The Wines of Bordeaux, France

This blog is based on the radio show I did in mid-October. The Spirits of New Mexico is a one-hour radio show celebrating all the spirits, but focused mainly on wine. The shows can be heard on KIVA, The Rock of Talk, every Saturday from 4pm to 5pm on 1600 AM and 93.7 FM, Albuquerque.

Before the Judgment of Paris in 1976, there was no dispute over what country made the greatest wines using Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes. That was Bordeaux, which is still the standard by which many red wines are judged. The French were justly proud of their premier wines and were amused that the upstart Americans were going to submit wines for a blind tasting competition against their best. Losing to the Californians was a huge blow and it also shook up the wine world.

There was also a very good movie based on this wine event, Bottle Shock (2008), with Alan Rickman as Steven Spurrier, the Englishman who organized the event and Bill Pullman as Jim Barrett, the owner of Chateau Montelena, winner of the top Chardonnay.

That was then, this is now. Having recovered its previous luster the area now has to worry about fake wines of many of their first growth wines. In fact their best wines are protected with high tech labels to minimize the fakery. The high demand in China has jacked up prices as well; the nouveau riche always gravitate toward top Bordeaux wines. It is also important to note that these are Old World wines and unique in all the world.

The Bordeaux region occupies France’s western coastline, with influences from both the Atlantic and the major river tributaries, particularly the Gironde River, which is over six miles across at its mouth. The left bank vineyards of the Medoc are part of a peninsula that forms the left bank of the Gironde for over 40 miles to Margaux. The right bank vineyards begin further down the Gironde River across from Saint Estephe. Later the river splits into the Dordogne heading toward Liborne, and the Garonne, which feeds the busy port of Bordeaux.

Bordeaux principal wine regions

Medoc:

The Medoc region includes the sub-region Haut Medoc, and includes the famous wines of Margaux, Pauillac, St. Estephe, and St Julien. It also includes the Premier Cru wines of Chateau Margaux, Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, and Chateau Latour.

Medoc red grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petite Verdot, Carmenere

Libournais:

The right bank wines of the Libournais are directly west of the City of Bordeaux, but on the Dordogne tributary and include the wines of Fronsac, Pomerol, and St Emilion. In the Pomerol commune is the Premier Cru Chateau Pétrus, the most expensive Merlot wine in the world.

Libournais red grapes: Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Petite Verdot

Graves and Sauternais:

The Graves region is below Haut Medoc on the left bank of the Garonne. It is famous for its reds, dry whites and sweet white wines. As the name suggests the soils are gravely from ice age glaciers. The first growth wine here include Premier Crus Haut-Brion and Chateau d’Yquem. The communes of Barzac and Sauternes make highly-sought botrytis-infused dessert wines. The Sauternais sub-region mirrors Graves on the right bank of the Garonne River.

Graves red grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petite Verdot, Carmenere

Graves white grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Muscadelle, and lesser grapes

Entre-Deux-Mer:

This region is the largest in Bordeaux, but with less than 4,000 acres under vines. It is positioned between the Dordogne and Garonne rivers. While the name suggests the sea (Fr: Mer), it actually translates as between two tides, that is the two tidal rivers. Many excellent and affordable white wines, using Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Muscadelle, come from here.

Right Bank, Left Bank: What’s the difference?

When it comes to wine grapes and rivers the side you are on does make a difference. In Germany, the Rhine wines are classified as Rhinehessen (left) or Rhinegau (right), which are different wine regions, but also on opposite sides of the river. Soil and slopes also differentiate them.

The wines on the Westside/Eastside of the Russian River in Sonoma also have distinct differences. A river’s soil deposits may be one of the factors, along with winds and erosion. In Bordeaux the gravel well-drained soils permit quality grapes, lesser soils with more clay rely on slopes to handle drainage.

In Bordeaux, the left bank primary grape is Cabernet Sauvignon while on the right bank it’s Merlot, followed by Cabernet Franc, one of the parents of Cabernet Sauvignon along with Sauvignon Blanc. You can probably see how it got its name.

Wine quality ratings

Known as the 1855 classification requested by Napoleon III, this controversial listing focused mainly on the Medoc, with only Haut-Brion coming from Graves given a first growth designation. Graves did perform their own red wine classification in 1953, adding dry whites in 1959. Many subregions were never classified, and other areas like Burgundy provided their own classification.

Premier Cru or first growth wines are very expensive, but many second and third growth wines are also exceptional and less costly. A Crus Bourgeois listing on a bottle refers to 200 unclassified châteaux, and many are good wine values, as is our sampled wine.

The other classification one encounters is appellation d’origine contrôlée  or AOC, which designated certain “protected” areas and communes.

Bordeaux Blends

The term Bordeaux blend refer to the fact that no one grape can provide all the complexity a Bordeaux wine delivers. In the left bank Cabernet Sauvignon is the primary grape, but then Merlot is added for softness, Cabernet Franc for bright fruit flavors and smaller amounts of Malbec and Petite Verdot add structure and color.

On the right bank, Merlot is the principal grape, followed by Cab Franc. In fact Cheval Blanc, the wine loved by Miles (Paul Giamotti) in the movie Sideways (2004) is 50-50 Merlot and Cabernet Franc; the two grapes Miles disparaged in the movie.

Haut Medoc- Pauillac AOC

The Pauillac commune centers on the town of Pauillac and contains 3 of the 5 premier cru wines. That suggests that this wine will not be cheap. The first time I recall seeing the name Pauillac was from an entry in Ambrose Bierce’s The Devil’s Dictionary, one of his most quoted works.

Ambrose Bierce was a Civil War veteran and prolific journalist. His short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, was world famous. He disappeared in 1914 in Chihuahua, Mexico, with numerous theories about his death and also movies about his life. I’ll paraphrase the entry here.

After a calamitous train wreck, a well dressed elder gent, clothes disheveled, lies near the tracks. A young woman with picnic basket in hand spots him and approaches. Lips quivering he accepts a tin cup of wine. He sips the red wine, sighs and says, “Paulliac””, and dies.

One can only hope he died happy. We had no thought of death when we sampled our Wine of the Week on the show.

What we are tasting: Chateau La Fleur Peyrabon 2012 Pauillac

Listed as a Cru Bourgeois (see above) this wine received good ratings from among others, Steven Spurrier, the initiator of the Judgment of Paris. This wine is available from Total Wines & More at $39.99. WS: 93 points. Unlike our train wreck friend this wine revived my spirits and made me a lifelong fan. Salut!

We appreciate comments and questions on this article. Provide your question and we may pick yours on the next radio show.