Situated on the west coast of France, Bordeaux is split in two by the Gironde Estuary, which divides into the Dordogne and Garonne rivers. When looking at a map of the region, the area to the north and right of the Gironde is the Right Bank and the areas below and to the left constitute the Left Bank.
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Which river runs through the right bank of Bordeaux?
If you look at a map of the southwest of France, you’ll see the Garonne River flows directly through the heart of Bordeaux. The region is split with the wines on the right side of the Garonne River being the right bank wines, and the wines on the left side of the Garonne River being the left bank wines.
What’s the difference between right bank and left bank in Bordeaux?
Because of those differences in terroir, Left and Right Bank Bordeaux tend to showcase two different grapes: Left Bank wines are mostly Cabernet Sauvignon fleshed out with Merlot; Right Bank wines are more Merlot balanced by a smaller proportion of Cabernet.
What is the difference between Médoc and Haut Medoc?
The Médoc AOC is diverse in climate and terroir, and as such the wines vary in flavor and value. The Haut-Médoc AOC is also located within the larger Médoc geographical area.The Haut-Médoc AOC is quite large and spread out across Bordeaux. As in the Médoc AOC, there are many smaller communes within the Haut-Médoc.
What is the difference between Bordeaux and Bordeaux Superieur?
Bordeaux Superieur is a designation granted to chateaux producing wines in specific appellations that meet select quality standards in order to have their wine classed as Bordeaux Superieur.Bordeaux Superieur wines must reach at least 10% alcohol naturally, while generic Bordeaux must be at least 9.5% alcohol.
What is the Left Bank in Bordeaux?
The Left Bank encompasses the Médoc wine region north of Bordeaux. Its four best-known appellations – from north to south – are St-Estèphe, Pauillac, St-Julien and Margaux. It also encompasses Haut-Médoc, Listrac-Médoc and Moulis-en-Médoc appellations.
Is Margaux a Bordeaux?
Margaux is an important appellation in the Haut-Médoc district of Bordeaux, southwestern France. Located 25 kilometers (15 miles) north of the city of Bordeaux, the appellation is famous for producing supple, perfumed wines, predominantly from Cabernet Sauvignon.
Is Entre Deux Mers left or right bank?
If you’re standing in Bordeaux facing west, toward the ocean, the “Left Bank” is south of the Garonne and Gironde rivers, and the “Right Bank” is north of the Dordogne and Gironde Rivers. (The area in between is known as Entre-Deux-Mers.)
What grape is St Emilion?
Located on the right bank of the river Garonne the appellation specialises in red wines from the grape varieties Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The wines of St-Émilion are generally delightfully complex and elegant.
Is Petrus a first growth?
In 1955 St Emilion was classified and Ausone and Cheval Blanc officially became First Growths. To this day, Pomerol remains unclassified but Pétrus and Le Pin are unofficially referred to as First Growths.
Where is Cotes de Bordeaux?
The Côtes de Bordeaux appellation was created in 2009 to merge four existing appellations used in France’s Bordeaux region. These four were: Premieres Côtes de Blaye, Côtes de Castillon, Côtes de Francs, and the red wines from the Cadillac district.
Is Haut-Médoc Bordeaux?
Haut-Médoc (French: [o medɔk]) is an Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) for wine in the Bordeaux wine region of southwestern France, on the Left Bank of the Gironde estuary.
Are Graves Medoc?
In the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, only one Graves property, Château Haut-Brion, one of the four original First growths, was included among the red wines, with all the rest being Médoc properties.A classification of Graves wine was carried out in 1953 for its red wine producers.
What does Grand Cru mean in Bordeaux?
great growth
Grand cru (French for ‘great growth’) is a regional wine classification that designates a vineyard known for its favorable reputation in producing wine.It is the highest level of classification of Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) wines from Burgundy or Alsace.
What is the main difference between an AOC Bordeaux wine and an AOC Bordeaux supérieur?
Bordeaux & Bordeaux Supérieur
Bordeaux Supérieur wine, since it does not conform to the Margaux AOC norms. The main difference is the yield of production that is more limited for Bordeaux Superieur and that it requires a minimum of 9 months in barrel compare to generic Bordeaux.
What does AOC mean Bordeaux?
Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée
“AOC” means Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (Protected Designation of Origin). It is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butter, and other agricultural products. The principle is simple: everything is based on the concept of terroir.
Which side is the left bank of a river?
that which is on the left hand of a person whose face is turned downstream.
Is merlot left or right bank?
We also cover the main grape varieties grown in the Right Bank. While all Bordeaux wines are blends, Merlot and Cabernet Franc are the dominant grape varieties, in the Right Bank. Although you will find some growers also plant Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot as well.
Is the Gironde a river?
The Gironde is not really a river; technically it is an estuary, a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers flowing into it and thence to the open sea (in this case the Atlantic Ocean at the Bay of Biscay).
Is Margaux a Medoc?
Margaux is a wine growing commune and Appellation d’origine contrôlée within Haut-Médoc in Bordeaux, centred on the village of Margaux. Its leading (premier cru) château is also called Margaux. It contains 21 cru classé châteaux, more than any other commune in Bordeaux.
Is Pauillac a Bordeaux?
Pauillac, a commune located between Saint-Estèphe and Saint-Julien on Bordeaux’s Médoc peninsula, is home to some of the world’s most famous and expensive red wines wines, made predominantly from the Cabernet Sauvignon grape variety.
