THE SPECIALITY OF FRANCE, THE WINES

Le Devoir française, le vins

WINES

When you think of the finest wines the world has to offer, you almost certainly think of France. France has been known for centuries as the home of high-quality gourmet wines. From whites to Champagnes to reds of every variety (and varietal), France produces wine with expertise and finesse.

French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France has the world's second-largest total vineyard area, behind Spain, and is in the position of being the world's largest wine producer losing it once (in 2008) to Italy.

French wines are usually made to accompany food.

Vineyards in Vosne-Romanée in Burgundy, a village that is the source of some of France's most expensive wines.

Common grape varieties in France (2007 situation, all varieties over 1 000 ha)

Variety Color Area (%) Area (hectares)

1. Merlot red 13.6% 116 7152. Grenache red 11.3% 97 1713. Ugni Blanc white 9.7% 83 1734. Syrah red 8.1% 69 8915. Carignan red 6.9% 59 2106. Cabernet Sauvignon

red 6.7% 57 913

7. Chardonnay white 5.1% 43 887

8. Cabernet Franc red 4.4% 37 508

9. Gamay red 3.7% 31 77110. Pinot Noir red 3.4% 29 576

11. Sauvignon Blanc white 3.0% 26 062

12. Cinsaut red 2.6% 22 23913. Melon de Bourgogne

white 1.4% 12 483

14. Sémillon white 1.4% 11 864

15. Pinot Meunier red 1.3% 11 335

Traditionally, many French wines have been blended from several grape varieties. Varietal white wines have been, and are still, more common than varietal red wines.At the 2007 harvest, the most common grape varieties were the following:

With the number of appellations in France too numerous to mention here, they are easily defined into one of the main wine producing regions listed below:

THANK YOUBY: Priya JainMBA (CI&SM)