Bordeaux - or actually Bordelais, is more than a French wine region. It is a worldwide symbol for 'good wine'. An example for winemakers all over the world. Typical Bordeaux grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have become brand names. Grand Crus and Premier Crus from Bordelais are sought after all over the world.
Bordeaux - or actually the Bordelais, is more than a French wine region. It is a worldwide symbol for 'good wine'. An example for winemakers all over the world. Typical Bordeaux grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot have become brand names. Grand Crus and Premier Crus from Bordelais are sought after all over the world. You can buy three wines from Bordeaux from us. You will find them on the left side of this page.
Wine has been made in Bordelais since ancient times. But the region did not become France's most important wine region until the 17th century. British people could bring the wine directly to London via the Atlantic Ocean. The Dutch drained the swampy Médoc. The most famous vineyards in the world are now located there. English traders made the classification system of Grand Crus from the Médoc and Graves possible as early as 1855.
That classification system was intended to make the market for Bordeaux wines more transparent and stable. The best vineyards and most professional wineries were given the highest status: Premier Grand Cru Classée.
This system exists to this day. In itself it is no guarantee of quality. It only guarantees that the wine is made from the prescribed grapes and that the yield per hectare is limited. But in practice, every winemaker with the highest classification strives for the highest quality - and therefore the highest yield. Since 1855, only Château Mouton Rothschild has received the highest ranking in 1973 - after years of intensive lobbying.
A classification system was only introduced in Saint-Emilion after the Second World War. This system is even more complicated than that of the Médoc. In addition, more than half of the vineyards were classified as Grand Cru. Saint Emilion Grand Cru therefore sounds beautiful, but doesn't say much. Other regions in the Bordelais have no classification system at all.
The most important blue grapes of Bordelais are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, which are often blended with Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and sometimes Malbec. In the Médoc the Cabernet Sauvignon dominates, in Saint-Emilion the Merlot. The Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle are the most important white grapes.
The Médoc is located on the left side of the Gironde river, just above the city of Bordeaux. On the pebbly banks of the Gironde, the roots of the Cabernet Sauvignon have to go meters deep into the soil to collect nutrients. That makes the juice incomparably complex. Nowhere else than the Bordelais will you find as many Grand Cru Classées as in the Médoc, especially around the village of Pauillac.
Graves is the area directly below Bordeaux, also to the left of the Gironde river. The oldest vineyards in the region are located here. On poor soil, with lots of pumice and stone dust. It is the only region in Bordelais that produces dry white and red wines and noble sweet wines. Sauternes is the region's most famous appellation. It has been a worldwide brand name for exclusive sweet wines for two centuries.
For many wine lovers, the beautiful town of Saint-Emilion is a place of pilgrimage. The terroirs of Saint-Emilion's approximately 50 square kilometers of vineyards vary greatly. The best vineyards are on the Plateau, on top of the Saint-Emilion hill. A layer of clay mixed with pebbles lies here on a layer of limestone. The Merlot loves that soil and shows its best side here. The slopes of the Plateau - the côtes - are favorably exposed to the sun. The flatter part consists mainly of gravel and pumice.
The flat vineyards of Pomerol, near Saint-Emilion, are among the best in the entire region. But nowhere else than in the vineyards of Pomerol, with lots of clay, loam and iron, does Merlot taste so velvety round, fleshy and full and with a beautiful truffle aroma later in life.
Between the Garonne and Dordogne rivers lies by far the largest region of the Bordelais: Entre-Deux-Mers. Many grape growers sell their harvest to cooperatives and traders. 40% of the red Bordeaux and more than 70% of the white Bordeaux comes from Entre-Deux-Mers. The region is unknown, because the makers simply put Bordeaux or Bordeaux Supérieur on the label. A few creative people put Grand Vin de Bordeaux on it, but that has no meaning whatsoever.
The quality of the wines from Entre-Deux-Mers varies greatly. You can find excellent wine at a reasonable price, but you can also be severely disappointed.
Sweet wines are made in the south of Entre-Deux-Mers, in Loupiac, Cadillac and Sainte-Croix. The vineyards are located directly opposite Sauternes and benefit from similar conditions. We currently have four wines from Bordeaux in our range. You can view all our wines from Bordeaux here.
Orange wine (27) 
Fresh (89) 
Light (35) 
Rosé (14) 
Aromatic (20) 
Medium (98) 
Sparkling (27) 
Ripe (70) 
Full-bodied (100) 
