The Appellation System

France has one of the world’s oldest systems for protecting the designation of origin for wine.

French law divides wine into four categories. The categories and their shares of the total French production for the 2005 vintage, were:

Table wine:

1.     Vin de Table (11.7%) - Carries with it only the producer and the designation that it is from France.

2.     Vin de Pays (33.9%) - Carries with it a specific region within France (for example Vin de Pays d'Oc from Languedoc-Roussillon or Vin de Pays de Côtes de Gascogne from Gascony), and subject to less restrictive regulations than AOC wines.

QWPSR (Quality Wine Produced in a Specific Region):

3.     Vin Délimité de Qualité Superieure (VDQS, 0.9%) - Less strict than AOC, usually used for smaller areas or as a "waiting room" for potential AOCs.

4.     Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC, 53.4%) - Wine from a particular area with many other restrictions, including grape varieties and winemaking methods.

Wine styles, Grape varieties and Terroir

In France, most varieties of grape are primarily associated with a certain region, such as:

·          Cabernet Sauvignon  -  Bordeaux  (often blended with Merlot)

·          Syrah  -  Rhône

although there are some varieties that are found in two or more regions, such as:

·          Chardonnay  -  Burgundy (including Chablis) and Champagne,

·          Sauvignon Blanc  -  Loire and Bordeaux.

As an example of the rules, although climatic conditions would appear to be favourable, no Cabernet Sauvignon wines are produced in Rhône, Riesling wines in Loire, or Chardonnay wines in Bordeaux. (If such wines were produced, they would have to be declassified to Vin de Pays or French table wine. They would not be allowed to display any appellation name or even region of origin.)

In spite of all this, traditionally, many French wines have been blended from several grape varieties. Varietal white wines have been, and are still, more common than varietal red wines. However, If there is one thing that most French wines have in common, it is that most styles have developed as wines meant to accompany food, be it a quick baguette, a simple bistro meal, or a full-fledged multi-course menu. 

Terroir

Terroir refers to the unique combination of natural factors associated with any particular vineyard. These factors will influence the flavour of the wine produced. In France the concept of terroir manifests itself most extremely in the Burgundy region (refer below). The amount of influence and the scope that falls under the description of terroir has been a controversial topic in the wine industry.

Wine regions of France

Alsace

Alsace is primarily a white-wine region, though some red, rosé, sparkling and sweet wines are also produced. It is situated in eastern France on the river Rhine and borders Germany, a country with which it shares many grape varieties as well as a long tradition of varietal labelling. This is one of the few areas in France where you will find varietal labelling.

Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a large region on the Atlantic coast, which has a long history of exporting its wines overseas. The red wines produced are usually blended, from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and sometimes Cabernet Franc. Bordeaux also makes dry and sweet white wines, including some of the world's most famous sweet wines from the Sauternes appellation, such as Chateau d'Yquem. Bordeaux is famous for the following wines:

·          Chateau Lafite-Rothschild,

·          Chateau Latour,

·          Chateau Mouton-Rothschild,

·          Chateau Margaux and

·          Chateau Haut-Brion

·          Chateau Cheval Blanc

·          Chateau Ausone

·           Petrus and Chateau Le Pin.

Burgundy

Burgundy or Bourgogne in eastern France is a region where red and white wines are equally important. Probably more terroir-conscious than any other region, Burgundy is divided into the largest number of appellations of any French region. The top wines from Burgundy's heartland in Côte d'Or command high prices. The Burgundy region is divided in four main parts:

·          The Cote de Nuits (from Marsannay-La-Cote down to Nuits-Saint-Georges)

·          The Cote de Beaune (from north of Beaune to Santenay)

·          The Cote Chalonnaise

·          The Maconnais

Two parts of Burgundy that are sometimes considered as separate regions are:

·          Beaujolais in the south, close to the Rhône Valley region, where mostly red wines are made in a fruity style that is usually consumed young. "Beaujolais Nouveau" is the only one wine that can be legally consumed in the year of its production (Third week end of November)

·          Chablis, halfway between Côte d'Or and Paris, where white wines are produced on chalky soil giving a more crisp and steely style than the rest of Burgundy.

There are two main grape varieties used in Burgundy - Chardonnay for white wines, and Pinot Noir for red. White wines are also sometimes made from Aligoté, and other grape varieties will also be found occasionally.

Champagne

Champagne, situated in eastern France, close to Belgium and Luxembourg, is the coldest of France's major wine regions and home its major sparkling wine. Champagne wines can be both white and rosé. A small amount of still wine is produced in Champagne (as AOC Coteaux Champenois) of which some can be red wine

Languedoc-Roussillon

Languedoc-Roussillon, by far the largest region in terms of vineyard surface, and the region in which much of France's cheap bulk wines have been produced. While still the source of much of France's and Europe's overproduction, the so-called "wine lake", Languedoc-Roussillon is also the home of some of France's most innovative producers. They try to combine traditional French wine and international styles and do not hesitate to take lessons from the New World. Much Languedoc-Roussillon wine is sold as Vin de Pays d'Oc.

Loire

Loire valley is a primarily white-wine region that stretches over a long distance along the Loire River in central and western France, and where grape varieties and wine styles vary along the river. Four subregions are situated along the river:

·          Upper Loire is known for its Sauvignon Blanc, producing wines such as Sancerre AOC, but also consisting of several VDQS areas;

·          Touraine produces cold climate-styled white wines (dry, sweet or sparkling) from Chenin Blanc in Vouvray AOC and red wines from Cabernet Franc in Bourgueil AOC and Chinon AOC;

·          Anjou-Saumur is similar to the Tourain wines with respect to varieties, but the dry Savennières AOC and sweet Coteaux du Layon AOC are often more powerful than their upstream neighbours. Saumur AOC and Saumur-Champigny AOC provides reds; and

·          Pays Nantais is situated closest to the Atlantic, and Muscadet AOC produces white wines from the Melon de Bourgogne grape.

Provence

Provence, in the southeast and close to the Mediterranean. It is perhaps the warmest wine region of France and produces mainly rosé and red wine. It covers eight major appellations led by the Provence flagship, Bandol. Some Provence wine can be compared with the Southern Rhône wines as they share both grapes and, to some degree, style and climate. Provence also has a classification of its most prestigious estates, much like Bordeaux.

Rhône

Rhone Valley, primarily a red-wine region in southeastern France, along the Rhône River. The styles and varietal composition of northern and southern Rhône differ, but both parts compete with Bordeaux as traditional producers of red wines.

 South West France

South West France or Sud-Ouest, a somewhat heterogeneous collection of wine areas inland or south of Bordeaux. Some areas produce primarily red wines in a style reminiscent of red Bordeaux, while other produce dry or sweet white wines. Areas within Sud-Ouest include among other:

·          Bergerac and other areas of upstream Dordogne;

·          Areas of upstream Garonne, including Cahors;

·          Areas in Gascony, also home to the production of Armagnac, Madiran, Côtes de Gascogne, Côtes de Saint-Mont, Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh and Tursan;

·          Bearn, such as Jurançon; and

·          Basque Country areas, such as Irouléguy.

There are also several smaller production areas situated outside these major regions. Many of those are VDQS wines, and some, particularly those in more northern locations, are remnants of production areas that were once larger.