best producers in Alsace are
Trimbach and Zindt Humbrech.
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Trimbach:
Gewurztraminer |
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Bordeaux
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The Bordeaux region in
southwestern France has been famed in the wine trade for
centuries. Bordeaux produces more classified wine than any other region in
France. The quality of this wine ranges from some of the best in the world to
some that is less than perfect. Bordeaux is most noted for the red wines of exceptional
quality that it produces.
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The Bordeaux region
stradles the Gironde Estuary that is formed when the Garonne and Dordogne
rivers converge. It has a rich history and was especially important in the
wars between France and England. Bordeaux is also the name of the major city
within the region.
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Based on the centuries
of grape growing and winemaking history in the region, the local regulations
allow only six grape varieties to be used in the production of red wine. (You
can actually grow whatever you want, but only the 6 authorized red grapes can
be used in red wines labeled 'Bordeaux'). Of these grapes, only 5 are really
in use today. They are:
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For white wines, there
are only three grape varieties allowed:
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The major areas of the
Bordeaux region are:
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Many of the chateaux
of Bordeaux have been rated as to the quality of their wines. The best known
was the Classification of the Medoc of 1855.
Graves is an important wine
region of Bordeaux, producing over 20 million bottles each
year. It is the oldest appellation of the Bordeaux region, dating back to Eleanor of Aquitaine, who married Henry II, King of England,
creating a flourishing trade between both countries : wine versus coal
and iron.
The region stretches 50 kilometers south east from the suburbs
of Bordeaux itself along the left bank of the Garonne
river, and despite being principally a producer of red wine, it is the only
of Bordeaux's regions to be known for both its red and white wines. The area
encompasses villages including Sauternes,
Pessac, Talence, Léognan, Martillac, St. Morillon, and Portets.
In 1987 the region was split into a second appellation with
the creation of Pessac-Léognan,
containing most of the producers of its most expensive wines. This has had
the effect of devaluing the name and price of wines simply labeled with the
Graves appellation.
The area's red wines are generally considered to be more
robust than those of Médoc, and are made using a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon, with smaller amounts of Merlot and Cabernet
Franc. The dry white wines are a blend of Sauvignon
Blanc and Sémillon.
A well known sweet white dessert
wine is made in the commune of Sauternes which is located in the
southeast corner of the Graves region.
The Médoc is a French wine
growing region, consisting of the area in the département of Gironde, on
the left bank of the Gironde
estuary, north of Bordeaux. Its
name comes from (Pagus) Medullicus, or
"country of the Medulli", the local Celtic
tribe. The region owes its economic success mainly to its production of red
wine; it is home to around 1,500 vineyards.
The area also has pine forests and long sandy beaches. The
Médoc's geography is not ideal for wine growing, with its proximity to the Atlantic
Ocean resulting in a comparatively mild climate and high rainfall
making rot a constant problem. It is generally believed that the nature of
the region's wine derives from the soil; although the terrain is flat, the
excellent drainage is a necessity and the increased amount of gravel in the
soil allows heat to be retained, encouraging ripening, and extensive root
systems.
With the exception of Château Haut-Brion from Graves, all
of the red wines in the 1855 Classification are
from the Médoc. Many of the Médoc wines that are not in this classification
are classified under the Cru
Bourgeois system.
Almost all of the region's wine consists mainly of the cabernet sauvignon grape,
with merlot
forming the majority of the remainder. In addition cabernet
franc is usually used in small quantities, with petit
verdot and malbec occasionally added.
The Médoc contains six smaller appellations,
roughly corresponding to the villages of the region. From north to south they
are:
Médoc
vineyards that do not lie in one of these six areas have the appellation Haut-Médoc if they lie in the
southern part of the region, or simply Médoc if they are situated in the
northern part.
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Sauternes is a type of dessert
wine from the Sauternais region of the Graves
section in the well known Bordeaux wine making area of France.
Sauternes is made from Sémillon, Sauvignon
Blanc, and Muscadelle grapes that
have been affected by Botrytis
cinerea, also known as noble
rot. This causes grapes to become partially raisined, resulting in
concentrated and distinctively flavored wines, typically with an arresting
golden color. Sauternes is one of the few wine regions where
infection with noble rot is a frequent occurrence, due to its mesoclimate. Even so, production is a hit-or-miss
proposition, with widely varying harvests from year to year.
Wines from Sauternes, especially its flagship estate Château d' Yquem, can be very expensive, due
largely to the very high cost of production. Barsac lies
within Sauternes, and is entitled to use either name. Somewhat similar but less
expensive and typically less-distinguished wines are produced in the
neighboring regions of Monbazillac, Cérons, Loupiac and Cadillac.
France: The Burgundy Region
Burgundy
is located in the central part of eastern France. The Burgundy region is the
home of some of the finest Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines in the world. At the southern end of the region is
the area of Beaujolais which is known for its Gamay based wines. The Chablis
area is a sub region of Burgundy that makes wonderful Chardonnay based
wines from a poor chalky soil. The wines from the vineyard 'Le
Montrachet' and from the adjoining vineyards of Chassagne Montrachet and Puligny Montrachet are prized around the world for their fine quality.
Fixin is a commune known for its red wines.
Below, you will find a list of some key producers in the Burgundy region.
Fixin is a commune known for its red wines.
Below, you will find a list of some key producers in the Burgundy region.
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Chablis is a town and commune of the
Yonne département in France.
Chablis is located at the north of the Burgundy region. It lies in the valley
of the River Serein.
The village of Chablis
gives its name to one of the most famous white wine in France produced with
Chardonnay grapes that grow well in the region.
The Champagne
wine region is a historic
province within the Champagne administrative province in the northeast of France. The
area is best known for the production of the sparkling white wine that bears the region's name. The region is about 100 miles
(160 km) east of Paris. The viticultural
boundaries of Champagne are legally defined and split into five wine producing
districts within the administrative province-the Aube, Côte des Blancs, Côte de Sézanne, Montagne de Reims, and Vallée de la Marne. The towns of Reims and Épernay are
the commercial centers of the area.
Located at the northern edges of the wine growing world, the
history of the Champagne wine region has had a significant role in the development
of this unique terroir. The area's close proximity to Paris
promoted the regions economic success in its wine trade but also put the
villages and vineyards in the path of marching armies on their way to the
French capital. Despite the frequency of these military conflict, the regions
developed a reputation for quality wine production in the early Middle Ages and
was able to continue that reputation as the region's producers began making sparkling
wine with the advent of the great Champagne houses in the 17th & 18th
century.
The principal grapes grown in the region include Chardonnay, Pinot
Noir, and Pinot Meunier. Pinot Noir is the most widely
planted grape in the Aube region and grows very well in Montagne de Reims.
Pinot Meunier is the dominant grape in the Vallée de la Marne region. The Côte
des Blancs is dedicated almost exclusively to Chardonnay
