France

The beauty of the wines from France is their diversity.  It is a country which, genuinely, caters for all tastes.  But it grew complacent.  In the late 1970's early 1980's when the New World began producing easy-drinking and approachable wines, France found it was up against a strong and savvy competitor.  Its long-held market share was being chipped away by wines from these ‘upstarts’. 

The fight back began, initially from the South of France where producers started to introduce the names of grape varieties on the labels so that consumers were less intimidated by the unpronounceable names which often appeared on the bottles.  Secondly, producers started making wines which were more approachable.  The more forward-thinking amongst them sent their younger family members to cut their teeth with New World producers in Australia, Chile and America.  Here they learnt their craft before returning home to their family estates.  And it is this blend of the modern with the traditional that I find exciting.

France, of course, has always had a deserved reputation for producing fine wines: you need go no further than Bordeaux, Burgundy or Champagne for this to be confirmed.  But it is the wines of the lesser regions that I feel are becoming the backbone of France.  Those of the South West and Southern Rhone, for example, offer affordable and approachable wines that are worthy of consideration.  This only confirms my view that France can cover all tastes and all pockets when it comes to wine.

Go out there and explore – you will be pleasantly surprised I am sure.