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Bordeaux area
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Bordeaux wines and others Site Home - What's New? Feedback - About Jack- Travel/Art Links |
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Bordeaux area |
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Wine and other industry in Bordeaux |
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The wine grow was introduced by the Romans,
no doubt about it. The wine, named "claret" by the English was very
appreciated at the court of the Plantaganets: for instance, at the crowning
celebrations of Henri II, 1000 'barriques" (large barrels) found their way
down the throat of the festive. Raisin was almost sacred And the one who was
catched stealing a few grapes were cut off an ear!! The wine quality was already controlled very carefully since the 12th century by sworn-in tasters! Wine merchants who dared to add some water or others to make some more money and manufacturers of deficient barrels were severely punished. The vineyards that produce the most famous wines are not located in the city or nearby. Except Haut-Brion and a few other crus from the Graves, situated on the road to Arcachon, the others are at least 45 min from the centre of Bordeaux: Margaux, the heart of the Medoc, lies 25 km off, to Saint Emilion and Pomerol it is a car trip of ¾ of an hour to the north, to Barsac and the Sauternes the same distance to the south. Wine is not anymore the principal economic trump of Bordeaux. Three quarters of the goods trafficking the harbor are petroleum products, the ship, car and computer industry is growing very fast. The plane builder, Marcel Dassault is pushing the nerves of the wine growers to its paroxysm by the noise of his plane testing. Nevertheless, it is still so that the agriculture with the wine industry, with all its annexes, gives work to 25 per cent of the region's population. In the city you barely notice the tight connection with the wine merchandising, it is a big 
city. Compare it with Beaune that crowned itself the capital of the
Bourgogne wine. Every step you make there reminds you that you are in a wine
environment. Nothing like that in Bordeaux. Only the Maison du Vin (Allées
de Tourny) and the nearby tourist office give you maps and other visiting
material. For a good vision of the history of wine making, visit the musée
d'Aquitaine. The nuances and names of the numerous vineyards, "appellations", growths and other classifications of the wines are befuddling enough before you go careering off on a wine tour. Just a reminder or indication before I close this chapter is that you can divide the Bordeaux vineyards into four main regions: the LIBOURNAIS along the north of the Dordogne, encompassing the superb "appellations" of Pomerol and Saint-Emilion, Cotes de Blaye and Cotes de Bourg, the ENTRE-DEUX-MERS between the Dordogne and Garonne, the GRAVES, south of the Garonne, and the Medoc, along the south bank of the Gironde estuary north of Bordeaux. Bibliography: Alexis Lichine's Guide to the Wines and Vineyards of France (1989) Allen, H.W., A history of wine (London 1961) |
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