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Bordeaux

Region
The Bordeaux is in South West France, on the Gironde estuary where the rivers of the Garonne and Dordogne meet. Having been a perfect shipping point for the British, it became well known for its wine. The Dutch drained much of the land around the rivers creating the Graves where the great Chateaus are situated.
Bordeaux is spilt into two main zones:
The Left Bank which is the area West and South of the Gironde and Garonne. The dominant grape grown on the Left Bank is Cabernet Sauvignon, which loves the easily drained gravel soils of the best sites. The wines are medium to full bodied, high in tannin and acidity with black fruit flavours (blackcurrant) and toasted oak that develops a vegetal, tobacco and cedar complexity. The best of these wines can age well for decades.
The Right Bank which is the area East and North of the Gironde and Dordogne. The dominant grape variety is Merlot and the wines have medium tannin levels, medium acidity and red fruit flavours (plum), developing cedar and tobacco notes with age. They are generally softer in style than the Left Bank wines.
Classifications in Bordeaux follow the AC system that is found throughout France. However, the main form of identifying a wine from Bordeaux is the use of the word 'Chateau' on the label.This term does not necessarily refer to a building but rather that the wine has been produced from a specific parcel of land rather than a blend of grapes from a variety of parcels. The word 'Claret' is an adaption of the word Clairet in English. This was a wine made from mixed red and white grapes or a red wine the discoloured during a sea journey from Bordeaux to Britain, hence the name Claret was adopted for a red Bordeaux.
Principle White Grape Variety: Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon
Principle Red Grape Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot
Climate: Maritime
Sub regions include: Haut Medoc, St Julien, Margaux, Pauillac, St Estephe, Graves, Pessac-Leognan, St Emilion, Lussac St Emilion, Pomerol,