How to become French?

Candid moment here…

I am American through and through (referring to my cellar). I have no problem with that. I’m curious how you guys either branched out into the frenchies or started out there to begin with. This will sound highly ignorant, but for the most part French wines all sound the same to me and the lack of familiarity and vastness of Burgundy And Bordeaux leads me to stay with my comfort zone of the US of A. I suppose I feel more of a connection with US wineries I’ve either visited or have had correspondence. French wineries are a huge unknown and lacking that personal connection for me. Where is a noob to begin, should he choose to do so? newhere

open your wallet if you’re looking for top tier or anywhere close.

I already did that with Fairchild Sigaro. Like I said, I blame you. [cheers.gif]

Jeb - I think your post says it all – you’re going to have to do some homework on geography, differences among wines, and if you really want to understand it, learning some French and eventually visiting. My (excellent) introductory guide was Alexis Lichine’s Guide to the Wines and Vineyards of France, but that book ceased being published more than two decades ago. I suppose the best now would be (1) the French sections of The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson and (2) The Great Wines of France by Clive Coates. Neither is completely up to date and both reflect certain prejudices that I do not share, but they constitute an excellent start. Kermit Lynch’s Adventures on the Wine Route goes back to the 1980s,but still is indispensable and can teach you an enormous amount; ditto fro his more recent Inspiring Thirst, and also Neil Rosenthal’s more recent Reflections of a Wine Merchant.

And of course, alongside all that, finding one or more good wine shops that can provide you with a variety of wines at a variety of price points.

but for the most part French wines all sound the same to me and . . . I suppose I feel more of a connection with US wineries I’ve either visited or have had correspondence. French wineries are a huge unknown and lacking that personal connection for me

Jeb - I think you have it down. And BTW, there’s no real need to branch out other than your curiosity and interest as an oenophile. Same reason to branch into Sardinia, Greece, Slovenia and elsewhere, and I’m not being facetious.

In my own case, I started drinking German wines as that’s my mother’s heritage, then French wines since I lived with French people. Neither grabbed me and I was indifferent until one day I figured out that I liked certain Spanish wines and met a girl from Nevada who loved CA wines. Those two regions got me into wine and it was years before I knew enough about them to feel as if I might understand other regions.

Big difference between CA and France is that all over CA you find Cabs and Chardonnays, although people are increasingly finding areas that are better for this or that variety. In France OTOH, certain grapes are associated with certain regions, whether or not that always makes viticultural sense. So you need to get over the idea of looking at the grape variety and instead, look at the group of grapes that are associated with the regions.

Then, after you’ve done that, put it aside for a bit and look again at varieties because increasing numbers of winemakers are uninterested in the rules of the bureaucrats. Thus, although it’s not a south France grape, you actually find Merlot in the south of France and although politically it’s not appropriate, some of it is pretty good.

I’m with you, though I did venture into CDP and found it to taste like a California annex so now I own a bunch of that. I don’t get Bordeaux and I’m in the process of cherry picking some burgundy to see if I get it. Curiosity is my driving force. I’d never run out of interest in California.
Fwiw I don’t get Oregon or Washington either.

Greg, there is no “need” for a fan of American wine to become familiar with any other wines. But to suggest that if Jeb wishes to broaden his perspective, there would be no difference between him looking toward France or looking toward Sardina, Greece, or Slovenia is beyond facetious IMO. You might be overlooking the fact that one of those places is home to the majority of the world’s benchmark wines, and the others are not. Perhaps you have some other ax to grind.

Jeb, French wine is no more complicated inherently than American wine. It all comes down to which area one has a grasp of, and which area is new. To me, California is a more daunting minefield than France, and for you the opposite is undoubtedly true. The key to understanding European wine is to develop certain knowledge of geography and certain knowledge of the appellation system. The consumer of French wine has the benefit of the INAO system that simplifies things a great deal. French appellation law is a brilliant pro-consumer system.

The problems arise because too many people want to skip all that, and just go straight to a cellar full of Dujac and Pavie, and then wonder why they just don’t get it.

Start with a great wine atlas, the Johnson/Robinson mentioned above being the standard work. Add the one or two general texts mentioned. Add in personal relationships with one or two merchants you can discuss things with. And some corkscrew research. Take notes on everything, and relate each wine back to its geography and its appellation. Repeat and repeat again. The journey never ends…

Humberto, I would predict that helicoptering into Burgundy and snatching a few cherries is unlikely to result in “getting it”. We are each different, of course, but Burgundy generally requires a greater commitment and application of intellectual curiosity than that, in my experience. I think Jeb realizes that, and is asking how to become more fluent in French wine rather than picking up a few cherries.

BTW, Jeb, your original post refers to the vastness of French wine, but that depends upon how one looks at things. For example, it is not really wrong IMO to simplify by saying French red wine boils down to just three great regions, Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Rhone. Of course there are others, but it is quite OK to eat this elephant one meal at a time. And consider Burgundy… comprises four sub-regions, but most of the talk about Burgundy is Cote d’Or, with much less about Maconnaise, Cote Chalonnaise, and Chablis.

Cote d’Or is a pretty tiny place, really. In fact, Sonoma County grows TWICE as much pinot noir and chardonnay as does the entire Cote d’Or.

Jeb…

I think the approaches mentioned above are a good start but my recommendation is to find a varietal you like here in the US and find a French region that doe something similar or parallel, at last at the beginning. Try to focus on one area. For example, if you’re really into cab/merlot, start with Bordeaux. If Syrah is your thing, go hard on Northern Rhone. Pinot or Chard? Burgundy is your place.

Trying to come at more than one region at once will be too broad and the classification systems in each do not apply to each other so it can get very overwhelming. Narrow it down and let one region lead you to the next. Books are critical, as mentioned previously.

If you like it all (like I do), Bordeaux I think is the best place to begin, particularly because you can get a good feel for the region and the classification system/terroirs are a bit more approachable. With a map and a basic primer, you start to get a feel for geography (left vs right bank) and how wines are made in each (Left generally more cab, right generally more merlot).

Lew: tou can pick four or five numbers or cover half of the board in roulette…i either get “lucky” or I dont. Its curiosity. Not a need. Obviously im not spending thousands of dollars blindly, im getting guidance. Its still a large scale cherry pick. If I spend a few thousand dollars on Burgundy with some guidance and I dont get it enough to want to immerse myself, believe me that isone commitment I am not interested in.
Brings up an interesting point that is related to Jebs OP. If anyone said to me : i need to know if I like Cali c abs or pinots or insert your favorite grape…I m pretty sure it could be done in ten bottles per grape.

Sheesh… I thought that the answer was simply to marry Todd!!! [wow.gif] [cheers.gif]

I am your opposite. I find California an endless headache but I took to French wines easily and naturally; like a fish to water. To rattle off what sounds like a string of [bullshit.gif], I found in general their balance, elegance, and purity stunning. After all these years, in general still the best wines in the world. [stirthepothal.gif] Anyway, here are a few points from my experience that might help:

Like everyone else has said, reading and research. I started learning my way around France with a small paperback by Alex Bespaloff that had a nice survey of French wines and a good intro to the AOC system. Don’t let all the place names confuse you. Think in larger blocks at first: Bdx, Burgundy, N. Rhone, S. Rhone, Loire. That can help, then fill in the local names. Each region has a hierarchy of quality, or at least reputation.

Izzy makes a great point. What interests you about American wine? Cab, syrah, pinot? Start there. If you like syrah, then the Northen Rhone is the place for you. Get to know your areas of interest first. Lew is right; the AOC system is great consumer-wise; very organized though it requires some memorization.

Remember, there are excellent values at all price points, from all places. There are plenty of values in the $15-25 range. I am most passionate about Burgundy and the Northern Rhone, and my average wine is $40-50, and I will rarely pay over $70 for bottle. The worst mistake is to believe that unless they bankrupt you, French wines aren’t worth it. I don’t buy just anyone or anywhere in Burgundy; some of the prices are IMO absurd. But with a careful eye I find plenty of excellent wines that are at the (relatively inexpensive) 1er cru or village level.

Finally, experiment. If you see some odd French wine that catches your eye, give it a try. That is how I discovered the existence of Cote de Brouilly, Madiran, Saumur, and Bugey. And they were all enjoyable, educational experiences in the $15-25 range.

Among other things, pretty sure you need a marital or parental citizenship connection and to pass a short fluency exam at the local police station.

Claude is ofcourse right about Geography, which plays the dominant role in French wine. There’s no substitute for visiting, not to say you can’t love French wine without it.

My interest started early with a first trip to France at age 6, when the family spent 3 weeks on the Mediterranean Coast and touring up the Rhone to Grenoble and Switzerland. I have great memorires of the impressive cheese courses and my father’s wine exploration. They taught French in my grade school from 3rd grade to 7th.

RT

For my part, starting off I never looked at either US or French wine as being the place to gravitate. I live in the midwest so personal connections with wineries wasn’t what I was looking for nor something I was likely to easily find. I came to wine through a love of food and cooking I suppose, and the histories of fine food are grounded in ethnic cuisines, many from the old world wine regions (no disrespect to the fine cuisines of Asia, India, etc.). In that regard the food may have led me to Europe generally and France specifically. And interests in history and geography certainly lend themselves to an exploration of these older wine regions.

But in the end it was simply palate. I tried all of the big wines from the new world “big wine” wine regions that were so popular ten years ago. I found out rather quickly that these wines tasted good for a sip or two but were fatiguing and matched up poorly with food. So it followed naturally that the more balanced wines of the sort made in Europe were what I liked. I say “of the sort” because I continued to buy US wines as well but mostly French. Now I buy very little US wine. Basically for the same reasons. I buy a few, they still occupy a small role in my cellar, but I still find many US wines to be in a forward style that lacks real depth. OTOH, those that do the more restrained style best often seem to either be priced prohibitively (for me) or else to be still not as good as comparable old world wines.

One thing about the Classic French wines, say from Bordeaux or Burgundy, is that they are going really show their stuff after 10-20 years, so popping and pouring new releases may leave you puzzled. Best to find some key friends who have some wines with age to share. They don’t have to be top of the line. Then you’ll know if you are going to be hooked or not, and have a better idea what to seek out.

Jeb -

Do you have a wine tasting or social group that meets with any regularity? Start weaving in some solid Bordeaux, Rhones and Burgs into your line-ups. This BB can propose some great, representative examples in every category, perhaps some that will show well without a huge sticker price or 20 years of age. I started into French fairly quickly in my wine appreciation, but it really blossomed when I formed a monthly wine tasting group in my firm with about 5 other colleagues. We met once per month after work, in a conference room, and spent a couple hours on serious wine appreciation and discussion, and then we would devolve into scotch, beer and women! It was great fun. We kept it balanced: nerdy and fun. Each month we appointed one member of the group to put together the theme and some reading materials, and then we would taste and discuss. I will never forget the Pomerol flight. From that point forward, I was a tried and true Bdx fanatic. Nineteen years later, and 3 of us still get together.

'berto - I understand where Lewis is coming from. People try a case or two of ‘name’ wines, usually a decade too young, they have no context in which to place the wines and then usually disparage Burgundy. It doesn’t actually bother me, but cherrypicking names is a useless way to understand Burg. Your money, your time, but understand that it’s an approach we’ve seen crash and burn many times before. If you wanted to spend a given amount of money and you really want to get a survey of what Burg is about, there are better ways to do that.

Jeb - If you need a personal connection with a winery to get enthused about the wines you’ll need to do what someone above suggested which is to visit there. Otherwise, you can start by combining Izzy and John S’s approaches. Narrow things down to a region then try wines a decade old or older to see what you like. Do verticals so you can see how wines age.

How? Either you need a trusted merchant or a tasting group. Preferably both.

Easy: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0822343312

Jeb, thanks for asking the question. I could have signed my name to it because I’m exactly like you. I have a cellar full of California wines because I “connect” to the places I’ve been and understand the language. There’s something about France that has me mentally blocked at trying their wines. Thanks for asking the question. I’m enjoying watching the responses.