Why are French Wines Special ?

The beginning
One of the countries in Europe that is well known for the production of wine is France. During the Roman Empire, the areas in the southern region of France were given the license to produce wine. In the Middle Ages, the monks were given the responsibility to take care of the vineyards and also master the art of wine fine French wine. The Monasteries had the resources, security as well as the right reasons to keep a constant supply of wine – for celebrating mass as well as earning revenue. As evident from this discussion, during this time, the best vineyards were owned by the monasteries and they manufactured the superior quality wine. With the course of time, the aristocrats and the nobles started acquiring huge areas of vineyards. However, things changed with the beginning of the French Revolution in 1789. Lots of vineyards both owned by the Church as well as the nobility were confiscated.

It is interesting to note that till about the middle of the nineteenth century, most of the French wine was consumed by the local people. Though there was some percentage of wine export from Bordeaux, mostly people were satisfied drinking wines from their regions only – so, people from Bordeaux drank only Bordeaux, those from Burgundy had Burgundy and people from Paris drank the wine that was produced in the local vineyards. This was primarily due to the lack of proper roads and the huge cost of transportation. With the construction of good railway tracks and roads, these problems were sorted out and increased the amount of exports.

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Today though France leads in the world wine market both in quality and cost, it faces good competition from Italy that produces a huge volume and Spain that owns huge areas of land for the cultivation of wine grapes. The most important agricultural products of France are Bordeaux wine, Bourgogne wine or Burgundy wine and Champagne. What are the various wine regions of France ? The different wine regions of France are • Alsace • Beaujolais • Bergerac • Bordeaux • Bourgogne or Burgundy • Champagne • Jura • Loire Valley • Rhone Valley • The Languedoc wine region • Roussillon
As we have seen, France has been the largest consumer of its own wines. Nevertheless, studies show that the figures have dropped drastically in the last four decades. In the 1990s alone, the per capita consumption was dropped by almost 20 percent. Naturally, to cope up with this decline their home wine market, French wine producers are relying more and more on the foreign markets. Not only France, there has been a significant drop in the wine consumption even in Italy, Portugal and Spain. All that you want to know about French Wines In the olden days, wine was made and consumed by French peasants. As wine production in France goes back a long way, hence it is natural that French wine is considered to be the best in the world. Most of the wine lovers all over the world prefer French wine to any other because of the rich taste and amazing aroma. There are various kinds of French wine available in the stores, giving the consumer plenty of choices to select from. So, you can experience and compare wine based on its aroma, taste and even texture. There are almost thirteen different regions in France that produce wine and almost thousands of vineyards, making the possibilities of French nearly endless. France’s natural weather conditions including the climate and soil type makes French wines so special. Even though other wines use the same ingredients and the methods of production as French wine, they can mnever taste the same. When you taste original French wine , you can feel the difference – its taste, aroma and quality makes it a cut above the rest. Choosing the right kind of wine for your meal No, please dont think that I am a connoisseur of food and wine. But I can do a decent job of choosing the right kind of wine with food. Typically, all the wines produced in France are named after the region in which they are produced. The French red wines are amazing and can be served with any fine meal. A Red Bordeaux (as is evident that it is produced in Bordeaux) is producd from three types of grapes – Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. These wines have a distinctive taste – somewhat woody with characteristics of a cherry or tobacco. These wines are usually drank with well flavored roasted meat or chicken dishes or with fine cheese. The White Bordeaux is made from Sauvignon grapes which though light is sourer in taste with the splendid flavors of fruits and herbs. You can serve this wine any light meals or even with some fruity desserts. A Red Burgundy is produced from Pinot Noir grapes. These fruits are much softer and juicier than their counterparts in Bordeaux and gives the light flavor of the berries. Unlike the previous one, these wines are served with mild or light flavored dishes of fish, chicken or meat.
Rhone wines are produced from a wide variety of grapes, as high as twenty different kinds. These are very rich and have a higher content of alcohol than the rest. Serve them with lovely hot, barbecued meals and enjoy a delicious dining experience. Beaujolais wine is made from Gamay grapes. There are two types of Beaujolais wine – Beaujolais Nouveau has a light, fresh and fruity flavor that comes only in November and is extremely popular; Beaujolais on the other hand is heavy with a thick flavor, and is served slightly chilled. It is ideal for summer outings. The White Burgundy wine is made from Chardonnay grapes; these are full bodied, buttery wines with a slash of some spices and lime. There is a wide range of white burgundy wines – from the rich to the lighter ones. If you are dinning on those heavy creamy pasta dishes, go for the heavy ones; if the meal is light consisting of fish or poultry cooked in light sauces, choose one of the lighter variety.

The Loire wines are made from the Chenin Blanc or sauvignon Blanc grapes. They are light but sharp with very smoky characteristics. These are also served chilled with all seafood, particularly shellfish. The sour taste makes it ideal to even accompany light stews or vegetable dishes.

The Alsatian wines, made in the north eastern region of France, Alsace, are very sour with a sharp fruity flavor and spicy subtleties. This acidic taste makes it ideal to go with Asian or Indian cuisine or any pork dish.

The famous and classy Champagne is a sparkling wine is made from a mixture of grapes and derives its name from the Champagne region of France. There are two types of champagne – vintage and non vintage. Vintage champagne is the more costly variety as the grapes used are from a year when the fruit production was very good. Nevertheless, for a consumer, the difference in taste is hardly noticeable. Champagnes can be light and crisp or rich and toasty and can go with almost any dish except spicy food.

Some quick facts about French wine
• Technically, only champagnes made in the Champagne region of France, must carry that label. The rest must be referred to as spakling wine. Unfortunately this rule is not followed by most of the brands. Winemakers in the United sates and E.U have already signed and agreement and waiting for the Congress to approve it, to make this into a law. Original champagne is a mixture of three particular kinds of grapes; sparkling wine can be made from a wide variety of grapes. Besides sparkling wines are much affordable and less sharp than Champagne.
• If you are calorie conscious and worry about drinking wine, don’t fret any more. There are a wide variety of dry wines available in France which essentially means much less sugar than the sweet wines. Remember, wines can have the fruity taste without being sweet; ‘fruity’ refers to the flavor or the aroma; ‘sweet’ wine contains residual sugar. So, if the labels contains words like ‘demi-sec’ or ‘doux’, refrain from consuming them; also Alsatian wines tend to contain more sugar than the rest.
• Unlike the belief of the olden days, the present day French wines need not be put in the cellar to age. They taste as beautifully even if consumed in one day.
• As wine making is one of the major businesses in France, the laws governing it are extremely strict than any where else in the world. So, authentic oak barrels are used for the rpoduction of wine rather than the cheap alternatives.
• Finally, to get the best out of a French wine, chill red wines in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before serving; remove white wines from the refrigerator 15 minutes before serving.

Article Contributed By: Sukanya Banerjee


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