BORDEAUX : Production : 5400000 hl . Red wine —> 4.400.000 hl . White wine —> 960.000 hl . Area : 102.000 hectares . Climate : temperate maritime . Soil : Gravelly / well drained . It is one of the most famous area for the wine production of Red Wine . Do not forget also the white wine production , albeit in smaller quantity , and of botrytized wines . They use almost only three grapes , famous all around the world with the name of ”Bordeaux Blend “: Cabernet Franc , Cabernet sauvignon and Merlot . They use , in smaller quantity , also the grapes of Petit Verdot and Malbec , but not like in the past .The white grapes used are : Semillon , Sauvignon Blanc , Muscadelle e l ‘ Ugni Blanc ( Trebbiano Toscano in Italy ) . The organization which is in charge to take care of the entire area is ” CIVB ” ( Conseil interprofessional du Vin de Bordeaux ) and in the same building there is also ” L’Acadèmie du Vins de Bordeaux ” , where all the tourists and wine lovers can find all the information they need . As you will read later , in the Bordeaux area there are only 60 chateaux which can use the Cru Classè appelation , for the others ,in 1932, has been created a special appelation with the name of “ CRU BOURGEOIS “. The quality of these wines is very huge , they have a cheaper price than the Crù Classè and are used normally as daily wine’s consumption . Its classification is called Crù classe , which includes the municipalities denomination ( communes ) and starts from : - Premiere cru classè – Duexième Cru Classè – Troisième Cru Classè – Quartième Cru Classè – Cinquième Cru Classè . There are just 5 Première Crù classè , last added was in 1973 , when Philippe de Rotschild succeeded , with his ” Chateau Mouton- Rothschild ” to move from Duexième Cru classè to Premiere Cru Classè ( to keep in mind that this Chateau comes from GRAVES AREA , therefore all the others come from only from MEDOC ). The others ones are : Chateau Latour and Chateau Lafite situated in Pauillac , Chateau Margaux in Margaux and with a white wine in the Graves district , Chateau Haut-Brion . Currently , there are 60 chateaux using this classification in Mèdoc and one in Graves .
MEDOC :
This Area is located in the North , along the Gironda River . This is the first area to get the first classification together with Sauternes area in 1855. Basically , the classification in Bordeaux takes care about the quality of the producer , called ” Chateau ” ( which includes the area all around the building ) . Medoc is divided in : Mèdoc in the north and Haut- Medoc in the South . In the Haut- Medoc are situated the most prestigious municipalities , Saint Estephe , Pauillac , St. Julien and Margaux .They use mostly The Cabernet Sauvignon which add the famous structure to theirs wines . Saint-Estèphe : the wines are really impressive , strong structure and important tannin . They need a long aging before to be drunk , to becomes soft and allow the perfect maturation of the flavors . They have started to add a little bit more of Merlot to have a calmer tannin and decrease the acidity . Paulliac : They use almost cabernet Sauvignon , the wines are robust but very elegant and refined . Anyway they need more of 10 years of aging before to reach the perfection. Grape most used Cab. Sauvignon Followed by Merlot and Cab. Franc St-Julien : small municipality , there are excellent Cru Bourgeois and many Cru Classè .The wines are fine , elegant with an important structure . Grape most used : Cab. Sauvignon Followed by Merlot and Cab. Franc Margaux : the famous municipality for its wines with impressive aroma , complexity , fine and elegant .The soil plays an important role for the develops of the product , well drained and gravelly a little bit more than the others . They need to be aged to improve their characteristics. Grape most used : Cab. Sauvignon Followed by Merlot and Cab. Franc Listrac and Moulis : Due to a soil less important and the minor influence they have from the climate of the coast , the wines from these areas are not so famous and with an high quality than the others , but you can find anyway good wines also here .
GRAVES
Situated to the South of Medoc , this Area is practically divided half in Red wine production ad half in White wine production . It is famous also for the production of ” CLAIRET ” , like a rosè , is produced with a brief contact with the peels .The classification has been introduced in 1953 only and afterwards revised in 1959. One of the most Famous producer is Haut-Brion ( as we saw before, white wine ) situated within the area of Pessac – Lèognan ( it has got the AOC in 1987 ) the most important of this area . The grapes used in this area are mostly Cab. Sauvignon , Merlot and Franc . They seems like the Medoc wines but warmer , more earthy , spicy . Most used white grapes are : Semillon , for the structure , richness and maturation capacity , Sauvignon Blanc for the freshness and aromatic elegance of the wines .
ST-EMILION
Famous district for the red wine , on the East side of the region , along the Dordogna’s river , in the area called Libournais , nearby Libourne city . Hilly terrain where the wines are divided following the types of soil : Cotes , the hillsides terrains and the Graves , layer of gravel resting on a coarse sand . The wines are rounds , vigorous , need a long aging in wood barrels but more soft than Medoc wines since they use more Cab . Franc and Merlot . The Famous castles / producers are : Cheval-Blanc and Figeac , then Vandraud and Angèlus .
POMMEROL
In the Libournais area , on the west from Saint Emilion , we find Pommerol . It is a small area , but considered one of the most important if not the most important . There is no classification , but you can find the most prestigious Chateau in France maybe , Chateau Petrus , and it is situated on the best area of Pomerol . The grape most used is Merlot , which produced velvety wines , wide , savory , fruity . The soil is the same of ST-Emilion .
SAUTERN-BARSAC
Go down to the South of Graves area following the Garonna’s river , we find two famous municipalities for the botrytized wines, Sautern and Barsac . Famous for the sweet wines attached by noble mold , Botrytis Cinerea , these areas have also their own classification : in 1855 they have been divided in two classes; premiere cru classè and deuxieme cru classè with the producer Chateau D’Yquem with its own ones : Premiere grand cru classè . The municipalities which have the right to put in the label ” Sauternes ” denomination are : Barsac, Bommes, Fargues, Preignac and Sauternes . Barsac can use also the AOC Barsac denomination . The noble mold , Botrytis Cinerea ,needs specific conditions to evolve and attack the grains of the grapes without damaging them . The micro climate is extremely important . Practically , when the mold attacks the grape , it perforates the peel but without infects the pulp , allows that almost 50% of the water evaporates .The sugar become Glycerin giving roundness . Are also formed organic acids and the mold change the composition of the grapes , consuming 5/6 of acids and 2/3 of sugars . This wine can age for more of 30 years acquiring complexity and an extremely variety of scents , flavors , unique aroma . They produce also dry wines form Sauvignon Blanc or Semilion , getting the AOC Graves denomination The grapes used are Semilion , sauvignon blanc and muscadelle .
Other wine areas are :FRONSAC , BOURG OCH BLAYE and ENTRE-DEUX-MERS .
