South West France wine

History

The Romans first cultivated vines in the South West, and its wines were traded abroad before Bordeaux became dominant. That changed in the 13th and 14th centuries, when Bordeaux merchants imposed the police des vins, a set of rules under which wines from the inland high country could not leave Bordeaux until most local wine had been sold. The rule badly hurt growers upstream. Cahors kept a reputation for its dark black wine from the Middle Ages to the 19th century, then suffered phylloxera in 1883 to 1885 and a severe frost in February 1956 before gaining AOC status in 1971. Madiran became an AOC in 1948.

Terroir and appellations

Rather than one continuous vineyard, the South West is a series of separate areas. Along the Dordogne, Bergerac and Monbazillac border Bordeaux. Further inland, along the Garonne and its tributaries, lie Cahors on the Lot, Gaillac, Fronton, Marcillac and Buzet. In Gascony and Béarn are Madiran, Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh and Jurançon, whose vines climb steep slopes in the Pyrenean foothills, and in the Basque Country lies Irouléguy. Côtes de Gascogne is a large IGP for white wines. Areas close to Bordeaux share its grapes, while those near the Pyrenees rely on local varieties.

Grapes and wine styles

The region is known for local grapes. Cahors must contain at least 70% Malbec, known locally as Côt or Auxerrois. Madiran is built on Tannat, at least 60% of the vineyard, often with Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Fer Servadou; micro-oxygenation, a technique to soften tannins, was developed there by Patrick Ducournau. Jurançon makes dry and sweet whites from Petit Manseng, Gros Manseng and Courbu, the sweet ones from grapes picked late into autumn. Bergerac and Monbazillac use Bordeaux varieties, including Sémillon for sweet wine.

South West France wine: questions and answers

Other wine regions of France

• Bordeaux
• Burgundy
• Champagne
• Alsace
• Rhône Valley
• Loire Valley
• Beaujolais
• Provence
• Languedoc-Roussillon
• Jura