French wines

France is the home of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne and the Rhône Valley, and of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Its appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) system was created by laws passed in 1935, and the country makes roughly 50 to 60 million hectolitres of wine a year.

WineGuessr features 282 wines from France, in 13 regions. Bordeaux has the most, with 111.

Wine history

Greek settlers brought viticulture to southern Gaul in the 6th century BCE, with their colony at Marseille as the hub. Through the Middle Ages, monasteries kept vineyards going and preserved winemaking knowledge, and Saint Martin of Tours (316 to 397) is credited with planting vines as he spread Christianity. From 1152, when Eleanor of Aquitaine married Henry Plantagenet, until 1453, Bordeaux was under English rule and its wine flowed to England. In 1855 Napoleon III commissioned the Bordeaux classification for the Exposition Universelle in Paris, naming the first growths. Laws passed in 1935 created the AOC system, the model for many appellation systems elsewhere.

Wine regions and appellations

France had 472 wine AOCs in 2005, and AOC wine made up 53.4% of production that year. Since the 2012 reform, labels use three tiers: AOP (the EU name for AOC), IGP for regional wines and Vin de France for the rest. Bordeaux splits into a Cabernet-led Left Bank (Pauillac, Margaux) and a Merlot-led Right Bank (Pomerol, Saint-Émilion). Burgundy ranks single vineyards up to Grand Cru. Champagne, Alsace, the Rhône Valley, the Loire Valley, Beaujolais, Provence and Languedoc-Roussillon complete the main map, with Jura, Savoie and Corsica as smaller areas.

Grapes and what to drink

In 2007 the most planted grapes were Merlot (116,715 ha, 13.6% of the vineyard), Grenache (97,171 ha) and Ugni Blanc (83,173 ha). Quality wines are usually labelled by place, not grape. Pinot Noir makes red Burgundy such as Gevrey-Chambertin, and Chardonnay makes Chablis and Meursault. Syrah rules the northern Rhône in Côte-Rôtie and Hermitage, while Châteauneuf-du-Pape is Grenache-led. The Loire gives Sancerre from Sauvignon Blanc and Vouvray from Chenin Blanc, Beaujolais gives Gamay crus like Morgon, and Château d'Yquem leads the sweet wines of Sauternes.

Wine regions of France

Grapes of France

Test yourself: French wine quiz

Alsace: 51 wines

Beaujolais: 10 wines

Bordeaux: 111 wines

Burgundy: 50 wines

Champagne: 17 wines

Corsica: 2 wines

Jura: 2 wines

Languedoc-Roussillon: 5 wines

Loire Valley: 10 wines

Provence: 4 wines

Rhône Valley: 14 wines

Savoie: 1 wine

Chignin-BergeronAOC · Chignin, Savoie · White

South West France: 5 wines

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Wine in France: questions and answers

What is the most famous wine region in France?

Bordeaux is the best known, followed closely by Burgundy and Champagne. Bordeaux is famous for its Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends and its 1855 classification of châteaux, and red wine outnumbers white there by about six to one.

How is French wine classified?

French wine has three tiers: AOP (formerly AOC) for wines from a defined appellation, IGP for regional wines, and Vin de France for wines without a geographic indication. The AOC system was founded by laws passed in 1935.

What is the most planted grape in France?

Merlot was the most planted grape in France in 2007, with 116,715 ha, or 13.6% of the vineyard. Grenache and Ugni Blanc came next.

How many wine appellations does France have?

France had 472 wine AOCs in 2005. They range from broad regional names such as Bordeaux to single vineyards such as the Burgundy Grand Crus.

How much wine does France produce?

France produces between 50 and 60 million hectolitres of wine a year, or 7 to 8 billion bottles. It is one of the two largest producers in the world, alongside Italy.

Wines from other countries

Sources: en.wikipedia.org, en.wikipedia.org, en.wikipedia.org

Last reviewed October 2026.