FAQ — 518
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Régions et appellations·Informational
Saint-Émilion is a prestigious Bordeaux appellation on the Right Bank, covering about 5,400 hectares around a medieval town classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The wines are Merlot-dominant (60-90%), complemented by Cabernet Franc, and follow a unique classification system revised every decade, with Château Figeac elevated to the sole Premier Grand Cru Classé A in 2022 (Ausone and Cheval Blanc having withdrawn).
Régions et appellations·Informational
Jura wines come from one of France's smallest wine regions (about 2,100 hectares) nestled in the Jura mountains of eastern France. The region is famous for its unique Vin Jaune — a sherry-like wine made from 100% Savagnin aged under a film of yeast (voile) for a minimum of 6 years and 3 months — as well as Vin de Paille (straw wine) and excellent Crémant du Jura sparkling wine.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Southwest France wines come from a diverse collection of over 30 appellations between Bordeaux and the Pyrenees, spanning more than 40,000 hectares. The region is a treasure trove of indigenous grape varieties, Tannat in Madiran, Malbec in Cahors, Petit Manseng in Jurançon, producing wines with bold character and exceptional value that rival neighbouring Bordeaux at a fraction of the price.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Brunello di Montalcino is one of Italy's greatest red wines, a DOCG from the town of Montalcino in southern Tuscany. Made from 100% Sangiovese Grosso (locally called Brunello), it must age a minimum of 5 years before release (including 2 years in oak), or 6 years for Riserva. With about 2,100 hectares under vine, it's a wine known for power, elegance, and extraordinary ageing potential of 20-50 years.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Tokaji is a wine from the Tokaj-Hegyalja region in northeastern Hungary, famous for its Tokaji Aszú, one of the world's oldest and most celebrated sweet wines. Made primarily from Furmint grapes affected by noble rot (botrytis), Tokaji was called 'the wine of kings and the king of wines' by Louis XIV and was the first wine region in the world to have a classified vineyard system, established in 1730.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Amarone della Valpolicella is a powerful Italian DOCG red from the Veneto region, made using a unique dried-grape technique called appassimento. Grapes, mainly Corvina, Rondinella, and Corvinone, are harvested and dried for 3-4 months on racks, concentrating their sugars and flavours before fermentation. The result is a rich, intense wine reaching 14-17% alcohol, with flavours of dried cherry, dark chocolate, tobacco, and warm spice.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Côtes du Rhône is a major French wine appellation stretching along the Rhône Valley from Vienne in the north to Avignon in the south, covering roughly 31,000 hectares across six departments. It is France's second-largest appellation after Bordeaux, with about 86% of production devoted to red wines built on Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre. These wines are loved worldwide for delivering generous fruit, warmth, and terroir character at genuinely approachable prices.
Régions et appellations·Informational
Argentina is best known for Malbec from Mendoza, grown at extraordinary altitudes of 600-1,500 metres, producing wines with deep colour and plush dark fruit. Chile's stars include Cabernet Sauvignon from Maipo Valley, Carménère (a grape thought extinct in Bordeaux until rediscovered in Chile in 1994), cool-climate Pinot Noir from Casablanca, and crisp Sauvignon Blanc from Leyda. Together, these two countries produce some of the New World's most exciting and best-value wines.
Régions et appellations·Comparative
Northern Rhône (Vienne to Valence, about 4,700 hectares) is all about single-variety wines — Syrah for reds, Viognier, Marsanne, or Roussanne for whites — grown on steep granite slopes in a semi-continental climate. Southern Rhône (Montélimar to Avignon, roughly 68,000 hectares) favours Grenache-led blends from clay-limestone and galets roulés terroirs under full Mediterranean sunshine. These differences in climate, soil, and grape varieties produce two genuinely distinct wine families within the same valley.
Régions et appellations·Informational
A Premier Cru in Burgundy is a wine from a vineyard plot (called a climat) ranked at the second-highest level of the Burgundy hierarchy, just below Grand Cru. There are 635 classified Premier Cru climats across roughly 6,200 hectares in the Côte de Nuits, Côte de Beaune, Côte Chalonnaise, and Chablis. The label always shows the village name followed by the specific climat (for example, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru "Les Cazetiers"), giving you vineyard-level traceability found nowhere else in the wine world.
Cépages·Informational
Gamay is a light-skinned red grape behind Beaujolais, one of France's most food-friendly and refreshing reds. Grown on about 30,000 hectares worldwide, mostly in Beaujolais and the Loire Valley, it delivers bright cherry, raspberry, and strawberry flavours with low tannins and a lively acidity that makes it perfect slightly chilled.
Cépages·Informational
Grenache, called Garnacha in Spain, is one of the world's most widely planted red grapes, covering around 160,000 hectares globally. It's the backbone of southern Rhône blends like Châteauneuf-du-Pape and thrives across Spain, Sardinia (as Cannonau), and Australia. Expect generous, warming wines with ripe strawberry, spice, and herbal notes.
Cépages·Informational
Gewurztraminer is one of wine's most instantly recognisable grapes, intensely aromatic with lychee, rose petal, and Turkish delight on the nose. Grown on about 14,000 hectares worldwide, mainly in Alsace, Germany, and northern Italy, it makes richly textured whites that range from off-dry to lusciously sweet. The name literally means 'spicy Traminer' in German.
Cépages·Informational
Tempranillo is Spain's flagship red grape and the most widely planted red variety in the world, with roughly 230,000 hectares under vine. It's the star of Rioja and Ribera del Duero, producing elegant wines with dark cherry, leather, vanilla, and tobacco notes, especially when aged in oak, which is a Spanish tradition.
Cépages·Informational
Nebbiolo is Italy's noblest red grape, responsible for two of the world's greatest wines: Barolo and Barbaresco. Grown almost exclusively in Piedmont on about 6,000 hectares, it produces pale-coloured but intensely flavoured wines with haunting aromas of tar, roses, dried cherry, and truffle. The best can age for decades.
Cépages·Informational
Sangiovese is Italy's most important red grape, covering about 70,000 hectares, mostly in Tuscany. It's the soul of Chianti, the sole grape in Brunello di Montalcino, and the base of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Think sour cherry, dried herbs, earthy leather, and bright acidity that makes it a dream with tomato-based Italian cuisine.
Cépages·Informational
Chenin Blanc is arguably the world's most versatile white grape, capable of making everything from bone-dry mineral wines to sparkling and some of the greatest sweet wines on earth. Grown on about 55,000 hectares worldwide, mainly in South Africa and France's Loire Valley, it's prized for its high acidity, honeyed richness, and ability to reflect terroir.
Cépages·Informational
Mourvèdre — known as Monastrell in Spain and Mataro in Australia — is a thick-skinned Mediterranean red grape grown on about 85,000 hectares worldwide. It loves heat and sun, producing deeply coloured wines with intense blackberry, smoked meat, leather, and wild herb flavours. It's the star of Bandol in Provence and the 'M' in GSM blends.
Cépages·Informational
Viognier is a gloriously aromatic white grape that nearly went extinct in the 1960s — down to just 14 hectares worldwide. Today it's planted on about 18,000 hectares, mainly in the Rhône Valley, Languedoc, and Australia. It produces rich, perfumed whites bursting with apricot, peach blossom, and honeysuckle.
Cépages·Informational
Cabernet Franc is the elegant parent of Cabernet Sauvignon — lighter, more aromatic, and more floral. Grown on about 55,000 hectares worldwide, it shines as a solo performer in France's Loire Valley (Chinon, Bourgueil) with raspberry, violet, and green pepper notes, and adds finesse to Bordeaux blends, especially in Saint-Émilion and Pomerol.