France is the world leader when it comes to wine quality.  French wine is produced throughout many of the countries regions, most notably are Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Loire, and Rhone.

Alsace runs along the French and German border and produces fine Riesling and Gewurztraminer.  Also noteworthy are Pinot Gris and Muscat.

Bordeaux produces the world’s finest wines.  This is due to the rivers that flow through the region as well as is temperate climate.  The rivers divide Bordeaux into two sub-regions, the Left Bank and the Right Bank, which are divided into even smaller sub-regions. 

Bordeaux’s Left Bank produces the world’s finest Cabernet Sauvignon and is divided into smaller sub-regions: Margaux, Medoc, Pauillac, Pessac-Leognan, Saint-Estephe, Saint-Julien, and Sauternes.  It is not uncommon for winemakers to blend Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot to soften the tannins.  Of all the sub-regions, Pauillac is known to produce the finest Cabernet Sauvignon.  Sauternes produces the Semillon, a white grape that is blended with Sauvignon Blanc.

Bordeaux’s Right Bank is produces extraordinary Merlot and is divided into two smaller sub-regions: Saint-Emilion which produces Merlot and Cabernet Franc, and Pomerol which produces Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

Burgundy is home to a long history of grape growing and is divided into five sub-regions: Chablis, Cote d’Or, Chalonnaise, Maconnais and Beaujolais.  Burgundy produces some of the finest Pinot Noir (Cote d’Or) and Chardonnay (Chablis) in the world.

Champagne is both the name of a region and a style of wine.  The wine is typically a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and usually consists of grapes from several seasons as opposed to a single vintage. 

Loire produces a wide variety of grapes, most notably Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscadet.

Rhone is divided into northern and southern regions.  Red wine from the northern area of Rhone consists solely of Syrah with the highest quality coming from the small area of Hermitage.  White wine from the northern region is most often from the Viognier grape.  The southern area of Rhone touts a large number of grape varietals and is responsible for producing a majority of the wine from the region.  Grenache is the primary grape in southern Rhone but most wines contain a blend of various grapes from the region.  Fantastic wines are found in areas of Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Cotes-du-Rhone.

French wines are truly magnificent!!!