Wine 101: The Continuing Saga of French Wines

Ken Mageau

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Wine 101: The Continuing Saga of French Wines

1v6 Wine 1 Wine 101: The Continuing Saga of French Wines

Where was I when we ended last month? I do remember that I got a screaming headache taking about French wines. I hope to get through all of it in this issue so we can cover something more pleasant. French wines are spectacular, but the attitude? Not so much.

So let’s finish Bordeaux. In Médoc, in 1855, a consortium of growers, shippers and merchants judged all of the wines of the region in order of their quality, and the classification of the wines really hasn’t changed much in all that time.

Premier Cru is the top of the wine from Médoc, and is usually translated as “First Growth.” That doesn’t imply a number of consecutive growths, but it does mean that it comes from a first-quality vineyard. You will pay dearly for these wines. You may recognize their names: Château Latour, Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Mouton Rothschild, Château Margaux, and Château Haut-Brion

Deuxième Crus are second growths and are at the second level of quality. Many are still superb though, such as Château Léoville-Las Cases and Château Pichon-Longueville.

And so it goes from third-class and on down. Wines from the second to fifth class will sometimes read “Cru Classé” or “Grand Cru Classé,” indicating that they were rated somewhere within the original 1855 classification — a great distinction in itself.

Saint-Émilion is much easier to understand. All you need to remember is Premier Grand Cru (first great vineyards — the really great wine), Grand Cru Classé (great classified vineyards), and Grand Cru, in that order. Most of the wines of Saint-Émilion are merlot blends with a little cabernet franc.

Graves includes red and white wines. All you really have to remember as far as they’re concerned is Premier Grand Cru.

Pomerol is the smallest of the five Bordeaux districts and was never classified. However, one of the most famous wines in the world and most expensive, Château Petrus, comes from Pomerol. If anyone offers you a bottle, or even a sip, DON’T TURN IT DOWN!

Uninformed Sauternes and Barsac detractors think of Sauternes as a cheap cooking wine. Not so! A real Sauternes, that is one that actually comes from the Sauternes district of Bordeaux, is one of the finest and most interesting wines in the world.

Sauternes’ distinctive character comes from noble rot, a mold that grows on the grape when conditions are right, which doesn’t happen every year. That’s also why Sauternes can be very expensive.

Sauternes and Barsac are both made from a blend of Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. They are classified into three categories. Grand Premier Cru only has one, and that is Château d’Yquem. If you get a chance to taste this at least once in your lifetime, you will indeed be lucky. This wine needs 20 to 30 years in the bottle to reach its full potential. Premier Cru has 11 Sauternes in this category and Deuxième Cru has 12.

Our coverage of Bordeaux is complete now, but learning it isn’t easy.

Drinking a great Bordeaux is a treat few will have, so if you get the chance, don’t pass it up.

Next month we’ll begin with the Rhône region and move on from there.

Remember: life’s too short to drink lousy wine!

Ken Mageau is the owner of The Flying Corkscrew, purveyors of fine wine, beer, and cigars, located at 1877 S. Patrick Dr. in Indian Harbour Beach. Call (321) 773-8757, or visit www.brevardwines.com.