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Andrew Cullen

Decoding French Wine: A Beginner's Guide to Enjoying the Fruits of the French Terroir (Volume 1)

by Andrew Cullen (Author) Format: Paperback

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The wine world is intimidating when you are just starting out. France alone has more than 25,000 wineries and the bottles are labeled with various phrases, regions, vineyards, vintages and classifications, often times with no mention of a grape varietal. How are you possibly to know what to buy, what's inside the bottle, and if you're going to like it?"Decoding French Wine: A Beginner’s Guide to Enjoying the Fruits of the French Terroir" is a clear and concise guide written with the singular goal to help early stage wine drinkers navigate and explore the world of French wine.This new third edition of the book takes readers through France's prominent wine regions to uncover the geography, history and wine making practices of each region. Along the way, build a list of high quality, value priced producers to start with, and before you know it, you'll be off exploring and decoding the vast and awesome world of French wine.

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Print length

81 pages
Language

English
Publication date

September 17, 2012
Dimensions

6 x 0.19 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1479303186
ISBN-13

978-1479303182

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From the Author

How to Read a French Wine LabelFrench wine labels are a bit more complex that U.S. wine labels, but with a little practice and geographic research, you'll soon be listing your favorite appellations in no time.
There are four key aspects to a French wine label that you will want to note: the vintage, the appellation, the classification and the chateau (or winemaker).
The VintageThe vintage is pretty easy to decipher. It is the year the grapes were harvested in, and depending on the weather for each year, this can vary widely. Don't be surprised if bottles from stellar years are more expensive than bottles from years with less than desirable conditions.
The AppellationThe appellation is a huge factor on the label because it ultimately tells you what grapes were used in producing the wine. As we've mentioned, because France (and many other European countries) segment their wines by appellation rather than saying simply Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon, it requires a bit of geographic knowledge on behalf of the wine buyer.
For instance, a Bordeaux from St Emilion (right bank) is going to be a Merlot based red blend, compared to a Margaux (left bank) that is going to be Cabernet Sauvignon based. The more you experiment and research these different appellations within France, the more you will know about the wine inside. Don't worry, we're about to dive head on into all the different appellations, but it will require a little geographic research on your own as well.
The ClassificationThe classification of the wine means a few different things throughout France. In some areas, such as Burgundy, you will have Grand Cru wines which typically mean the wine is from the "highest" quality single vineyard, while Premier Cru means a "high" quality single vineyard, and then "Village" wines which may come from multiple vineyards.
In Bordeaux you have the Classifications of 1855 that separate vineyards out into "growths." The "First Growth" wines are some of the most prized in the world.
Each appellation is a little different in this regard too, but once you learn a few of them, you'll easily get the hang of it.
The ProducerThe Producer (or often in France, the Chateau or Maison) is another important aspect. As you embark on your wine journey, you will begin to encounter and recognize winemakers who make excellent wines, or at least the style of wines that you enjoy. Plus many of the big producers will make wines from multiple appellations. So you might encounter something like this:
2016 Joseph Drouhin Cote de Nuits Villages Vintage: 2016Producer: Joseph DrouhinAppellation: Cote de NuitsClassification: Village level
And then you might see this wine.2017 Joseph Drouhin Beaune Clos des Mouches Premier Cru Rouge Vintage: 2017 Producer: Joseph DrouhinAppellation: BeauneVineyard: Clos des MouchesClassification: Premier Cru
These are the categories of information to look for on the label and it will vary between the appellations we will cover.

From the Inside Flap

"Give me books, French wine, fruit, fine weather and a little music played out of doors by somebody I do not know."― John Keats

Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 17, 2012
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 81 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1479303186
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1479303182
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 3.03 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.19 x 9 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #1,780,021 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #667 in Wine (Books)
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(94)

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Andrew Cullen

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Andrew Cullen has authored and co-authored four non-fiction books, including the popular DECODING WINE series, as well as two works of fiction, THE CALLISTO SYMPHONY (2015) and A GENTLE SLAUGHTER OF THE PERFECT KIND (2017).

He is the founder and editor of CostcoWineBlog.com, the largest independent website reviewing Costco wines. His writing and websites have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Consumer Reports, The Daily Meal, Southern Living, MSN, CNN Money and CBS Moneywatch.

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