It's time
to discuss Bordeaux. Of all the world's wine regions it's probably the most
legendary and mystifying. It's not easy to understand France's iconic wine
country but it's possible.
The French,
of course, make it difficult to understand any of their wine regions.
The French
labeling system tells you the producer, the appellation (region) where the
grapes were grown, and the vintage but those darn French don't tell you what
grapes are used for the wine. That's old
world wine making and you'll find the same from Italy and Spain. Burgundy isn't
Burgundy at all it's Pinot Noir. The Loire Valley is Cabernet Franc and Chenin
Blanc. Champagne is Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and some minor varietals
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| Vineyards of Saint Emilion |
Bordeaux is
largely Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. There are other grapes but we'll get to
that.
If you know
just a little about Bordeaux it’s probably all the confusion over left bank and
right bank. Let's try to simplfy. The area is divided by the Garone River
running about 375 miles through the southwest region of France and a bit of
Spain. The river divides Bordeaux right down the middle.
The left
bank is the one closer to the Atlantic Ocean. The soil has gravel allowing for
good drainage - ideal for Cabernet Sauvignon. The right bank has limestone and
clay soils which act like a sponge when it rains keeping vine stock roots moist
long after the rainfall. That is perfect growing conditions for Merlot.
If you can
remember those simple facts Bordeaux gets a lot simpler. We've mentioned Cab
and Merlot but the area also grows Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Carmenere, and
Malbec. Bordeaux wines are driven by the two dominant grapes but almost never
100 percent Cab or Merlot. So remember Bordeaux is always going to be a blend.
Now, let's
say you've seen Sideways one too many
times and you're convinced you don't like Merlot. That is probably because the
only Merlots you have ever tasted was crappy Merlot. The right bank wines of
Bordeaux which are Merlot driven will surprise you. The blends are big and rich
and might even make you think you're drinking Cabernet.
The left
bank wines, and particularly the areas of Medoc, Haut-Medoc, and Margaux are
where the insanely expensive French wines are produced. But that still leaves
more than 15 other appellations on the left bank for you to explore. There are
more than 20 appellations on the right bank, perhaps the best known is Saint
Emilion. And those wines are beautiful.
The French
love regulations when it comes to making wine. Let's just say what grapes
grown, how long those grapes are aged, and virtually every step of the process
has some government regulation.
It's highly
unlikely you're going to find Bordeaux wines in your neighborhood supermarket
or neighborhood shop. But retailers with larger inventory and shops catering to
wine enthusiasts will definitely have Bordeaux wines. But with just under
10,000 wineries how do you decide what to buy?
I'd suggest
you start with your preference of Cab or Merlot and go from there. There are
plenty of good Bordeaux wines at value price points. But keep in mind that Bordeaux’s high end
goes to thousands of dollars per bottle for the world's best wine.
Grape Sense has always focused
on finding a small wine shop where the proprietor knows wine. That's never more
true than when buying Bordeaux.
Having
visited Bordeaux recently, it’s not as complicated as it seemed before. We can
argue if Bordeaux makes the world's best wines. But it’s a region wine
enthusiasts need to sample and understand.
Bonjour!
Howard W. Hewitt,
Crawfordsville, IN., writes Grape Sense every other week for 18 midwestern
newspapers.
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