Bergerac (wine)
The wine region of Bergerac covers an area of over 12,000 hectares in the area of the city Bergerac in south-west France Dordogne . It forms a natural continuation of the Bordeaux area , but belongs to the Sud-Ouest wine-growing region . This fact is reflected both in the grape varieties and in the character of the wines. The annual production is a good 360,000 hl red wine , 23,000 hl rosé and over 250,000 hl white wine . Sweet Spätlese and Auslese wines play an important role .
Climate and soil
The Bergerac region is subject to a strong oceanic influence with mild winters. Rainfall is particularly heavy in spring and late autumn. The summers, on the other hand, are mostly hot and dry. The weather is often stable well into November. Fog often forms in the Dordogne valley , favoring the development of noble rot .
On the orographically right bank of the Dordogne, the soil north of the town of Bergerac consists of sediments overlying the base of Cretaceous limestone . These lean and permeable gravel sand soils are ideal for red grape varieties. Pécharmant has the best locations . Further downstream on the border with the Gironde department there is limestone with red clay as a weathering product on the surface. In the lower elevations, the loamy-chalky molasse comes to light. The predominantly white Montravel grows here . The geology on the left bank of the Dordogne is different: freshwater limestone is embedded in molasse sand and marl . Together they form a real “layer cake”. With good drainage, it offers good conditions for the noble sweet white wines from Monbazillac .
Grape varieties and appellations
The Rebsatz corresponds to that of the Bordelais . The red wines are mainly made from Merlot , Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc , with Malbec and Fer Servadou being of little importance . Sauvignon Blanc dominates the dry white wine, while Sémillon and Muscadelle are used for the sweet wines . Ugni Blanc , Chenin Blanc and Ondenc are also allowed .
Regional appellations
| Appellation | Vineyards | Annual production |
|---|---|---|
|
Bergerac and Bergerac rosé |
6,900 ha | 365,000 hl |
| Bergerac sec | 3,400 ha | 185,000 hl |
| included in it | ||
| Cotes-de-Bergerac | White and red | |
| Côtes-de-Bergerac moelleux | White (sweet) |
There are two parallel appellations in the Bergerac growing area : Bergerac and Côtes de Bergerac . Both apply to both red and white wine. The difference is not in the locations, as the name "Côtes" (slopes) suggests, but in the different high demands on yield and grape ripeness. For the Bergerac , the basic yield is 55 hl / ha for red wines and 60 hl / ha for dry white wines. At the Côtes de Bergerac , the yield is limited to 50 hl / ha. The grapes for a red Côtes de Bergerac must have a natural alcohol potential of 11 °, for white wine even 11.5 ° are required. With a simple Bergerac, 10 ° is sufficient. Sweet white wines are only available as Côtes de Bergerac , with the additional designation “moelleux” being used.
The purpose of this demarcation is also to define different types of wine. The red or white Bergerac is a fruity wine that can be drunk young. A Côtes de Bergerac has more structure and can therefore be stored. In red wine, this is also controlled by the selection of grape varieties for the cuvée : in Bergerac , the smoother Merlot dominates, while a Côtes de Bergerac is characterized by Cabernet Sauvignon with its firmer tannin structure.
Local appellations
| Local appellation | Vineyards | Annual production 2002 |
|---|---|---|
| Monbazillac | 1800 ha | 45,000 hl white (sweet) |
| Montravel | 280 ha | 15,000 hl white and red |
| Cotes-de-Montravel | 60 ha | 2,000 hl white (sweet) |
| Haut-Montravel | 40 ha | 1,600 hl white (sweet) |
| Pécharmant | 385 ha | 19,000 hl red |
| rosette | 22 ha | 730 hl white (sweet) |
| Saussignac | 100 ha | 1,700 hl white (sweet) |
Some parts of the area have terroirs that produce wines with distinctive characteristics. They therefore have their own local appellations. The most important is Monbazillac on the left bank of the Dordogne, which, with 1,800 hectares of cultivation area, is one of the largest and most important growing areas in France for fine sweet white wines. The Monbazillac is made from the same grape varieties as the famous noble sweet Bordeaux from Sauternes and Barsac , but the requirements are lower. The maximum yield is 40 hl / ha, but only rotten, hand-picked grapes may be used.
The areas of Saussignac and Rosette are much smaller . Saussignac is the western continuation of Monbazillac and also produces a storable, sweet white wine. The Rosette area, on the other hand, lies on the right bank of the Dordogne north of Bergerac. The sweet white wine produced there from Sémillon should be drunk young.
The area of Montravel , named after the town of Lamothe-Montravel , is again divided into the parts Montravel , Haut-Montravel and Côtes-de-Montravel . In the past, only sweet or noble white wine was produced here, as in Monbazillac, but since 2001 the Montravel appellation has also been valid for red wine. The requirements correspond to those of the Côtes de Bergerac, whereby a minimum of 25% Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon are prescribed for the white wine. However, these relate to the tillering and not to the later cuvée. The red wine must contain at least 50% Merlot.
The only pure red wine region of the Bergerac is Pécharmant , which includes climatically particularly favorable locations northeast of Bergerac. The maximum yield of 45 hl / ha ensures the Pécharmant its strong tannin structure and aromatic fullness. It is the longest-lived red wine in the entire region. An assemblage of at least three of the Bordeaux grape varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec is required.
history
The Bergerac wine-growing region always formed the transition between the Bordelais and the upstream Oberland. The vineyards of the Périgord , which were important in earlier times , have completely fallen victim to phylloxera . The privileged position that Bergerac had acquired throughout history saved it from this fate.
In 1225 the city of Bergerac submitted to the English crown. As a strategically important outpost, it received far-reaching rights and privileges. From then on, Bergerac was allowed to levy duties on the wines of the Oberland that passed through the city across the Dordogne. But even more important was the privilege of being able to ship your own wine across the ocean, regardless of the privilege of Bordeaux. Bergerac retained this right even after England withdrew from the mainland at the end of the Hundred Years War in 1453 and was reaffirmed by François I in 1520 . This enabled Bergerac to continue to profitably use its trade relations with England. In the 16th century, the wars of religion divided the Périgord. Bergerac was Huguenot and had special ties with the Netherlands. After the Edict of Nantes was repealed in 1685 , many refugees found their way there, which enabled Bergerac to strengthen its position on the Dutch market. The preference of the Dutch for sweet white wines also explains their traditionally high proportion of local production. Historically, red wine did not play a major role, it was only used as a blend wine.
The area under vines in the Bergerac region was twice as large as it is today at the beginning of the 19th century, but with very low yields of an average of 9 hl / ha. Between 1876 and 1883 the phylloxera crisis almost completely destroyed the wine-growing region. From 1896 onwards, the white wine areas on the left bank were first planted with phylloxera. The red vineyards on the right bank, on the other hand, were largely abandoned and turned into forests. At the beginning of the 20th century, when the mass production of cheap table wines was in full swing, the annual amount reached a historical maximum of 800,000 hectoliters, significantly more than today. The signal to return to quality wine brought the recognition of Bergerac and Monbazillac as Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée in 1936. Montravel followed in 1937, Pécharmant in 1946 and the Côtes de Montravel in 1948. The Saussignac appellation is relatively young. It was not established until 1982.
Web links
literature
- Jancis Robinson : The Oxford Wine Lexicon . Gräfe and Unzer Verlag, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-7742-0914-6 .
- Pierre Galet : Cépages et Vignobles de France . Lavoisier Publishing House, Paris 2004, ISBN 2-7430-0585-8 .
- Benoît France: Grand Atlas des Vignobles de France . Éditions SOLAR publishing house, Paris 2002, ISBN 2-263-03242-8 .
