French Wines

If the world is your vineyard, there is no better place to begin than with French wines! According to FAO statistics for 2005, France was the world's largest producer of wine, making some 5.3 million metric tonnes of our favorite beverage. France is one of the oldest wine-producing regions of the world, with French wine tracing its history to the 6th century BC, when Greek settlers colonized southern Gaul.

Many of the best French wines come from the great wine regions of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Alsace, Loire, Rhone, and Languedoc. French wines offer some of the best examples of many of the top varietals, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chenin Blanc and Viognier.

"God made only water, but man made wine."

--Victor Hugo, Les Contemplations (1856)