What's Going On in the World of French Wines

There’s quite a lot going on in the world of wine these days and so I thought it would be good to pass along some information that might be of interest to you all.

Tyler Colman, aka Dr. Vino, has a post up on his web site about his article in this month’s Wine and Spirits magazine. The article examines the question, “How often is the alcohol level stated on the label consistent with what is actually in the bottle?” Alcohol is a topic of great interest these days – not only for winemakers and the wine trade, but for wine consumers as well. Without alcohol, wine would not be wine, but more alcohol does not necessarily equal better wine. Many wine critics feel that the wines they taste today have much higher alcohol levels than they did 10 years ago but this may not be reflected on wine labels. While a high level of alcohol in a wine doesn’t mean that the wine is bad, it can be problem if it affects the overall balance and stability of the wine. So definitely check out this month’s Wine and Spirits magazine for some more details about alcohol levels in wine.

Also of interest to French wine lovers is this news brief, from Decanter.com, which is one of the better articles I have read about the new classification system in the Languedoc. In an attempt to streamline the appellations of the Languedoc and give wine lovers some indication of quality, the appellations have been reorganized into three levels. The first level is the basic AOC Languedoc, an AOC that covers the entire region. The second tier is the more exclusive Grands Vins du Languedoc which includes such top appellations as Minervois and St Chinian. And at the top of the pyramid are the Grands Crus du Languedoc, which appellations such as Minervois La Liviniere and Corbieres Boutenac will be entitled to use.

And finally, to end on a piece of good news – it looks like the harvest has started in France. Domaine Rombeau in Rivesaltes, which is located in the south of France, started harvesting their Muscat grapes on August 12. They are expecting a smaller crop this year, but say that the quality of the harvest looks good.