History and cultural heritage:

The viticulture in France finds its origins in the era of Greek colonization. As France is one of the countries of Latin heritage, wine is an integral part of its culture.

The way French culture has invested in the development of its wines has even earned it the international reputation of being "the country of wine."

France has 76,000 vineyards.

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France has numerous vineyards, each with different soils, cultural practices, and histories. These characteristics define the terroir. The name of the terroir from which the wine originates is indicated on the bottle label.

The vineyard terroir is a concept that allows each wine to be recognized for its personality based on the grape varieties used, the terrain on which the vines grow, the microclimates they enjoy, and the expertise of the winemakers who cultivate the vine, vinify, and age the wine.

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Wine classification:

In France, wines are first classified by regions rather than by the type of grapes. It is the geographical location of the vineyard which gives its taste to the wine : the soil and the climate.

Then comes the "cépage", the type of grape which is grown and used to produce the wine. The most common cépage for French red wine are Merlot, Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. For white wine, the most common cépage are Ugni blanc, Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc. 

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Main French wine regions are:

Alsace, Beaujolais, Bordelais, Bourgogne, Champagne, Charentes, Corse, Jura, Languedoc-Roussillon, Lorraine, Lyonnais, Provence, Savoie, Sud-Ouest, Val de Loire and Vallée du Rhône. 

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Appellations

The appellation system aimed at protecting agricultural products, including wine, was first established in France by the law of August 1, 1905. 

As France is part of the European Union, the classification of its appellation wines must harmonize with that of the EU. Since August 1, 2009, French wines have been classified into three categories:

Wines without geographical indication (IG), under the control of FranceAgriMer. These wines bear the mention "Vin de France". Their number may vary from year to year depending on the approvals granted by FranceAgriMer to operators and their choices.

Wines under protected geographical indication (IGP), under the control of the INAO. These wines encompass 75 appellations as of July 31, 2018. Wines under controlled designation of origin (AOC), under the control of the INAO. These wines also benefit from the AOP. These wines encompass 313 appellations as of July 31, 2018. However, the direct count of wines under AOC is not representative. Indeed, these wines have an internal ranking system allowing some of them to bear the mention "Cru" on the product label. The classification of crus is not homogeneous at the national level, nor sometimes even at the regional level.

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