Right: Wine map of France
In the triangle formed near the Mediterranean coast by Nice in the east, Marseille in the west and Avignon to the northwest, lies the region of Provence.
Provence was the first region in France to turn to winemaking some 2,600 years ago. Today some 500 wineries tend vineyards on 68,000 acres — [...]

Right: Wine map of France
The Loire Valley, near Nantes in western France, is one of the most beautiful winemaking areas in Europe. A narrow, but wide region following the Loire river, it meanders from Auvergne and the Massif Central mountains to the Atlantic coast.
Vines producing wine grapes existed here as far back as the Roman [...]

Right: Wine map of France
Languedoc-Roussillon, the largest wine producing region in the world, lies on the border of the Mediterranean sea, between the Rhone delta and Spain.
Fifty thousand vine growers (out of a population of 2.4 million) spread over an area of 27,400 square kilometers (10,500 square miles) swelter in the intense summers for the [...]

Right: Wine map of France
The Rhone Valley, looks very much like a miniature Italy as it stretches 200km (125 mi) from south of Lyon to just south of Avignon. Along this course the climate varies from the Rhone’s cold winters and warm summers to the classic Mediterranean where winters are mild and summers hot.
The relatively [...]

Right: Wine map of France
Champagne is not just a sparkling wine, but the region from which the famous drink derives its name. The climate of the area is cooler than that of the southern French vineyards, making for a shorter growing season.
Almost a hundred miles (144km) northeast of Paris near the Belgian border, it’s usually [...]

Right: Wine map of France
Nowhere in France is the terroir concept —a group of vineyards (or vines) from the same region that share similar soil and climate— more dearly held than Burgundy.
Located in central east France, the region’s 1.6 million inhabitants endure cold Continental winters, but enjoy warm summers.
A region covering 31,500 square kilometers (over [...]

Right: Wine map of France
Bordeaux. The word itself says ‘wine’ to millions around the world. Many historians of the subject assure us that wine has been produced in Bordeaux since the first century AD. And given the known ability for the great Bordeaux to age gracefully, one can believe it.
Located in the south west of [...]

Right: Wine map of France
Winemakers in Alsace have been active since the Roman conquest.
The Alsatians themselves are a mixed French-Germanic lot, with many of the older inhabitants still speaking Alsatian, a Germanic dialect, at home. Despite living in the smallest winemaking region in France, these proud people rightfully boast of their centuries old winemaking traditions.
Six [...]