Posts Tagged ‘bordeaux wine’

First, let’s decide: what we will drink. A French wine has its own ranking system.

Table wine has the lowest rank. It is the cheapest and the simplest. Local wine is ranked slightly higher. It is produced in certain regions of France.

The next stage is higher-quality wine produced in a limited territory. Its production techniques is under the strict control. Manufacturers are required to use only certain varieties of grapes growing on the particular wine industry castle’s soil.

Finally, the highest ranked wine category – aristocratic “controlled by descent” wine. This wine is bought by collectors and sold at auctions for the crazy money. Requirements for its manufacturing are much more rigid. For example, even if the grape harvest has been abundant, there is a strict limit of producing elite wines. Prestigious wine must me limited!

How to choose elite wine?

First of all, pay attention to the label. It should not be garish or colorful. Typically, the better the wine, the label looks more modest. And if you choose the higher-class wine, it must have three words in its inscription. First – Appellation (winemaking community), or Chateau (Castle). Then the name of the community or castle. And the key word “control” means that the wine is controlled by descent.

Very often these three words are typed in very small font. But they are the key! If they are not on the label, the wine could not be considered elite. The best French wines have also “Grand Cru” classification. Most often this inscription can be found on the label after the name of vineyard.

What should you pay attention to when choosing wines from different regions of France?

The most famous are Bordeaux and Burgundy wines.

Individual wine-making households – Chateau – are located Inside the Bordeaux wine-growing areas. Therefore, when choosing Bordeaux wine you must draw your attention to the name of the castle.

Each Chateau has its unique flavor, identity and bouquet. Even if a few castles are located in the neighborhood and use the same sort of wine grapes, they produces quite different wines. Indeed, each Chateau has its own secrets, which are handed down for several centuries. Unlike Bordeaux, Burgundy is famous by wine-growing communities, which may belong to several tens of producers.
Pay attention to the producer of the wine – its taste and smell depends on its producer.

How do size and length of the bottle corks characterize the quality of wine?

The real connoisseurs of French wine knows what the cork means. Firstly, it must be made from cork oak bark. Secondly, the name of the community or castle as well as the harvest year must be printed there. The longer the cork, the more expensive drink, and the higher its quality. But short pressed cork is a sign of cheap wine.

As is the convention, the long-lived wine corks is changed every 15 years.

As for the bottle, the most famous elite wine bottle is called “Magnum” (1.5L). The fact is that “Magnum” is used for very high quality wine of the best years.

Author: Nataliya S
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Beading Necklace

Even though you don’t speak French, you can still score points in a social gathering by pronouncing your wine’s name or wine-related terms correctly. For example, most English/non-French speakers pronounce Paris as Pair-is, but the correct pronunciation for Paris is Pa-ree, the “s” is not pronounce and there is a stress on the final syllable.In French pronunciation, stressing the final syllable is very common.

Here is a list of common wine names and terms you may encounter, and this article will give you a head start on pronouncing them right. Here we go!

1- Chateau: shah-toh

- A specified viticultural holding

2- A Votre Sante: Ah Voht Sahntay

- French way of saying ‘Cheers!’

3- Chablis: Shah-blee

- White wine region north of the Cote d’Or

4- Auxey-Duresses: Ohk-zay-Du-ress

- Small red wine commune in Cote du Beaune

5- Bordeaux: Bor-doh

- Major city in the department of Gironde

6- Le: Lai (“ai” as in laid)

- The – masculine in French

7- Les: Leh (“eh” as in lead)

-The – Plural in French

8- Loire: L’war

- Vineyard area along the Loire River

9- Les Preuses: Leh Pruhz

- A Grand Cru in Chablis

10- Barrique: Bah-reek

- Bordeaux wine barrel containing 54 gallons

11- Bourgogne Aligote: Boor-goy’n Ah-lee-go-t

- A lesser wine from the Chablis region

12 – Merlot: Mair-lo

- A red wine grape of Bordeaux

13- Beaujolais: Boh-joh-leh- Red wine region of Southern Burgundy

14 – Beaune: Bohrn

- The capital of Burgundy

15- Passe-tous-Grains: Pahss-too-Grenh

- A red wine made from both Pinot Noir and Gamay

Author: D. Gedeon
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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