P4C x ELT = P4ELT: Its Theoretical Background (Kanazawa, 2024 March).pdf
Wines of france
1. W
INES OF FRANCE
Nobody can argue with the supremacy of France as the country that
has set international standards by which wine is judged. Though the New
World wines are taking over French wines terms of sale & popularity, these
wines still remain one of the costliest and classiest. One of the main
reasons for this shift is the rigidity of these French wine i.e. there are
fixed laws regarding the grape variety, yield, vine density and lot more
factors which leave no room for French wine makers to innovate and
improvise over the existing wines & their taste.
As we know France experiences one of best climate for wine growing, just
think about the grape varieties growing outside France and giving wonderful
results, what will be resultant wine if they grow in Franc …but then its just
a thought.
A Brief History
• Greeks arrived in France in 600 B.C. and brought viticulture with
them.
• In 200 B.C. Romans captured some of the France and greatly
influenced the wine-making
• By the 6th century A.D. the Roman Empire disintegrated and
Christianity was spread in France.
• Now the vineyards came under the rule of monasteries and churches.
• The wine-making greatly flourished under their rule
2. • In 1350 one million cases were exported from Bordeaux, and in 1790
six million cases were exported.
• With the French Revolution in the end of 18th century the vineyards
slipped out of the hands of churches and went to the local people.
• The vintage of 1854 was disastrous.
• The Phylloxera epidemic spread in 1860 when a winegrower imported
some American vines.
• It destroyed about 6.2 million acres of vineyards in France.
• The only effective solution found was to graft European vines on
these American rootstocks.
• The first classification was done in 1855 in Bordeaux
Classification
• The classification system in reality evolved in 1930’s.
• The economic depression during this time resulted in the plantation of
hybrids, thus there was a wine surplus and nefarious blending.
• In 1932 the Institute National des Appellations d’origine(INAO) was
founded in Paris. It covers the following aspects:
Production area
Vine varieties
Ripeness and alcoholic strength
Yields
Vine density
Wine making and distillation
• Appellation d’Origin Controlee(AOC): It represents around 52% of all
French wines
• Vins delimites de qualite superieur(VDQS): It was founded in 1937
and contributes only 3% of total French wine production.
3. • Vins de Pays : It was created in 1970 and formalized in 1979. It is
related to country wines and gives some guarantee of authenticity and
quality. It contributes to the 33% of total production.
• Vin de Table : It is for the ordinary wines or table wines. It was
earlier known as Vin De Consommation Courante (VCC) or Vin Ordinaire.
These wines can be a blended with wines from the EU(European Union).
Principle Grape Varieties
Red:
Cabernet Sauvignon: It is dominant in the Medoc. It is the most highly
flavored, with small berries making dark, tannic wine that demands aging,
but has both depth and cut of flavor. Being a late ripener, it needs warm
soil, gravel suits it well. Specially grown in Bordeaux (Medoc &Graves)
Cabernet Franc: It is bigger, juicer grape. It was widely planted before
Cabernet Sauvignon was introduced in Bordeaux in 18th century. Its wine
has delicious soft fruit flavors but less tannin and depth. Bordeaux & Loire
are the main regions of grape cultivation.
Merlot: Merlot buds, flowers and ripens early, making it ready to pick
sooner, with an extra degree of alcohol in its higher sugar. Merlot wine has
good color and an equally spicy but softer flavor than Cabernet Sauvignon,
making the wine that matures sooner. This is the grape that gives Chateau
Petrus its texture and flavor.
Pinot Noir: Thin skinned, lightly pigmented Pinot noir produces some of the
lightest, least tannic wine. Classic growing areas are Burgundy and
Champagne.
4. Syrah: This is very full-flavored grape is renowned for producing strong,
sturdy wines of deep purple color, capable of aging for many years. Mostly
grown in Rhone valley.
Gamay: Gamay thrives in Beajulais region. Wines made from this grape vary
in intensity, but most of them are low in tannin, light, fresh, and fruity,
with a sort of fruit-punch flavor.
White:
Chardonnay: It is the most favorable grape amongst the winegrowers. This
grape grows well in both coolest regions of Northern France and warmer
regions of Southern France. It is made in a medium to full bodied style,
with medium to full intensity of apple fruit aroma and flavor. Classic
growing regions include Burgundy and Champagne.
Sauvignon Blanc: This grape is grown in Bordeaux and Loire valley. It
normally give fresh, fruity wines that are medium bodied with medium
flavor intensity.
Riesling: This is widely grown in Alsace region. It requires long, cool
growing season to come to perfect ripeness. Wines made from Riesling are
usually of a light to medium body, with a floral, very fruity character and
sweetness.
Chenin Blanc: This grape is grown in Loire valley where the cool climate
seems to provide perfect growing conditions. Chenin blanc are usually light
in body and flavor intensity.
Semillon: It is grown in Bordeaux especially in Graves. In Sauternes and
Barsac it is affected by botrytis and it is major component of in the sweet
white wines of those areas.
Gewürztraminer: This grape produces very attractive wines with more
emphatic fruit character and an unmistakable touch of cinnamon spice. This
is widely grown in the region of Alsace.
Regions of France
5. Bordeaux
Bordeaux
It is situated towards southwestern France with Cognac in the north It is
sited on the either side of the river Gironde. 80 % of the wines produced
here are red. Four factors make bordeaux the most important vineyard
Region of all: its quality, size, variety & unity. This region is divided into
districts which are further divided into communes / parishes, which is again
divided into chateau’s.
6. Main districts are - Medoc
Pomerol
St Emillion
Sauternes
Graves
Main Grape Variety used:
Cabernet Sauvginon (R)
Cabernet Franc (R)
Merlot (R)
Malbec (R)
Semillon (W)
Muscadelle (W)
Sauvignon Blanc (W)
Terroir
• Soil: Gravelly Limestone and Clay Soil
Climate: Moderate and humid due to the river Gironde.
Great wines of Bordeaux
• Chateau Haut Brion
• Chateau Latour
• Chateau Mouton Rothschild
• Chateau Margaux
• Chateau Lafite Rothschild
• Chateau Petrus
• Chateau D’Yquem (W)
Burgundy (Bourgogne)
7. It is situated in east central France, towards the south of Champagne.
Principle grape varieties are Gamay and Pinot Noir for red and Chardonnay
for white. Due to its southern location the grapes do not ripen properly in
the poor years. Chapitalization is carried out to counter act high acidity &
low alcohol
Major Wine Producing Regions are - Cote d’ maconnais
- Cote d’ Chalonnaise
- Beajolais
- Cote de nuits
- Cote de beaune
- Chablis
Terroir
• Soil: Limestone
• Climate: Semi-Continental
Famous Wines
Chablis (W) Beaujolais
Pouilly Fuisse (W) Pommard
8. Rhone
It takes its name from the Rhone River valley and is located in the south
east of Paris. Also known as Cote du rhone. It is located below burgundy in
the southeast section of France. The best wines come from the southern
part of this valley. 90 % of these wines are red with a higher alcohol
content than most of the French wines They are robust & full-bodied with
plenty of bouquet & taste. There are more than 15 varieties of grapes used
here, some of them are Syrah, Grenache and Cinsalt.
Terroir
• Soil: Granite in north, sandy in south.
• Climate: Hot summers and autumns,
Significant humidity due to Rhone river
Famous Wines
• Chateau Neuf du Pape – this district is named after a ruined castle in
France. Considered one of the best reds, 13 grape varieties are used in
production of this full-bodied wine.
• Cote du Rotie – One of the famous Rhone red wines made by law from
a min of 80% syrah & 20 % Viognier grapes. This is a full-bodied wine with a
heavy tannic flavor.
• Hermitage – Fullest of all the Rhone valley wines made from syrah
grapes
• Tavel (Rose) – Most famous & finest rose wine of France. These are
soft with just the right amount of taste & fullness. They are quite dry &
drunk 2 years of the vintage
Loire
• Also known as Val- de –loire. It is named after the Loire River.
9. • Like Alsace this region lies far north & doesn’t receive sufficient
sunshine to fully ripen red grapes.
Terroir
Soil: Combination of clay, granite, chalky, limestone and volcanic soil
Climate: Relatively cool climate
Grape Varieties
Cabernet Sauvignon (R)
Cabernet Franc (R)
Gamay ( R)
Pinot Noir (R)
Pinot Muniere (R)
Chenin Blanc (W)
Sauvignon Blanc (W)
Muscadet (W)
Chardonnay (W)
Major Wines
• Vouvray (w) – made exclusively from chenin blanc grape. Also known as
blanc-d’anjou
• Puilly Fume (W)- Dry full-bodied wine made from sauvignon blanc
grape.
• Anjou (Rose)- Also known as “Rose d’ Anjou”. Made from cabernet
franc grapes. It’s a light wine with a hint of sweetness.
• Muscadet (W) – A dry light wine usually high in acidity.
Alsace
This region is towards the northeastern part of France & the Vosges
Mountain towards its west. It has a very difficult history of shifting
belongingness between France and Germany. The region receives the lowest
10. rainfall & most sustained sunshine. As per the strictly enforced law the
grapes must be 100% of the variety named, properly ripened & fermented
dry with no sweetening added.
Terroir
Soil: Combination of granitic rock, sandstone and limestone.
Climate: Continental climate.
Grape variety
Gewürztraminer (w)
Pinot Blanc (w)
Pinot Gris ( w)
Reisling (w)
Muscat (w)
Famous Wines
Riesling (W)- also called as Alsace Reisling.
Gewurstraminer (W) – Spicy & a full flavoured wine.
Tokay ‘D’ Alsace (W) – Renamed as Pinot Gris.
Sylvaner (W) – Light, dry & refreshing wine.
Pinot Blanc (W) – It has a floral bouquet.
Champagne
It is the most northerly vineyard area of France situated in the northeast
of Paris. The vineyards are one of the smallest and low yielding as compared
to the rest of France. This area is famous all over the world for its
sparkling wines.
Terroir
• Soil: Thick layer of chalky soil.
Climate: Very cold
Grapes
Only three grape varieties are grown in this region - Chardonnay (W), Pinot
Noir and Pinot Muniere
Major Shippers
• Dom Perignon
11. • Piper Heidsieck
• Bollinger
• Ruinart
• Pommery
Noble Rot
Also known as Pourriture Noble in French, Edelfaule in German, Muffa in
Italian and sometimes simply as Botrytis.
It is a fungus, which attacks the fully ripe grapes and feeds on the
moisture from it. It also takes away five-sixth of the grape’s acidity and
about a third of its sugar, but as the amount of water consumed is between
one-half and two-thirds which more than the amount of sugar consumed,
the grape becomes high in sugar content and less in acidity, thus producing
a very sweet and flavorful wine.
Glossary
Botrytis – A generic term for rot but is often synonymously used for
Botrytis Cinerea.
BOB – Stands for Buyer’s Own Brand, a brand that belongs to the buyer
which could be a wine merchant or supermarket or a restaurant
Chateau – It literally means a “castle” or “stately home” but in wine
parlance it usually means a wine growing, wine making estate to include
vineyards, the cellars often the wine itself or any building or buildings on
the property. The term is most commonly used in Bordeaux.
Commune – French for village.
Cote / Cotes – Slope or hillside of one contiguous slope or hill.
Cremant – Traditionally ascribed to Champagne with a gentler mousse than
usual but now applied to fully sparkling wines from other areas.
12. Cuvaison – The fermentation period in red wine production during which the
juice is kept in contact with the skin.
Cuve – Vat
Cuvee – It can be the contents of the wine vat or a blend of Champagne or a
special lot of wine.
En-primeur – Classic wines such as Bordeaux for sale En-Primeur that is to
say within a year of harvest before the final blend and bottling has taken
place.
Vendage Tardive – Late harvest.
Vigneron – Vineyard worker.
Vignoble – A vineyard.
Vin de Grade – Wine capable of significant improvement if allowed to age.
Vin de Goutte – Free run juice. In the case of white wines this is the juice
that runs free from the press before the actual pressing operation begins.
Vin Gris – A delicate pale version of Rose.
Bibliography
1. Oz Clarke’s Encyclopedia of Wine
2. The Oxford Companion to Wine – Jancis & Robinson
3. Exploring Wine – Kolpan, Smith & Weiss
4. Modern Encyclopedia of Wine – Hugh Johnson
5. Wines of the World – Andre Simons
6. World Wines Encyclopedia – Sotheby’s
7. The World of Wine – Robert Mondavi
8. Wines of France – Alex Lichine