Posted 2 March 2020
by Jamie Ashcroft
France is known as a powerhouse for expensive and
high-quality wines, with Bordeaux at the heart of its reputation. But while
many know where the Bordeaux area is in the country, not many know of its
various sub-regions, appellations and communes or the little differences between
them which can create very different wines.
Bordeaux is a wine region in Western France,
bordering the Atlantic Ocean where the Gironde Estuary moves inland. The
Gironde (before splitting into the Garonne and Dordogne rivers further inland)
naturally divides the region into its Left Bank and Right Bank. Further inland
and upstream, between the rivers Garonne and Dordogne, lies another region:
Entre-Deux-Mers (literally Between Two Seas), which produces several
less-famous sweet wines among others. All of these regions contain subregions
known as appellations (AOCs), governed by their own laws on which grapes are
allowed to be grown, what style of wine can be produced, winemaking, pruning
and picking techniques that can be used, density of vines and wine alcohol
levels, making each unique – and across Bordeaux there are around 50 separate
appellations.
A detailed map of the main AOCs of Bordeaux, courtesy of Wine Folly
While each AOC will have its own laws for wine
production, all must create their blend using grape varieties permitted in
Bordeaux: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot
for red wines and Sauvignon blanc, Sémillon and Muscadelle if making white. This
is what the term ‘Bordeaux Blend’ means. A more general rule for differentiating
Bordeaux wines is that Left Bank wines tend to be Cabernet Sauvignon-based
while Right Bank are more Merlot-based, resulting in different characteristics
in each.
The Left Bank contains a number of famous regions;
Bas-Médoc (now labelled simply as Médoc) in the north with clay-based soils
which produces wines closer to the Right Bank style, Haut-Médoc further south
which contains AOCs such as Margaux, St-Julien, Pauillac and St-Estèphe, and
Graves on the edge of the Garonne river further south, containing
Pessac-Léognan, Sauternes and Barsac.
AOCs and areas of the Left Bank of Bordeaux
St-Estèphe, the northernmost commune of Haut-Médoc,
with its heavy clay-composite soils, has more of a planting of Merlot grapes
than any other Haut-Médoc region. This region produces wines generally less
perfumed and more acidic than other Bordeaux wines, and its clay soil gives an
advantage in hot, dry summers as it is slow to drain.
Pauillac lies south of St-Estèphe and contains three
of the five first growth estates in Bordeaux, the Châteaux Lafite-Rothschild, Latour
and Mouton Rothschild, making it infamous for high-quality and expensive wines.
St-Julien has the smallest wine production of the
four famous Médoc regions, but also the highest proportion of classified
estates in Bordeaux. Nearly 80% of the region’s production is from classed
growths.
Margaux, the most southerly of the four big
Haut-Médoc appellations, contains not only a first growth estate in Château
Margaux but also 21 other classified growths – giving the area more than any
other AOC.
Pessac-Léognan, found in the northern part of the
Graves south of the Médoc, is home to the only first growth estate outside of
the Médoc: Château Haut-Brion.
Sauternes and Barsac lie further south in Graves and
are known for their sweet white dessert wines like the famous Château d’Yquem. The
sweetness of these wines is due to Botrytis cinerea (noble rot), a
fungus which desiccates grapes to concentrate the sugar inside, leaving residual
sugar in the wine produced from them. These wines can be very expensive as
their production is so difficult; the desiccation means yields five or six
times lower than the rest of Bordeaux, and harvest is usually performed
grape-by-grape, pickers wandering up and down vineyards over the course of
three months to individually select grapes at their peak. This, along with the
fermentation of the wine in small oak barrels, makes production a long and
expensive process.
The Right Bank is largely made up of an area called
the Libournais, containing the famous Pomerol and St-Émilion,
but also contains the regions of Côtes de Bourg and Côtes de Blaye. Generally
however, the term ‘Right Bank’ will refer to the AOCs of Pomerol and St-Émilion.
The Libournais, containing St-Émilion, Fronsac and Pomerol
Pomerol, first cultivated by Romans during their occupation,
produces wines considered generally as the gentlest and least tannic or acidic
of Bordeaux. The blend specific to this AOC, while using Merlot as their
leading grape, uses Cabernet Franc second rather than Cabernet Sauvignon,
giving Pomerol wines their deep, dark colour. Because of the lower levels of
tannins and acidity in these wines, Pomerols are typically drunk much younger
than other Bordeaux wines and will age faster.
St-Émilion, sharing its western border with Pomerol, also uses
Merlot and Cabernet Franc as the leads for their blend. While wines from this
AOC share Pomerol’s ability to be drunk early, they can mature slightly longer
in general and in the case of a good vintage can have good potential for ageing
(if stored correctly).
Vines in the Blaye region of Bordeaux
North of the Libournais, the Côtes de Bourg and Blaye form one
of the oldest wine regions in Bordeaux. Merlot is here followed by Cabernet
Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Malbec in blends, although certain areas have
Sauvignon blanc vines for sparkling wines or Ugni blanc for cognac (north of
Bordeaux).
Bordeaux is a large and fascinating area, producing some
incredible wines from all its regions. This overview has only scratched the
surface, but now you know the most influential regions and some of the key
differences between them. Each region has its own quirks and personality, which
translates to their own unique styles of wine – and if you know which area a
wine bottle comes from, now you should have more of an idea what you might find
inside!