French Wine Regions

History of French Wine

France’s history with wine dates back to the 6th century BC, when the city-state of Massalia (modern-day Marseille) began trading wines with other Mediterranean cultures. Viticulturally speaking, it remained a backwater region until the fall of Rome and the rise of Catholicism. It was French monks who began the winemaking revolution.

The French innovated our modern winemaking style during the 18th and 19th centuries. As a result, nearly all wines made today are based on these French winemaking techniques. Therefore, knowing the regions and grapes of French wine is essential to learning about wine.

Guide to French Wine Regions

Those medieval monks came up with an idea that changed the direction of winemaking forever: The vineyard location affects the quality of the wine. The French have a term for this: terroir. Over the centuries, this concept has been codified into wine regions and specific grapes that can be grown there.

This is one of the many reasons any self-respecting wine geek will study French wine. We start with our guide to famous French wine regions, but check out our list of crucial French wine grapes, too.

This is part of our Wine Regions of the World Guide.

Champagne

Not all sparkling wines are Champagne, not even in France. Wine must come from a specific location about 100 miles from Paris to be considered Champagne. What is the name of this special place? Champagne: our first entry in this major French wine region list!

Being so close to the heart of French culture made Champagne the poster child of sophistication in the 20th century. The wines are based on the sparkling triumvirate of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.

The wines are always sparkling, but they vary in hue from blanc to rosé and in sweetness levels. For dry wines, seek out Brut or Extra-Brut. Extra Dry will be your jam if you want a sweet touch.

Loire Valley

It is hard to pin down the Loire Valley in the pantheon of French wine regions. It’s a thin band of wine regions that extends from the Atlantic Ocean, following the Loire River on an epic journey. The end of the Loire wine region is 170 miles away in the center of France.

Because it is a valley, this French wine region is slightly warmer than the surrounding regions. This allows the grapes to mature fully. The grapes grown depend on which part of the valley the vineyard is located.

Wines are made from the Melon de Bourgogne grape on the Atlantic coast. The major grapes in the middle of the river system are Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc. Further inland, the main grapes are Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc.

The Loire Valley is second in sparkling wine production after Champagne. Here, the bubbles are typically based on Chenin Blanc.

Alsace

The wines of Alsace have a kinship with Germany, whose border the region crosses. Consequently, they have an affinity for German winemaking. This region mainly produces white wines, emphasizing German varietals, including Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer, Riesling, and Pinot Blanc. However, red wines, especially Pinot Noir, are improving in the area.

The contrast between Alsace and Germany was commonly believed to be residual sugar: German wines had it, but Alsatians did not. That simplification worked a few decades ago, but not anymore. Some Alsatian winemakers are embracing sweetness. At the same time, many of their counterparts in Germany are reversing course to dryness.

Another oddity is the wine bottles. Unlike many places in France, Alsace producers seldom use oak in their wine. Instead, red and white wines are bottled in the long, thin bottles reserved for Riesling everywhere else.

Bordeaux

Bordeaux started as a pirate outpost in an Atlantic swamp. From that humble beginning, it became the most influential of the French wine regions. This region made Cabernet Sauvignon the king of grapes.

The classical Bordeaux—circa 19th century—is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. The Gironde River cuts through the region, and the blends are historically different on either side. On the left bank, it’s expected that the style is Cabernet Sauvignon-heavy. On the right bank, the wines are usually based on Merlot. White wines are based on Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.

Burgundy

Just like Champagne has become synonymous with bubbles, Burgundy has become the exemplar for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay bottlings worldwide. This region is also known for having the most expensive vineyards in France—which comes from the fact that it’s the most respected of the French wine regions. The lower portion of the region is Beaujolais, which produces wines made from Gamay that are much less expensive.

Jura

Like Burgundy in terms of climate and wine style, Jura produces some of France’s most unusual wines. However, this region hugs the Alps and borders Switzerland and is more famous for its skiing and cheeses than its wine. The lack of fame has preserved ancient wine styles, including many precursors to today’s natural wines. This is the most obscure of all the French wine regions covered in this guide.

Like Burgundy, Jura grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. However, the region is significantly cooler and rainier than Burgundy, which results in lighter wine styles. Jura’s fertile soils produce some great but obscure varietals, including Trousseau and Savagnin.

Although this region is one of the smallest in France, it has managed to put itself on the map by making unique wines.

French Wine Regions of the Rhone Valley

The Rhone Valley might be a single region, but the differences between the northern and southern parts are like night and day. The difference in temperature between the two areas means that the style and flavors that develop in either part differ significantly.

Northern Rhone

The winters are pretty extreme, and the summers are temperate. As a result, white varietals like Marsanne and Viognier develop beautiful minerality and richness. Syrah is the only red grape permitted, sometimes co-fermented with a small percentage of white grapes. Red wines from the Northern Rhone include Hermitage and Cornas. These are intense and intellectual wines, often considered some of the best in the world.

Southern Rhone

Due to its proximity to the Mediterranean Sea, the Southern Rhone is a much larger region and significantly warmer. As a result, the summers are hot, and droughts are not uncommon. Red wines are typically Grenache-based blends. These wines can offer excellent quality and value. Notable wine regions in the Southern Rhone include Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Listrac, and Gigondas.

Provence

The first vineyards in France were planted here, and ancient grape varietals like Mourvedre continue to flourish. Most grapes grown are red wine varietals. However, only one corner of the appellation makes red wine, Bandol.

Provence is best known for its rosé wines. Its hot and dry climate allows the region’s grapes to develop and ripen much sooner than in other areas—not ideal for red wines, but perfect for pink! When harvested, the skin has not fully developed into a deep red.

The Grapes of the French Wine Regions

Most of the wines you love are French expatriates. This is because wine became great and famous in 19th-century France. For over two centuries, the rest of the world tried to replicate French wine, including the grapes they grew. Fortunately, we now live in a world where greatness can be found in all parts of the world.

Malbec

Malbec offers grippy tannins and quite an interesting flavor profile. Common descriptors are raisin, tobacco, and blackberry. One wine writer described it as garlic scape, but that’s wild: while there is a touch of vegetal, it is subtle to the point of obscurity.

Malbec remains the main grape of Cahors. Today, it is the base of many Argentinian wines and is originally from the southwest of France. Centuries ago, it was a principal grape in the French wine regions in Bordeaux. However, that changed when wineries started focusing on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Mourvedre

A tannic beast of a grape and an ancient one to boot. The grape’s history dates back to Phoenician-era winemakers on the Mediterranean coast. When tasting Mourvedre, look for plum, white pepper, smoke, and gravel flavors.

Mourvedre is grown in two regions: the Rhone Valley and the Languedoc-Roussillon. The grape is often blended with Syrah and Grenache and used in fortified wines and rosés.

Cinsault

Cinsault is used as a blending grape in France. Most winemakers consider this grape to make lower-quality wine on its own. However, it is helpful in blends, mainly when producing wines for cost-sensitive consumers. It comes across as light and fruity in blends, bringing floral notes and strawberries.

When bottled alone, wine can be a vapid experience. However, older vineyards can produce remarkable wines.

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is often cited as the most challenging grape varietal to grow. That is not precisely correct. Many varietals are far harder to grow. It’s closer to the truth to say, “Pinot is a hard grape from which to make interesting wines.”

Pinot is the red grape of Burgundy, which codified this grape’s style for the world. In Burgundy, great Pinot is a paradox: lean but complex, linear but multifaceted, beautiful despite its barnyard. This style is nearly impossible to replicate.

Pinot Noir is becoming more popular. Outside Burgundy, the trend is fruit-forward and over-oaked wines. This is a more straightforward style to produce and shows that the chanteuse of Burgundy can transform into an American pop star.

Gamay Noir

Gamay elicits currant, violet, and raspberry flavors like Pinot Noir in color and flavor. The grape thrives in cool climates, offering light tannins and crunchy acid. This grape missed its apex turn in Burgundy but found its lane south in the Beaujolais.

The Boomer generation of winemakers turned this beloved grape into a caricature of itself with banana flavors, extravagant parades, and extravagant bottlings. If you want to keep away from that style, steer clear of any bottle with the word “nouveau” on it.

Syrah

A noble grape has found its home in many places in the world. In Australia, it is often called Shiraz. However, DNA research has traced its ancestral home to France, specifically the Northern Rhone region. It is an ancient grape grown by Celtic tribes long before the arrival of the Roman legions.

Over centuries, the grape’s influence expanded into the Southern Rhone and the Mediterranean coast. The differences between the warm Southern Rhone and the cool Northern Rhone Valleys are why there are two warring Syrah styles.

Cool-climate Syrahs tend to be lean but robust, with intense animal flavors that often border on roadkill. However, in warmer weather, Syrah is often jammy and delicious, with a bacon-meets-chocolate profile.

Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon

For decades, there were questions about how Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc were related. Finally, laboratory tests have revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon is the offspring of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc.

These grapes are the backbone of the French wine region Bordeaux. Although these two Cabernets share a lot of DNA, they develop in the vineyard quite differently. Both grapes display intense flavors of tobacco, pepper, licorice, and black currants. However, Cabernet Franc is lighter-bodied and higher in acid than Cabernet Sauvignon.

If you enjoyed reading about French wine regions, you might be a wine geek! However, if you are hungry for more knowledge, you can take our wine courses with the National Wine School certification!

French Wine Questions & Answers

What are the major French wine regions?

The major French wine regions are Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone Vally, and the Loire Valley.

Which French region has the best wine?

The two top French wine regions for quality and value are the Loire and Rhone Valleys. For the best wine region, most Sommeliers would point to Vosne-Romanée.

What is the most famous wine in France?

The most famous wine in France is Chateau Mouton Rothschild from the Pauillac region in Bordeaux.