Wine guides for the ultra curious, Approach Guides take an in depth look at a wine region’s grapes, appellations, and vintages to help you discover wines that meet your preferences.The purpose of this guide is to profile the unique aspects of Bordeaux’s appellations and grape varieties; this guide does not profile specific producers or rate individual wines.
Located in southwest France and pierced through its center by the Gironde river, Bordeaux is probably France’s, if the world’s, most famous wine-producing region. This Approach Guide is designed as a quick-reference resource for wine enthusiasts seeking to understand what makes Bordeaux’s wines unique and make informed choices.
What’s in this guidebook
- Grape varieties. We describe the primary red and white grape varieties in Bordeaux’s famous blends and where they reach their highest expressions.
- Vintage ratings. We offer a straightforward vintage ratings table, which affords high-level insight into the best and most challenging years for wine production in Bordeaux.
- A Bordeaux wine label. We explain what to look for on a Bordeaux wine label and what it tells you about what’s in the bottle. In doing so, we provide background on Bordeaux’s appellation system and its producer classifications.
- Map and appellation profiles. Leveraging our map of the region, we provide detailed profiles of each of Bordeaux’s appellations. For each appellation, this guide describes the prevailing terroir, the types of wine produced, and what makes them distinctive.
- Recommendations. We mark our favorite appellations with asterisks (*) — our selections have a record for providing quality, consistency, and good values.
