French wine is almost always labelled by its region of origin, rather than by the variety of grapes it is made from.
French regional wines come in two categories. AOP is short for Appellation d’Origine Protégée and IGP is Indication Géographique Protégée. AOP wines have tighter rules about their production and are considered of higher quality than IGP, although that does not always relate to the quality of a particular wine. There are poor examples of AOP wines and some great IGP ones.
I know that some people buy wine from the same grape variety or the same region all the time and drink it with all the different dishes they eat but the real strength and beauty of French wine is its diversity and finding great matches of wines to food.
Therefore in this article I’m taking the traditional French approach of basing the wine choice on what you are planning to eat. I’m not covering sweet, sparkling or rosé wines in this article.
Dry white wines and how to choose them wisely
Let’s start with a crisp, dry, relatively neutral white wine. Something that would be nice to serve with cold seafood or a simple green salad. The Loire valley specialises in these kind of wines. The Muscadet AOP (nothing to do with the Muscat grape) from the western Loire is said to be perfect for oysters. It’s fairly neutral in aroma and flavour but the best examples have a lovely balance and texture that won’t clash with the food.
I was recently impressed by wines under the relatively new and unknown AOP ‘Fiefs Vendéen’, which lies just south of the Muscadet vineyards but uses a different blend of grape varieties. Picpoul-de-Pinet is the southern alternative to Muscadet and Pinot blanc from Alsace is another fine choice for a relatively neutral wine.
For richer white fish or lighter poultry dishes, serve something with a bit more body and character. The Loire whites of AOPs Saumur, Savennières, Anjou and Vouvray have a nice citrus acidity, being made from the Chenin blanc variety.
The best examples from these AOPs also have the ability to improve with age for several years. Be careful though. These AOPs also produce sweet wines, so best to buy them from a caviste (wine merchant) who you can ask, rather than to pluck one from a supermarket shelf. Alternatively, an Alsace Riesling would work with similar food.
If you want something more aromatic to go with your fish or vegetable dishes, and you like the character of Sauvignon blanc, then look for wines labelled Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé, Menetou-Salon, Quincy, Reuilly and Touraine.
Bordeaux is another area where Sauvignon blanc is grown. The white AOPs Bordeaux, Graves and Entre-deux-Mers are riper, spicier versions than those of the Loire, partly because they are usually blended with Sémillon and aged in the barrel, which adds body and the ability to improve over time. However, it’s rare to find French Sauvignon blanc with the tropical fruit flavours found in New World examples.
For roast chicken, cheesy pasta or salmon dishes, it’s better to choose a white wine with more finesse than zing. Burgundy is probably the first choice. Most of the white wines here are made from Chardonnay, which can develop beautiful aromas and a fine texture when fermented in oak barrels. AOP Chablis has the most crispness and chalkiness, while the wines from the Côte de Beaune, which includes world-famous AOPs such as Montrachet and Meursault, have more richness and roundness.
The white wines further south in Burgundy offer more value-for-money and include AOPs such as Montagny, Rully, Mâcon-Villages and Viré-Clessé as well as basic Bourgogne blanc, which can be very good from respected producers. Another source of impressive Chardonnay is Limoux in the hills of the Languedoc.
The Rhône valley is mainly famous for red wine but it does produce nice medium-bodied, slightly floral, peachy white wines with lower acidity than those I have mentioned above. The AOPs of Côtes-du-Rhône, Saint-Péray and the more expensive Condrieu and Hermitage make a good match for cheese-based salads, creamy pasta and lighter pork dishes. An alternative would be Pinot gris from Alsace.
The Languedoc-Roussillon provide rich-pickings for lovers of big, impressively mineral, white wines, particularly suited to classic Mediterranean cuisine like garlic prawns, Bouillabaisse, grilled squid and tasty salads. In that massive region, the name of the producer is more important than the region and most of the AOPs only apply to red wines, but in my experience the labels to look out for are Collioure, Côtes Catalanes, La Clape and Faugères. You will also find many wines labelled by grape variety from this region, either alone or in blends.
In my opinion, it’s better to choose wines from indigenous southern varieties than ‘international’ ones like Sauvignon blanc and Chardonnay.
Lightly-flavoured Asian dishes can also go nicely with the white wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon and Rhône, as well as those from Alsace if you want a bit more acidity.
Cheese and wine pairings
Don’t forget that many cheeses go better with white wine than red. Goats cheese in particular is a perfect match with the aromatic white wines of the Loire valley and Alsace as well as Muscat Sec from the Languedoc-Roussillon.
The wines of Burgundy and the Rhône are lovely with richer soft cheeses like Maroilles, Epoisses or Brie de Meaux. Mild blue cheese is a great match with wines made from Chenin blanc.
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Finally, a varied cheese board is the perfect way to explore the more obscure white varieties of the Languedoc such as Vermentino, Bourboulenc and Grenache gris as well as the high-altitude wines of the Savoie, Jura, Jurançon and the strangely-named Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh.
I hope that this brief guide gives you a bit more confidence when choosing French white wines and encourages you to step out the comfort zone of buying wines from grape varieties you know.
