French winemakers have spent generations tending the grapevine and paying attention to the minute distinctions among wines made from different plots of land, which has earned France the reputation of being the world leader in exquisite wine. Hundreds of distinct appellations spread around the nation create wines of every style and quality level, making France one of the world's leading wine producers.
In the sixth century BC, Greek colonists settled in Southern Gaul, which marked the beginning of French winemaking. However, in the 300s, the Romans were the ones who planted vines in all the main wine regions.
From that point on, the French wine business flourished until the 19th century, when the spread of Phylloxera and mildew forced the destruction and replanting of vast vineyards. The French wine industry suffered depression for several decades as a result of the subsequent economic crisis in Europe and the two world wars.
In 1935, the French government founded the Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) to protect their interests. This approach protected the produce's quality and avoided fraud by defining certain wine regions and their unique qualities, or terroir. Massive investments and the efforts of a new generation of French winemakers, starting in the 1970s, established the modern French wine business as it exists today. These are the top ten French wines you can try.
Famous French Wines To Taste
Premier Cru Classe Lafite Rothschild
In the Bordeaux region's Pauillac appellation of Medoc, a family-owned chateau produces the Premier Cru Classe Lafite Rothschild. The grape varieties used are 80–95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5–20% Merlot, 0–5% Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. It is priced at around 2,00,000 INR per bottle. It has a strong scent with earthy undertones of truffle, spice, cedar, tobacco, lead pencil, and red berries. Additionally, a minimum of 15 years of bottle age improves the flavour.
Domaine de la Romanee Conti
Domaine de la Romanee Conti, also known as DRC, is a well-known winery in Burgundy for its red and white wines. People widely regard it as one of the world's most distinguished and expensive producers. Pinot Noir is the primary grape variety grown on the 25-hectare Burgundy Grand Crus vineyard, also known as the domaine. Rich Romanee Conti wines are known for capturing the distinct flavour of the terrain and the scent of ancient vine fruit, costing around 20,00,000 INR during auctions. It is called velvet and satin in bottles.
Deuxièmes Cru Château Cos D'Estournel
Bordeaux's Saint-Estèphe appellation produces the Deuxièmes Cru Château Cos D'Estournel wine. When you sip this red mix, you'll enjoy the flavours of ferrous red berries, undergrowth, and a spicy finish. The wine has a moderate depth, a gritty texture, and a medium body. Cos d'Estournel typically ages in the bottle for 10 to 20 years before it is ready to drink, costing 2,00,000 INR per bottle without tax.
Château Montrose
Bordeaux Saint-Estèphe appellation is home to Château Montrose. The wines produced here are among the fourteen Deuxièmes Crus. It is a mix of 25% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 65% Cabernet Sauvignon makeup Montrose wines. Chateau Montrose can age for decades, particularly in its best vintages. After at least 10 to 20 years in the bottle, one can consume it at a price of 16,000 INR without tax.
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Haut Bailly Chateau
Haut Bailly, a Graves Cru Class wine estate in Bordeaux, is situated on the hillsides of the Pessac-Léognan appellation. This vineyard produces only red blends of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 10% Cabernet Franc. Haut-Bailly wines are rich and velvety, with earthy undertones and a rich fruit profile. It comes at around 12,000 INR without taxes. They are reminiscent of the 2011 La Parde de Haut Bailly, Pessac-Leognan.
Dom Perignon
Dom Perignon is a vintage Champagne produced by Moët & Chandon, a winery and co-owner of the luxury goods company Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton. It is named after a Benedictine monk who was a 17th-century pioneer of Champagne wine. The wine is made up of 40% Pinot Noir and 60% Chardonnay grapes. Notably, each bottle contains only grapes from a single year, costing nearly 24,500 INR without tax.
Château Y'Quem
Château Y'Quem is a Premier Cru Supérieur wine from the Sauternes in the Bordeaux Graves area. During the winemaking process, only completely botrytised fruit—whose yields are so low that a single glass of wine can be produced from each vine—is picked. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc produce these rich, concentrated, and very acidic sweet wines for 40,000 INR.
Château Pontet Canet
Bordeaux's Pauillac appellation produces the red Château Pontet Canet, a Cinquièmes Cru made from a vineyard of the same name. Remarkably, horses—rather than tractors—turn the soil in the Pontet Canet vineyard because their feet don't tread in the same spot twice, which improves soil aeration. It takes ten years to really appreciate the tannic, balanced, and intense flavours of this robust Bordeaux wine, which costs around 12,000 INR.
Chateau Lynch Bages
Château Lynch Bages, a red wine produced in Pauillac, Bordeaux, is another Cinquièmes Cru. The wine's characteristic style includes its deep colour, supple and smooth structure, tannic backbone, and distinctive flavour. It takes 15 to 20 years to reach its peak and has flavours of tobacco, truffle, cassis, and moist earth. You can get it at 15,000 INR.
Taittinger
The French vineyard Taittinger in Reims produces the Comtes de Champagne and the non-vintage Brut Reserve. The Brut Reserve, with its fresh fruit and bread flavours, blends 40% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir, and 25% Pinot Meunier. Comtes de Champagne Rosé from the same vineyard consists of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay, while Comtes de Champagne solely uses Chardonnay grapes for the wine costing 8,000 INR.