French Wine. Location location location!

“Je ne connais pas celui-là,” is what I said to the wine shop owner as she picked up another bottle of French white wine to show me. “I don’t know that one,” is the translation.

In most of Europe when you go shopping for wine and ask for help, or a recommendation, you are going to get a question in return, and that question is almost always the exact same anywhere in the “old world,” especially France: “Qu’est-ce que tu vas manger?” “What are you going to be eating?” It is implied, of course, what are you going to be eating with the wine?

Most people, not all, in old wine country traditionally only drink wine with food. Again, not all. Yet the majority of wine is still tailored as such. For our dinner that night we were going to have fresh oysters from Bretagne to start, then roasted sea bass with garden herbs and rice. So after telling the wine shop owner this key piece of information she directed me to, and started to point out, several white wines.

Pairing food with wine is a true art, although it is based on chemistry. Acid, sugar, alcohol, and the next 400 compounds that make up what you taste in each sip of wine form the foundation of food and wine pairing. But if you don’t know how to translate that science, and language, into a good dinner pairing then all is for not.

So how do you bridge the language and knowledge gap in the hopes that you end up buying a wine that you will like here in France?

First, all French wine is labeled, and named, based on its location. Location location location! There are a lot of grape varieties that grown in France, and more wines than anyone can know. BUT, the locations of where the best wines come from are known to all French people. Location is the key here, and knowing a few of the big names is a must.

Before your trip to France, do a little research of the taste profiles that are common to a certain region.  Knowing a little about the big red GSM blends from the Rhône, the elegant Pinot Noirs from Burgundy, the minerality of the best whites from the Loire, the difference between the left bank vs right bank in Bordeaux will get you a long way. And never be afraid to ask for help, just try it in French first; “Que recommandez-vous?” You will get a MUCH better recommendation!

Now on to Spain, Portugal, and the Douro!

What’s the best way to Up your Wine Game?

The easiest way to up your wine game is go to local wine tastings. Ask questions, pay attention to what you are actually tasting in your mouth, and talk to the other tasters. If you are finding that you still want more of that wine knowledge then I recommend going to the monthly tastings held by the local chapter of the American Wine Society.Now for those that just started to tune out because you saw “Society,” relax. It’s a club that drinks a lot of wine, eats good food, and then talks about that wine. Even though society sounds fancy, which was probably the point, there are no wine snobs here. No one is going to judge you because you “don’t know wine,” or if you taste something totally different than everyone else, which happens all the time. It’s a chance to hang out, try new wines and learn a little more about wine. Even if you don’t care to know why that wine tastes the way it does you can go to drink, eat, and then drink more. Just make sure you can get home safely.This month’s local chapter AWS meeting was a tasting of the Southern Rhône. The Rhône River Valley region produces some of the best wines in the world. While there are some outstanding white wines that come out of the Rhône the first to mind, and mouth, is red. The “big 3” red grape varietals here are Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre, blended together. GSMs from here are often big, potent, yet with the capacity to have finesse with complex fruit. It’s why this is one of my favorite wine regions. If any of this sounds good you can find the Emerald Coast Chapter of the AWS on Facebook or email pamdavey@aol.com (the chapter president) for more information. It’s a good time!