L3: France Flashcards
Champagne Region - Overall Characteristics (Climate, Grapes)
Climate:
Cool Continental
Coolest area from grapes in France
Grapes:
Pinot Noir
Pinot Meunier
Chardonnay
Known for Sparkling
Loire Valley Region (general overview)
Climate:
Maritime (Western coast) to Continental (inland, East)
Grapes:
Sauvignon Blanc
Chenin Blanc
Melon de Bourgone*
Pinot Noir
Cabernet Franc
Notable Wines / Sub Regions:
Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, made from the Sauvignon Blanc grape / Upper Eastern Region
Central Region: Chenin Blanc / Cabernet Franc Focus
Western Region: includes Muscadet region, known for white wine from the Melon de Bourgogne grape
Burgundy Region - Overall Characteristics (Climate, Grapes)
Climate:
Cool Continental
Kimmeridgian Clay (calcified fossils and limestone; good drainage; low nutrients; returns heat; reflects light)
Soil more gravelly as move south (e.g. Beaujolais = gravelly)
Grapes:
Chardonnay
Aligote
Pinot Noir
Gamay
Five Sub-Regions of Burgundy, North to South
Notable Wines / Sub-Regions
Five main regions (N to S)
+ Chablis (Chardonnay; intense minerality; no oak; no malolactic fermentation)
+ Cote d’ Or (best Pinot and Chardonnay)
–>Cote de Nuits
–> Cote de Beaune
+ Cote Chalonais
+ Maconais
+ Beaujolais (Gamay)
Northern Rhone
Warm Continental
Vigonier (W)
Rousanne (W)
Marsanne (W)
Syrah (all red = Syrah in N. Rhone)
Southern Rhone - Overall Characteristics (Climate, Grapes)
Warm Mediterranean
Vigonier (W)
Rousanne (W)
Marsanne (W)
Grenache
Syrah
Mouvedre
“GSM Blends”
Name Several Notable Rhone AoCs
Châteauneuf
Cote Rotie
Hermitage
Cote du Rhone - AOC vineyards on hillsides of top regions (Hills = best sunlight, best drainage, fewest nutrients)
Bordeaux - Overall Characteristics (Climate, Grapes)
Climate
Maritime
Most difficult - rain early, hail possible)
Known for blends - response to difficult climate; grapes ripen at different times.)
Grapes
Sauvignon Blanc
Semillon
Cabernet Sauvignon
Merlot
Cabernet Franc
Malbec
Petit Verdot
Ideal Bordeaux Wine Characteristics (Flavor Profiles)
Bordeaux Red Ideal Characteristics:
Dark Current
Sweetly herbaceous (green pepper, eucalyptus)
Cedar
Violet
France Regulatory Model
AOC / AOP System administered by national administrator
French Regulatory Body
Institute National de l’Origine et de la Qualité, also known as the INAO, and is led by a national minister.
French Appellation System
400 Appelations in France Today
Started to combat fraud
Focused on place–location definition of terroir, including:
Grapes used
Vinification process
Maximum yields
Alcohol level
Quality of finished product
In increasing order of specificity, and AOC name can be the name of (1) a region; (2) a district; (3) a sub-district; (4) a village or commune; or (5) a specific vineyard.
Hierarchy:
Grand Cru / Premier Cru **
Villages AOC
AOC
Appellation System History - France
Introduced in 1930s
AOC: Appellation d’ Origin Contorlle
AOP: Appellation d’ Origin Protege
2012 instituted shift to AOP; not substantive changes
Burgundy Appelation System
Grand Cru at at top
Premier Cru next
70% of Burgundy vineyards = premier cru
**Based on Vineyard itself
Bordeaux Appellation System
Left Bank (Medoc): 1855 classification
Premier Cru to Sequiemme (5th) Cru - Premier Cru = most expensive
Based on prices of wines in 1855 and on producing Chateaux
(Right bank: Grand Cru system)
Kimmeridgian Clay
Kimmeridgian clay is the famous chalky soil found in Chablis and in the Côte d’Or. Its benefits include heat retention, easy root penetration, and good drainage. It is a type of limestone created from ancient sea life that existed in the Paris Basin during the Kimmerdigian period, about 152 million years ago.
Although this type of limestone is found elsewhere in France, including Champagne and the Loire Valley, only Burgundy is situated along an important fault line that exposes this unique soil on its hillside vineyards.
Negociant
Burgundy
Person who brings together grapes from fractionally owned vineyards to make wine. (Vineyard ownership is heavily fragmented in Burgundy)
Clos
Rock enclosed plot
Special, specific plot of land
Domaine
Burgundy
Winery with House
Chateau
Bordeaux
Winery with House
Cote
Hillside
Vielles Vignes
Old Vines (smaller production, hand harvested, higher quality)
Top two french gapes by production volume
Merlot
Ugni Blanc (used in Cognac production)
Barrique
225 L barrels used by french
Sur Lee Aging
Process of resting finished wine on lees to produce additional flavors
Lees
dead yeast cells and other particles remaining in a wine after fermentation
Cru Bourgeois
Classificaiton (maybe still used?) in Medoc based on the wine itself - wines must be tasted and qualified as CB
Chablis
Northernmost part of Burgundy.
Known for Unoaked, “naked” style of Chardonnay
Chablis Region
Burgundy
Chablis lies in the northwest region, separate from the other communes. Except for the tiny commune of St-Bris that grows Sauvignon Blanc, the vineyards of Chablis are exclusively planted with the Chardonnay grape. These wines are notable for their light-bodied flavors of citrus, white flowers, and pear, along with a distinctive minerality.
Cote de Nuits
Burgundy; Cote d’ Or
The Côte de Nuits is a stretch of Grand Cru and Premier Cru sites that includes such famous villages as Meursault, Gevrey-Chambertin, and Vosne-Romanée. Pinot Noir reigns here, producing elegant, concentrated, and long-lived wines.
Cote De Beaune
Burgundy, Cote d’ Or
The Côte de Beaune is twice the size of the Côtes de Nuits. Most of its output is red wine, but its whites are world-renowned. These include Corton Charlemagne, Montrachet, and Chassagne-Montrachet.
Cote Chalonais / Maconais
Burgundy
Other important regions include the Mâconnais, which produces reasonably-priced Chardonnay, and the Côte Chalonnaise, which grows all four of the region’s grapes.
Beaujolais
Beaujolais, known primarily for its quick harvest-to-sale Beaujolais Nouveau, is a juicy, fruity wine made from the Gamay grape. The soil here changes to a gravel base. Most Beaujolais should be consumed within the first three years to ensure quality. However, wine produced from one of the 10 Beaujolais crus (the elite villages) is noticeably more complex and interesting, tending to improve over time.
Pouilly Fume
Loire Valley; Sauvignon Blanc. Dry.
Vouvray
Loire Valley, Chenin Blanc; Dry, sweet, still, sparkling
Vouvray is the most famous and most respected appellation of the Loire Valley’s Touraine growing region. The title covers white Chenin Blanc wines of various styles (sweet wine, dry, still and sparkling), from eight villages around the medieval town of Vouvray, on the northern banks of the Loire river.
Sancerre
Loire Valley, Sauvignon Blanc
Sancerre is a small wine district in central France, famous for its crisp, aromatic white wines made from Sauvignon Blanc. It is also known for its high-quality goat cheeses, which are an excellent match for the local wine.
Sauternes
Bordeaux. Sweet Wine. Semillion and Sauvignon Blanc.
From Graves. Botritys affected grapes; shrivel and concentrate.
Chinon
Loire Valley Cabernet Frac
Champagne Grapes
Pinot Noir
Pinot Meunier
Chardonnay
Loire Valley Grapes
Sauvignon Blanc
Chenin Blanc
Melon de Bourgone (Muscadet)
Pinot Noir
Cabernet Franc
Chinon
Loire Valley AOC
Cabernet Franc Focus
This is the best known appellation in the Loire Valley for Cabernet Franc. A great example will smell of roasted red pepper, raspberry sauce, jalapeño, fresh raspberry, and wet gravel.
On the palate you’ll taste high acidity and moderately low tannin. Flavors of sour cherry, smoky tomato, dried oregano, and sweet pepper dominate. The taste will burst through your palate and drop out quickly with a subtle tingle from the acidity.
Medoc
Left Bank of Bordeaux
1855 Classification
Cabernet Sauvignon Dominant
Burgundy Grapes
Pinot Noir
Gamay
Chardonnay
Aligote
Bordeaux Grapes
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Franc
Merlot
Malbec
Petit Verdot
Sauvignon Blanc
Semillon
Rhone Grapes
Vigonier
Roussanne
Marsanne
Syrah
Grenache (S. Rhone)
Mouvedre (S. Rhone)
What is Claret?
Original name for red wine from Bordeaux
What % of grapes must come from a geography if it is printed on a french wine label?
100%
