Decoding French Wine: A Beginner's Guide to Enjoying the Fruits of the French Terroir - Softcover

Cullen, Andrew

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1479303186 ISBN 13: 9781479303182

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2012

Synopsis

The wine world can be intimidating to people who are just starting out. French wines can add an additional layer of complexity given the different, and less familiar, ways the wines are classified.
Decoding French Wine: A Beginner’s Guide to Enjoying the Fruits of the French Terroir is a short, almost pocketbook guide, written to help early stage wine drinkers navigate the world of French wine so they feel comfortable opening up a French wine list and understand exactly what they are ordering and why.
This new second edition of the book covers the prominent areas of Bordeaux, Loire, Burgundy, Alsace, Rhone, Languedoc-Roussillon and Champagne in a short, concise and clear manner, covering the necessary geography, history and practices of each region for readers to gain a fundamental understanding of wine growing throughout the country and begin to explore, and build a familiarity with, wines from each of these areas.

About this title

From the Author

Quick Notes -- How to Read a French Wine Label

Reading a French wine label is a little different than reading one from the US.  The labels are a bit more complex, but with a little practice and geographic research, you'll soon be listing your favorite appellations in no time.

There are four key aspects to a French wine label that you will want to note: the vintage, the appellation, the classification and the chateau (or winemaker).

The vintage is pretty easy to decipher but it is vitally important.  It tells you the year the grapes were harvested in, and depending on the weather for each year, this can cause prices to swell or cave in.  Don't be surprised if bottles from stellar years are much more expensive than bottles from years with bad conditions.

The appellation is a huge factor on the label because it ultimately tells you what grapes were used in producing the wine.  France (and many other European countries) segment their wines by appellation rather than saying simply Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon.

This is because of long standing rules in those countries about which grapes can grow where.  To understand what you are buying requires a bit of geographic knowledge on behalf of the purchaser.  For instance, a Bordeaux from St Emilion (right bank) is going to be a Merlot based red blend, compared to a Margaux (left bank) that is going to be Cabernet Sauvignon based. The more you experiment and research these different appellations within France, the more you will know about the wine inside.

The classification of the wine means a few different things throughout France.  In some areas, such as Burgundy, you will have Grand Cru wines which typically mean the wine is from the "highest" quality single vineyard, while Premier Cru means a "high" quality single vineyard, and then "Village" wines which may come from multiple vineyards. In Bordeaux you have the Classifications of 1855 that separate vineyards out into "growths."  The "First Growth" wines are some of the most prized in the world.

The Chateau (or winemaker) is another important aspect.  As you embark on your wine journey, you will begin to encounter and recognize winemakers who make excellent wines, or (perhaps more importantly) wines that you enjoy.  Often times a second bottle (or second label, meaning the lesser wine) from a top winemaker is a better quality than a grand cru from a lesser known winemaker.

About the Author

Andrew Cullen has authored and co-authored four non-fiction books, including the popular "Decoding wine" series. "The Callisto Symphony" is his first work of fiction. He is a digital marketer for a global 100 brand and the founder of The Underside Publishing Co. which has produced several websites including CostcoWineBlog.com and ToysBulletin.com.

Edition details

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1479303186
• ISBN 13: 9781479303182
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 81