The Ultra Quick Guide To Understanding French Wine

[devogue]

You love wine - specifically Australian, Californian or Chilean wine.

You have an aversion to French wine, and you admit that part of that aversion is the sheer confusion and unhelpfulness of French wine labelling. You have a fear of the perceived "mystique" of French wine making, and the chances are you have tasted a wne your palate wasn't quite ready for and you have long written the ultimate country for great wine off.

Fair enough.

However, there's part of you that would love to know what all the fuss is about. I don't get Shakespeare, I would love to understand its beauty, but I just haven't been as bothered as I could have been - French wine holds a similar spell over many people...I hope this little guide gives you a slight feeling of authority, of mastery over something you may have been scared of...life's too short to drink wine from everywhere but France!

1) The major regions and their grape varieties:

Bordeaux: In the southern (warmer) part of France but influenced by the Atlantic. Major grape varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot for red wines, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon for white wines. The reds tend to be structured, dark, brooding and beefy if dominated with Cabernet Sauvignon (look for Pauillac or Margaux on the label), or fleshy, plump and silky if dominated by Merlot (Pomerol, St Emilion). The whites can be bone dry or unctuously sweet (Sauternes, Barsac). Remember - behind all of the complex Chateau this and Chateau that labels are just a few very famous grape varieties!

Burgundy: In the Western part of France, Burgundy is affected by a more continental climate. There are only two grapes you need to know about here - Pinot Noir, which can make sensationally heady, complex, sensual reds, and Chardonnay which makes hyper-crisp, super steely whites in the northerly Chablis appellation (region) and creamy, supremely elegant whites in the southern part of Burgundy. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay - how simple is that?

Rhone Valley: Going further south from Burgundy you come to the Rhone region. The Northern Rhone uses one red grape variety - Syrah (you probably know it better by the name the Australian's use - Shiraz) - so all those Cote Roties, Hermitages, St Josephs and complicted labels you see - they're all just bottles of Shiraz. There is one incredible white grape variety they use in the Northern Rhone - Viognier - which makes very aromatic whites and is sometimes blended (usually about 2%) with Syrah.

In the southern Rhone you will find the famous Cotes du Rhone appellation - here they are allowed to blend up to 13 grape varieties to make red wine, but the main ones they use are Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvedre - ring any bells with you Aussie wine drinkers? The most famous region within this region is Chateauneuf du Pape - it's just the best Cotes du Rhone and producers use exactly the same grapes.

Loire Valley: North of Bordeaux the River Loire runs to the Atlantic. At the mouth of the river Muscadet is produced, and as you move further inland you will come across vineyards planted with the two main white grape varieties - Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc (Pouilly Fume is Sauvignon Blanc, Pouilly Fuisse is a Burgundy white) - and the major red variety here -Cabernet Franc.

Champagne: Three major grape varities, but just remember the red Pinot Noir and the white Chardonnay - the same as Burgundy. A non-vintage Champagne is made with a blend of wines from different years, a vintage Champagne is made with fruit from just one exceptional year (usually about three a decade - Champagne is just outside Paris - most years are cool, so the odd warm one can produce sufficient ripeness to declare a vintage.

Alsace: A little bit of an anomaly - right on the German border this defiantly French region produces full-on dry Rieslings and hugely aromatic wines from Gewurztraminer, Pinot Blanc and Muscat. The only major French region where the grape variety is mentioned on the bottle label.

See how familiar the grape varieties are?

2) How do they ensure grape varities are used in each area?

One of the terms you'll see on French wine labels a lot is Appellation Controlee. This is quite important, because it signifies that a wine falls within the rules of a particular region. For instance, Chateau Palmer is one of the top wine estates in the Margaux commune of Bordeaux, and as such it is Appellation Margaux Controlee. This means that you can be sure the winemakers have stuck to the rules of their region, rules which reflect the centuries of experience which have helped build the illustrious commercial appeal of Margaux.

These rules can be quite complex, but one of the simplest and most important ones to remember is that certain grape varieties are permitted, but not others. So Chateau Palmer is permitted to use Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes to make its wine, but it is not allowed to use, say, Pinot Noir (the red Burgundy grape) if it wants to proudly advertise Appellation Margaux Controlee on its label.

However, this year Chateau Palmer decided to have a bit of fun, and they created a wine using a splash of Syrah (the Rhone grape) with their Margaux commune Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes. As a result, even though the wine will be no doubt magnificent, it cannot be classified as anything more than a humble vin de table (table wine) as the use of Syrah is strictly forbidden in any wine advertised as a "Margaux". What Chateau Palmer has done is extremely rare, but as one of the most famous and coveted wine estates in the world they have the confidence to market their wine without the Appellation Margaux Controlee label which is so vital for other producers.

3) Chateaux and negociants

In Bordeaux, wine estates are usually called "Chateau ----". They do not necessarily have to have a Chateau (house) on the estate - nowadays it's just a moniker for many wineries. The important thing, though, is that Bordeaux wine estates are just that - a vineyard which is used exclusively to make the wine for the individual or company which owns the estate. No grapes are used from anywhere else. This also applies to the Loire and Rhone regions.

In Alsace, Champagne and, most famously, Burgundy negociants (wine companies or cooperatives) buy grapes from individual winemakers. They then produce the wine and bottle and market it under their name. Even if they own their own vineyards, grapes may be blended from different ones in the same area.

Oh - and if you want to get in to French wine, here's a tip...start with soft, juicy, easy drinking wines from the Languedoc (down by the Mediterannean) and work your way north.

Happy drinking!

[Clinton Huxley]

Monsieur De'Vogue. One shall be holidaying in Carcassonne later in the year. Perhaps you would be so kind as to recommend something worthy from that region?

[Magicziggy]

I've never heard anyone cut through the wine mystic quite so succinctly.
Aussie wine is all about marketing whereas French is about the wine.

[JimC]

Good guide, Devogue!

I do drink the occasional bottle of French red wine, generally a Cotes du Rhone...

However, it is cognac and champagne that are the truly irreplaceable parts of my excessive alcohol consumption...

[Feck]

Thank you for the info Dev I have learnt a few things today ...my objection to French wine (apart from the obvious) is that IMHO it is about twice the price of New world wines .

My budget for a bottle of wine is about £5-10 ,now I watch the shelves for wines that are reduced down to this price which mostly seems to be new world ones.

I have never spent over £10 on a bottle of wine from any other country but France (because I wanted to try something nice) and ended up nearly in tears as I poured the unpleasant shit down the sink .

If I could afford Better quality wine I am sure I would purchase more French wine but I honestly think they they laugh their little Gallic asses off at the stupid British paying a premium for wine they wouldn't wash the mud off their tractors with .

[devogue]

Monsieur De'Vogue. One shall be holidaying in Carcassonne later in the year. Perhaps you would be so kind as to recommend something worthy from that region?

Be sure to stock up quickly with plenty of Cremant de Limoux, one of France's most delicious sparkling wines from the region next door to Carcasonne.

The wines of the Languedoc can be utterly bewitching, but you need to be careful where you look. If I was going there this summer I would check out the following:

1) The sub region of La Laviniere within the Minervois

As Chateauneuf du Pape is to the Cote du Rhone, so La Laviniere is to the Minervois - unbelievably good value. I love Chateau Faiteau in particular - I sell their standard Minervois for £8.99 and it shits on many a Chateauneuf du Pape at four times the price..

2) Domaine Canet Valette in St Chinian
Marc Valette produces extraordinary wines using lunar biodynamic techniques (you can quiz him about his wooness), hand picked fruit and total attention to detail.

3) Mas de Daumas Gassac

About 10 miles north of Montpellier - worth going to if you are in the area. The "Lafite of the Languedoc", be sure to try their incredible Rose Frizzant as well as their top wines.

4) Domaine Gayda

Only five miles or so from Carcassonne - glorious wines, not a single dud. Their white Maccabeo is raare and exquisite.

http://www.gaydavineyards.com/

[Mysturji]

tl;dr

[devogue]

tl;dr

[devogue]

Thank you for the info Dev I have learnt a few things today ...my objection to French wine (apart from the obvious) is that IMHO it is about twice the price of New world wines .

My budget for a bottle of wine is about £5-10 ,now I watch the shelves for wines that are reduced down to this price which mostly seems to be new world ones.

I have never spent over £10 on a bottle of wine from any other country but France (because I wanted to try something nice) and ended up nearly in tears as I poured the unpleasant shit down the sink .

If I could afford Better quality wine I am sure I would purchase more French wine but I honestly think they they laugh their little Gallic asses off at the stupid British paying a premium for wine they wouldn't wash the mud off their tractors with .

Find a good local wine merchant - ignore the supermarkets when buying French wine.

Look for less well known regions and buy the most expensive wine from there. A piss poor Chateauneuf du Pape will cost £20 a bottle because it has Chateauneuf du Pape on the bottle and that's the going rate for that appellation. The producers know that, and there's so much svaing face involved with wine that consumers will just go along with them and drink their sub standard shit while convincing themselves it's lovely.

Well, bollocks to that.

Not far south west and east of Chateauneuf du Pape are a couple of amazing regions - Cotes de Ventoux and Costiere de Nimes. The bog standard plonk from these regions costs about £3.99 (the bog standard stuff from the Cote du Rhone, because it's more famous, is around the £6.99 mark - anything less is utterly shite), so trade up to £8.99 or £9.99 and you'll get something pretty astonishing for your money made from the same grapes and in the same way as Chateauneuf. Why? Because every last penny has been squeezed out of the vines, you haven't been screwed because the name is famous and the land is expensive, and you will be receiving genuine value for money with all the usual hoity toity wine shit stripped away. Vacqueras and Gigondas are shit hot as well.

[Horwood Beer-Master]

Monsieur De'Vogue. One shall be campaigning in Carcassonne later in the year. Perhaps you would be so kind as to recommend something worthy from that region?

[Feck]

Thanks Dev I will consider your advice next time I purchase wine .

[Clinton Huxley]

Much obliged to you, Dev

[Don't Panic]

Monsieur De'Vogue. One shall be holidaying in Carcassonne later in the year. Perhaps you would be so kind as to recommend something worthy from that region?

Be sure to stock up quickly with plenty of Cremant de Limoux, one of France's most delicious sparkling wines from the region next door to Carcasonne.

The wines of the Languedoc can be utterly bewitching, but you need to be careful where you look. If I was going there this summer I would check out the following:

1) The sub region of La Laviniere within the Minervois

As Chateauneuf du Pape is to the Cote du Rhone, so La Laviniere is to the Minervois - unbelievably good value. I love Chateau Faiteau in particular - I sell their standard Minervois for £8.99 and it shits on many a Chateauneuf du Pape at four times the price..

2) Domaine Canet Valette in St Chinian
Marc Valette produces extraordinary wines using lunar biodynamic techniques (you can quiz him about his wooness), hand picked fruit and total attention to detail.

3) Mas de Daumas Gassac

About 10 miles north of Montpellier - worth going to if you are in the area. The "Lafite of the Languedoc", be sure to try their incredible Rose Frizzant as well as their top wines.

4) Domaine Gayda

Only five miles or so from Carcassonne - glorious wines, not a single dud. Their white Maccabeo is raare and exquisite.

http://www.gaydavineyards.com/

How's your knowledge of Italian wines? I'll be in Tuscany later this year.

[Animavore]

Wine is wine.

[Clinton Huxley]

Dev, do you stock any British wine? I hear some of the Brit Fizzy stuff is actually drinkable and indeed award winning.