Bordeaux - History, Grape Growing and Red/White Winemaking Flashcards
Entre-deux-Mers AOC translates to:
Why?
Produces which kind of wine, from which principal grapes?
Max. yield?
Typical characteristics of wine:
“Between two seas”, because it is situated between the Dordogne river to the north, and Garonne to the west and south.
Produces white wine only; Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Muscadelle, Sauvignon Gris.
Max. yield: 65hl/ha.
Wines typically show light flavor intensity, acceptable - good quality, inexpensive - mid-priced.
How does the size of Entre-deux-Mers AOP compare to Bordeaux overall?
Second-largest appellation in terms of ha, but still much smaller than Bordeaux AOC.
Identify the appellations in the map below:
- Pessac-Léognan
- Graves
- Graves-Supérieures
- Barsac
- Sauternes
- Entre-deux-Mers
- Prémieres Cotes-de-Bordeaux
- Cadillac Cotes-de-Bordeaux
- Loupiac
- Sainte-Croix-du-Mont
Identify the appellations in the map below:
- Médoc
- Saint-Éstephe
- Pauillac
- Haut-Médoc
- Saint-Julien
- Listrac-Médoc
- Moulis
- Margaux
Identify the appellations in the map below:
- Blaye Cotes-de-Bordeaux
- Cotes de Bourg
- Lalande-de-Pomerol
- Pomerol
- Saint-Emilion
- Francs Cotes-de-Bordeaux
- Castillon Cotes-de-Bordeaux
What types of wine are made in the Cotes-de-Bordeaux AOC?
When was the appellation created and where is it located?
What are the 5 sub-zones?
Max. yields for red wines?
Red / White
Created in 2009, located on the R Bank and within Entre-Deux-Mers.
Blaye / Cadillac / Francs / Castillon / (Sainte Foy)
55 hl/ha (52 if sub-zone name is appended)
What do Sauvignon Blanc (3) and Sémillon (4) bring to the dry white wines of Bordeaux?
Sauvignon Blanc:
High acidity.
Gooseberry, grassy aromas/flavors.
Worldwide popularity means more varietal / dominant SB white wines are being made in Bordeaux.
Sémillon:
Low-Med. intensity of aromas, weight, body.
Med. acidity.
Softens high acidity and intense flavors of SB.
Strong affinity for vanilla / spice flavors from new oak aging.
Where is the Bordeaux region located?
Identify the different bodies of water that divide and run through the region (4):
How do these divide the vineyard areas of Bordeaux (3)?
- W France
- Atlantic to the W
- River Garonne flows N-S, River Dordogne E-W
=> merge to form the Gironde estuary. - vineyards to the W of Garonne + Gironde = Left Bank
- vineyards to the E of Dordogne + Gironde = Right Bank
- vineyards btw/ Dordogne + Garonne = Entre-Deux-Mers
Top 7 Grapes grown in Bordeaux:
How do proportions of grapes grown / wine made break down in terms of white/red/rosé (5)?
- Merlot (dominates at almost 60%)
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Cabernet Franc
- Other reds
- Sémillon
- Sauvignon Blanc
- Muscadelle
- ~90% of the plantings are black grapes.
- 85% ofAOC wine = red
- 10% = dry white
- 4% = rosé
- 1% = sweet white
What significant developments occured in Bordeaux in the 17th + 18th C (3)?
- the Medoc (at the time marshy + unsuitable for agriculture) was drained by Dutch engineers
- vineyards were planted
- By the mid-18th century, wines from eg. Lafite and Margaux were popular across Europe + America
What factor led to the early success and popularity of Bordeaux as a wine region (not draining of marsh) (3)?
How is this relevant today?
- city was already a centre for wine exports (for other regions eg. Bergerac)
=> led to entrepreneurial merchant class (originating from Britain, Ireland, Germany, Holland)
=> distributed the wines of Bordeaux + established international reputation. - this system of distribution – (by merchants vs proprietors) – remains in place today.
What important development occured in Bordeaux in 1855?
Describe how it came to be and its importance (5):
- first FORMAL classification / ranking of chateaux in Bordeaux (Medox + Graves)
- Exposition Universelle de Paris
- Bordeaux chamber of commerce asked the region’s brokers to compile a classification of the wines based on price
- included estates of Médoc + Haut Brion in Graves
- classed into 5 bands (Sauternes into 3)
- remains largely unaltered to this day (eg. Mouton in’73) + still influences prices today
Compare the size of Bordeaux and its production levels to its average quality level (4):
Contrast this w/ and eg. of presitgious AOC:
- enormous area under vine (111,000 ha planted)
- great majority of wine = modest Bordeaux or Bordeaux Supérieur + inexpensive - mid-price.
- ~70% of all bottled wines = inexpensive - mid-priced
- ~ 30% = premium - super-premium priced.
eg. Pomerol (v. prestigious) occupies only 800 hectares.
What is the climate of Bordeaux in general?
How do climatic factors aid in creating high quality wine (4)?
- moderate maritime climate.
- gentle heat during growing season
- relatively dry + warm early autumns
=> steady + complete ripening
=> excellent balance of tannin, sugar, acidity = wines of great quality + longevity
How do bodies of water + rainfall affect Bordeaux’s climate and ability to produce high quality wines (5)?
- cool Atlantic Ocean = cooling influence
- presence of many rivers (Dordogne, Gironde, Garonne, Ciron) creates humidity
Rainfall = variable (~ 950mm / year)
- marked variation from year to year + times within year
- can greatly affect the quality of a vintage
How can excessive rain at key moments influence vintage quality in Bordeaux (4)?
- rain at flowering can result in poor fruit set
- rain throughout the growing season can result in increased disease pressure
- rain at and following véraison can lead to unripe fruit and fungal diseases
- rain at harvest can dilute flavours.
What factor moderates the effects of the Atlantic on Bordeaux Chateaux (4)?
- Left Bank = partially protected from storms by Landes forest.
- Estates that are not as protected, eg. Dom. de Chevalier (Leognan) + Listrac-Medoc = cooler + more marginal than neighbours to the east.
- In N Médoc, the forest = less protective, landscape is more open to maritime influence
=> climate is cooler than the southern Médoc + Graves.
How has Climate Change affected vintage quality in Bordeaux (4)?
How are resultant wines affected (2)?
- climate change has led to hot dry summers + insufficient rain
- also increased frequency of hail
- hardy grape varieties of Bordeaux = resistant to temp. extremes for the most part.
=> but v. hot dry years (eg. 2003)
=> produce wine of low acidity that lack balance (both W+R)
=> more alcoholic (growers wait for phenolic ripeness before picking = more sugar accumulation = more ABV)
How strong is the Maritime influence on Bordeaux’s R Bank compared to the L (3)?
- less pronounced in the Right Bank (further away from Atlantic)
- i.e. Libournais (Saint-Émilion, Pomerol and appellations that surround them)
- but still remains a factor.
Is frost typically an issue in Bordeaux?
Why / Why not (2)?
Vintage eg.s (3)
- not usually a major issue
- Gironde estuary (closer to the top chateaux) provides moderating influence
- those more to the W (lesser Chateaux) are less protected
- however, occasionally large areas of vineyards affected
- 1956
- 1991
- 2017
=> the crop was decimated.
How marked is variation in terms of volume per vintage in Bordeaux?
eg. of specific vintage (3) + its effects (2)?
- can be very marked
eg. 2017 (distastrous spring frosts)
=> 33% less wine was made than 10-year average
=> 40% less than large 2016 harvest.
- significant financial implications for estates
+ wine business in the region as a whole.
What are the general differences btw/ the soils of the Left and Right Banks of Bordeaux?
Left Bank (Médoc + Graves) - deposits of gravel and stony soils (w/some clay + sand)
Right Bank (Libourne + Pomerol + St-Emilion + Satellites) - far more clay + significant patches of gravel in certain parts
What is the composition of soil on Bordeaux’s Left Bank (3)?
How were these soils formed?
- deposits of gravel and stony soils
- mixed w/clay and sand
- gravel deposits were carried to the region by floodwaters from the Pyrenees and the Massif Central many thousands of years ago.
How are gravel deposits distributed throughout Bordeaux’s Left Bank (4)?
How about clay (2)?
- gravel mounds (croupes) are found throughout B’s LB
- These are not especially high (highest in Margaux at 32 m)
- do not cover the whole region.
- BUT: all top estates of LB are planted croupes
- pockets of clay also exist (esp. Saint-Estèphe)
- but wines from such soils (while still good) have not achieved the same acclaim as those grown on gravel.
What are PROS (2) and CONS (2) of gravel soils specifically in the context of Bordeaux’s LB?
Explain how these help or hurt grape-growing in the region:
Pros:
- good drainage
=> LB prone to showers + storms
=> allows vine roots to quickly dry out + grapes can continue to ripen.
- good heat retention (absorbs heat during day, releases onto vines at night)
=> facilitates their slow ripening
Cons:
- drainage can be a detriment in extremely hot years (eg. ‘03 + ‘05
=> increases risk of drought stress.
- soils are not very deep (often <1m)
=> insufficient storage of water
What is the composition of soils on Bordeaux’s RB (2)?
Why is this suitable for the grapes grown here (4)?
Where do the best wines come from?
- far more clay in soil
- also significant patches of gravel in certain sectors of the Libournais.
- dominant grape = Merlot
=> ideally suited to such soils
=> reliable: ripens fully in almost all vintages (doesn’t need same heat as Cab Sauv)
=> accumulates more sugar and thus alcohol than Cab Sauv + Cab Franc (cooler soils = OK) - best wines = limestone plateau or the gravel section that borders Pomerol
How did the summer of 2016 negatively affect Pomerol (2)?
- Pomerol soils = shallow (typically <1m)
- very dry summer of 2016 caused vines to suffer from water stress
