Tag: France

Crystalline sugar for wine enrichment ("chaptalisation")

Sweetening now allowed in AOP wines

Sometimes you wonder if wine media likes the “big brother society”. The trend towards sweeter “dry” wines is often and vehemently criticised. “Systembolaget shouldn’t sell so many sweet red wines” they say in Sweden. “Should”…

Appellation d’origine contrôlée, AOC, Domaine Cauhapé, Geyser, Jurançon sec, H Ramonteau

The French appellation system, AOC, turns 90

The first French appellation (appellation d’origine contrôlée, AOC) was created in 1936, so in 2026 it will celebrate its 90th anniversary. It is a rather surprising list of six appellations that were created first, on

Hanna Schaps, winemaker at Maison Schaps in Côte de Beaune and Per Karlsson, BKWine

Heatwave brings early harvest in France

The heatwave in France at the beginning of August was a bit of a problem for winegrowers. But the producers we have met so far this autumn (late September) have been satisfied with the quality

A glass of prosecco, sparkling wine from Veneto, Italy

Why do the French drink so much prosecco?

Who would have thought the French drink so much prosecco? Or is the harsh truth that everyone drinks prosecco now? Either way, the Italian fizz has seen a remarkable rise on the French market in

Boeuf Bourguignon on a table in Burgundy

France selects the most iconic French dishes

Ipsos, an expert in market analysis, conducted a market survey in March in connection with the presentation of the new edition of the Michelin Guide. Ipsos asked the French people which French dishes they considered

Grubbing up and burning vines in a vineyard in Chateauneuf-du-Pape

France will lose almost 30,000 hectares of vines

France will uproot almost 30,000 hectares of vineyards shortly. This was announced by FranceAgriMer, which is attached to the French Ministry of Agriculture. The growers who want to uproot vines have been able to apply

Four religious statues on the cathedral in Reims

The German Blue Nun becomes French

Blue Nun is a German bestseller and legend (perhaps not for the best reasons), a riesling sold in a blue bottle with low alcohol content and high residual sweetness. 29 grams of sugar per litre

A very warm and sunny summer day

Which grape varieties to grow in a drier climate?

A new study by INRAE, a French research institute, in collaboration with the universities of Bordeaux and Québec, shows the tolerance of different grapes to drought. Coping with dry weather is a grape characteristic that

Vines in the vineyards at Domaine de l’Arbussele, Faugères, Languedoc

Almost 1500 new wine estates in France

In 2022, France saw the creation of 1,444 new wine estates, an increase of 3% compared to 2021. The winegrowers represent 10% of the 14,132 new agricultural estates started in 2022. These winegrowers operate an

Harvesting oak bark for cork, Alentejo, Portugal

France revives its cork oak forests

The fact that France has extensive oak forests is widely known, oak used for all the barrels. But France also has cork oaks. Once upon a time, there was a thriving industry around products from

Crystalline sugar for wine enrichment ("chaptalisation")

Sweetening now allowed in AOP wines

Sometimes you wonder if wine media likes the “big brother society”. The trend towards sweeter “dry” wines is often and vehemently criticised. “Systembolaget shouldn’t sell

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