WSET Level 3 Bordeaux Flashcards
CHATEAU
Most vineyards are known in Bordeaux as…
3 biggest Bordeaux Areas
Left Bank, Right Bank, Between Dordogne and Garonne
Bordeaux Left Bank
Medoc: Saint Estephe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien
Bordeaux Right Bank
Saint-Emilion, Saint-Emilion Satellites, Pomerol, Fronsac, Cotes de Bourg, Premieres Cotes de Blaye
Bordeaux Between Dordogne and Garonne
Entre-Deux-Mers, Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux
Climate
Moderate, maritime
Weather
1) Variable, annual vintage variation due to insufficient warmth during ripening period or too much rain at harvest.
Soils
Warm, well drained.
Bordeaux black grape varieties
Cab Sauv
Cabernet Sauvignon
At northern limit where it can successfully ripen.
Merlot
Most widely planted variety in Bordeaux
Cabernet Franc
NAME?
Petit Verdot
Ripens fully only in very hot years
Medoc/Graves: key black varieties (blended)
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc
Libourne: key black varieties (blended)
Merlot, Cabernet Franc
Bordeaux white grape varieties
Semillon
Semillon
Most widely planted white variety in Bordeaux
Sauvignon Blanc
In Bordeaux: distinctively herbaceous, grassy, elderflower
Muscadelle
Makes up very small percentage of Bordeaux sweet & dry blends (important supporting role).
Grape Growing
NAME?
Key vineyard challenges
Variable levels of grape ripeness, fungal disease (from cloud cover, rain).
Making Red Wine
NAME?
Making White Wine
-Stainless steel used to retain varietal character of dry wines (e.g. Sauv Blanc).
(13 grape varieties permitted)”
Generic: Anywhere in the Gironde region (Bordeaux, Bordeaux Superieur)
Generic Appellations
Red (M, CS, CF):
Appellation Groups
NAME?
*Cab Sauv, Merlot, Cab Franc)”
Medoc
*Merlot, Cab Franc”
Saint-Emilion & satellites
*Merlot, Cab Franc”
Blaye
*Semillon, Sauv Blanc”
Entre-Deux-Mers
*Semillon, Sauv Blanc”
Sauternes
Classification System
Medoc/Sauternes: Grand Cru Classe, Cru Bourgeois
1855 Classification (Left Bank)
*Applies to individual chateaux, not to the vineyards.
First Growth
Haut Brion (only one outside Medoc)
Second Growth
14 Cru Classes
Third Growth
14 Cru Classes
Fourth Growth
10 Cru Classes
Fifth Growth
18 Cru Classes
(Left Bank)”
200 Cru Bourgeois (lower level properties) established in 1932 & modified in 1978, 2003.
St Emilion AC (Right Bank)
Most important AC, 9 communes.
(est. 1955, revised every 10 years)”
NAME?
La Place de Bordeaux
Trading structure unique to Bordeaux
En Primeur Sales
Limited quantities of wine sold via La Place in tranches during the year after the harvest. Price includes all costs including and up to bottling.
