French wine map from this website. Click for more info. I often poke fun at the French for their superior attitude when it comes to anything having to do with wine and other gastronomic treats. In fact, some of our Gallic friends seem to think the term connoisseur (which is a French word after all) should only be used to describe their fellow countrymen. While these traits could be described as arrogance, I prefer to give the French the benefit of the doubt ( even though my sometimes guest on the WineBoy webcast -- Pierre N’Cest Pas -- seems to embody the snobby, overbearing French wine bore that we all love to hate. Check out the latest WineBoy (episode 26) and you’ll see what I mean.
But to be fair, we should acknowledge the tremendous contributions the French have made to wine. Their innovations in the vineyard and cellar for the past several hundred years have been the foundation and catalyst for the dynamic growth of the wine industry in the rest of the world. And their many world famous wines continue to command the greatest respect of wine lovers everywhere.
So today, we’ll take a quick look at the major wine -producing regions in that land of vines and tell you about the principal grape varieties that produce some of the world’s greatest wine. There are ten distinct wine appellations in France and hundreds of smaller sub-regions within those broader areas.
Bordeaux In this most famous of all wine regions in the world, you’ll find the most sought after wines anywhere. The reds are usually blends of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, petit verdot and malbec while the whites are comprised of sauvignon blanc and semillon.
BurgundyIn days of yore, we thought Burgundy was a big red wine in a big green jug. Of course, Burgundy is a very renowned wine region where some of the greatest red and white wine is produced. In the northern part of Burgundy, the red wine is pinot noir and the white is chardonnay and just a small amount of pinot blanc. In southern Burgundy in the Beaujolais region, the red grape is gamay.
Champagne Interestingly, two-thirds of the grapes that produce Champagne are comprised of pinot noir and pinot meunier – both red grapes. The white grape of the region is chardonnay, which is blended with the two reds to make this lovely bubbly.
Alsace In Alsace, the only red grape produced is pinot noir which is just a drop in the very large bucket of white wines for which the region is known. These wines are pinot blanc, pinot gris, riesling, gewürztraminer, and sylvanner. RhoneThe Rhone Valley begins just south of Lyon and extends south to near the city of Avignon. The most famous reds of the Rhone are syrah, grenache, mourvedre and carignan. The principal white grapes are clairette, grenache blanc, marsanne, rousanne and viognier.
Loire The Chateau country of the Loire Valley is a beautiful region where white wine is more prominent than red. The whites of chenin blanc, sauvignon blanc along with the less famous melon comprise the famous wines of the Loire. The main red wine is called Chinon and is made from cabernet franc.
Languedoc Roussillon Located in the south central part of France along the Mediterranean coast, this very warm region has in recent years produced surprisingly excellent wines at value prices. The reds are carignan, syrah, Grenache and cabernet sauvignon while the main white grapes are clairette, marsanne and rousanne.
Provence Directly to the east of Languedoc, much of Provence lies along the French Riviera. Red wines (and roses) produced in the region are made from grenache, syrah, and mourvedre. The whites are comprised of ugni blanc and clairette.
Southwest The wines of the Southwest are also finding their way to our shores particularly reds such as cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc. White wines are made from sauvignon blanc and Semillon.
NOTE: To see some of the wines of these regions, watch the latest WineBoy webcast.