French Wine - A History of Quality
France has the largest wine production of any country in the world, producing between seven to eight billion bottles every year. There are a number of wine making regions dotted around France with some areas being dated as far back as 600 BC.
The wines produced today vary across the gambit of the pricing structure with both expensive and lower priced wines available worldwide. In recent years, France has had to adapt to match the rest of the emerging world in wine production and distribution as the world grows smaller with modern technologies.
The French have been very protective of their origins in recent years, and rightly so, with the use of specific terms such as Bordeaux, Champagne and Burgundy now only apply to wines from those particular areas in France.
This is all governed under the Appellation d’Origine Controlee (AOC) system, which was established to preserve the naming rights for the produce from these regions. The body in charge, sets down and enforces the rules in the AOE system which is also used to determine which winemaking practices and grape varieties are allowed to be used in the specific wine producing regions of France.
Another term that is very French is “terrior”, which indicates a number of growing factors that can vary from vineyard to vineyard, taking into account factors like, soil condition, orientation toward the sun and slope of the land.
Many of the most famous varieties of grape such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Syrah all originated from the wine growing regions of France. As exploration and colonization spread across the globe, these popular varieties of grape were brought along and planted in numerous ‘new wold’ countries.
Along with the grapes, the colonists brought over the unique French wine making practices in an effort to produce the same style of wines from France.
The long and proud history of French wine has added to its mystique. It has long been a market leader in sales, grape varieties and wine production trends. In the same breath without leaving its age old traditions behind.
As a result French wine and particular houses remain in high demand around the world.
And as you would expect from 13WINE our back vintage collection of French wine is second to none. Our ability to source the very finest of the Houses of French wine is truly amazing.
Go on put us to the test for French Wine…
Tags: French Wine, french wine regions, french wines, wine from france
