Unit 7 of 26 · Online wine course

French Wine Course

Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône, Loire and Champagne. 7 lessons · about 56 min

Start with the free unit See prices

This unit is included with Premium ($3.99 a month, 3 days free) or the course for life ($39.99 once).

The 7 lessons

  1. France at a glance: terroir, climate and grapes

    Why France names its wines after places: terroir, three climates from cool north to warm south, the soils, the signature grapes and the history behind them.

    You will be able to:

    • explain terroir and its four parts to a friend
    • match France's classic grapes to their home regions
    • describe France's three climates and what they do
    about 8 min

  2. Bordeaux: rivers, banks and the famous châteaux

    How two rivers split Bordeaux into gravel and clay, Cabernet and Merlot; what châteaux, the 1855 ranking and en primeur mean; and the dry and sweet whites.

    You will be able to:

    • explain how Bordeaux's rivers and soils shape its reds
    • describe the 1855 Classification and Bordeaux's other rankings
    • name Bordeaux's white styles and explain en primeur
    about 8 min

  3. Burgundy: two grapes and a map of villages

    Burgundy makes reds from Pinot Noir and whites from Chardonnay, so the map does the talking: slopes, villages and named plots, where the narrower the place, the higher the rank.

    You will be able to:

    • place Burgundy's areas in order from north to south
    • zoom from Bourgogne to Grand Cru on the map
    • explain why Burgundy's vineyards are split into tiny plots
    about 8 min

  4. The Rhône: Syrah in the north, blends in the south

    The Rhône has two halves: steep northern slopes make peppery Syrah, while the hot, windswept south makes Grenache-led blends. Learn the names that tell them apart.

    You will be able to:

    • tell northern Syrah reds from southern Grenache blends
    • name the Rhône's key crus and what they make
    • climb the Côtes du Rhône ladder from base to cru
    about 8 min

  5. The Loire and Alsace: France's white heartlands

    Two cool corners of France for crisp whites: in the Loire, the place points to the grape; in Alsace, the label names it.

    You will be able to:

    • place the Loire's four zones and their main grapes
    • explain how the Vosges rain shadow helps Alsace
    • recognise an Alsace wine by its label and bottle
    about 8 min

  6. Champagne and its cousins: how the bubbles are made

    Champagne is sparkling wine from one cool, chalky French region, where a second fermentation in the bottle makes the bubbles and long ageing adds toast and brioche.

    You will be able to:

    • explain how the traditional method puts bubbles in a bottle
    • read vintage and sweetness words on a Champagne label
    • tell Champagne, Crémant, Cava and Prosecco apart
    about 8 min

  7. Read a French label: the place comes first

    Put the whole France unit to work on a real bottle: turn the place into a region and a grape, then read the tier, the maker and the sweetness.

    You will be able to:

    • turn a French place name into a region and grape
    • tell estate words from free words on a bottle
    • decode a French label, line by line
    about 8 min

Related reading on Winelingo: Wine of France