France is believed to produces some the finest wines to be tasted. Why? Although France is a not a very big country (the whole country of France can fit inside Texas state lines), it is home to some of the biggest names/regions in the wine industry. The French climate and soil seem to be perfect for growing wine. Also Frence soil varies greatly with each region/sub-region so the wine produce will have different wine characteristics depending on what area the grapes were grown in. But the biggest reason why French wines are believed to be among one of the greatest regions to produce wine is the Appellation d’Origine Controllee (AOC ) which translates into “controlled term of origin”. The AOC regulates and classifies the vineyard and the wine the vineyard produces.
French Regions: Champagne, Alsace, Loire Valley, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Cote du Rhone, Languedoc -Roussillon, and Provence
AOC Regulation for Wine: Area of Production, Variety of Grape, Yield per Hectare, Vineyard Practices, Degree of Alcohol, Winemaking Practices, Tasting and Analysis, and Varietal Labeling
There is a lot more info that we could get into on the laws and regulations for French wines but for a normal everyday wine drinker it’s really not that important and really boring. But what you do need to know is the Basic Quality Designation. There are three major classifications Vins de Table, Vins de Pays, and AOC regulated wine.
Vins de Table- Is table wine, some would say the lowest form of wine made in France. Usually very cheaply priced
Vins de Pays- Means “country wine” and is a step above Vins de Table but not of the quality of a AOC regulated wine. Vins de Pays is generally reasonably price.
Appellation d’Origine Controllee (AOC )- AOC regulated wine are the most important to learn. Since each sub-region has its on way of classifying the wines. I will have to list by sub-regions to make it as simple as possible. This will be done on How to Pick a French Wine (Part 2)
Good info. I think this will help me