Attributes:

Finette

France

Dry White Table Wine

750 ML

Food Matches:

France is the standard bearer for all the world’s wines, with regard to the types of grapes that are used to make wine and with the system of defining and regulating winemaking. Its Appellation d’Origine Controlee, or AOC system, is the legislative model for most other European countries. Most French wines are named after places. The system is hierarchical; generally the smaller and more specific the region for which a wine is named, the higher its rank. There are four possible ranks of French wine, and each is always stated on the label: Appellation Contrôlée (or AOC), Vin Délimité de Qualité Supérieure (or VDQS); Vin de pays, or country wine; and Vin de table. France has five major wine regions, although there are several others that make interesting wines. The three major regions for red wine are Bordeaux, Burgundy, and the Rhone; for white wines, the regions are Burgundy, the Loire and Alsace. Each region specialized in certain grape varieties for its wines, based on climate, soil, and local tradition. Two other significant French wine regions are Provence and Languedoc-Roussillon, both in the south of France. Cahors, in the southwest of the country, produces increasingly good wines.

Attributes:

La Croix du Pin

Vin de Pays d'Oc, France

Sauvignon Blanc

3 L

Food Matches:

Comes mostly from California, France, New Zealand, and South Africa. Its highly acidic wines are often suggestive of herbs or grass. Light to medium bodied and usually dry, European versions are generally not oaky while California Sauvignon Blanc can take on many of the qualities of Chardonnay. France has two classic wine regions for the Sauvignon Blanc gape: Bordeaux and the Loire Valley The Bordeaux wine is called Bordeaux Blanc and the two best known of the Loire wines are called Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé. In Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is sometimes blended with Sémillon.

Attributes:

Vignoble de la Jasse

Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Chardonnay

750 ML

Food Matches:

(shar dohn nay)—This noble grape’s reputation was established in France, particularly in the Burgundy region, and the highly prized Chardonnay wines from Chablis, Mâcon, Mersault, and Pouilly-Fuissé are imitated by winemakers around the world. Generally an oaked wine (whether from expensive oak barrels or a quick soak in oak chips), its fruity aromas and flavors range from apple in the cooler regions to tropical fruits such a pineapple in the warmer regions. It can also display subtle earthy aromas, such as mushroom or minerals. It has a medium to high acidity and is generally full-bodied. Classical Chardonnay wines are dry. Chardonnay is also an important grape in the Champagne district where it's picked before fully ripe and while it still has high acid and understated fruit flavors—the perfect combination for champagne. California has adopted this grape with a fervor and there are some 200 wineries producing Chardonnay wines in other parts of the United States. Chardonnay has also seen a tremendous planting surge in Australia, and new vineyards are being planted in Italy, Lebanon, New Zealand, Spain, and South Africa.

A common name for the varied array of vineyards of southern France spreading from Marseille to the Spanish border. Languedoc-Roussillon lies on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and is Frances most valued wine region in regards to volume of wine produced. Most of the vines in the region are planted on flat alluvial plains. The climate of region is Mediterranean in all areas except for the far western limits. The main Grape of region is the Carigan with Grenache close behind it. The main white variety is the chardonnay.