A Winey Tour de France Trivia Quiz

Answer: Alsace

The Alsace region stretches from Strasbourg to Mulhouse. Since it's so close to Germany, and it's been swapped between the two countries many times over the centuries, it is no surprise that the wines of the two countries are similar. Alsace is known for its white wines, mostly made from Riesling or Gewürztraminer grapes, which make up about 90% of its annual production.

Answer: Champagne

The Champagne region of France is found roughly between Strasbourg and Paris. Legally, only wines produced in the Champagne region can be called Champagne. Dom Perignon, a 17th century Benedictine monk, is often credited with inventing sparkling champagne.

Answer: Loire

Found roughly in the center of France, the Loire valley is best known for its white wines, though all types of wine are produced there.

Answer: Bordeaux

Wines from Bordeaux, often called claret in the UK, have been highly regarded for hundreds of years. The majority of the wine from this region is red, with some of the most famous vineyards in the world gathered here: Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Chateau Latour, and Chateau Margaux being some of the better known labels. Along with the red wines, Bordeaux is home to the Sauternes sweet white wines, most famous of which is Chateau d'Yquem.

Answer: Sud-Ouest

The Sud-Ouest (South West) region encompasses the areas around the Dordogne, Garonne, and Lot rivers. Cyrano de Bergerac and D'Artagnan both hail from this region. Armagnac brandy comes from this region (The better known French brandy, Cognac, comes from the region near Angouleme, north of Bordeaux.) The medieval city of Cahors, on the Lot river, is the center of the Cahors wine region which produces a very dark red wine from the Malbec grapes.

Answer: Languedoc-Roussillon

Languedoc accounts for over a third of France's annual wine output. Languedoc-Roussillon wines come from the Mediterranean coastline, roughly between Montpellier and Perpignan. The region produces white, red, rose and sparkling wines. Unlike many other regions in France, wines from Languedoc are often labelled with their grape variety instead of the locale in which they were grown.

Answer: Provence

Wine has been grown in Provence, near the border of France and Italy, since the founding of Marseille in 600 BCE. More than half of Provencal wines grown are rose. Some famous vineyards in the region can be found around the towns of Bandol, Cassis, and Aix-en-Provence.

Answer: Corsica

Home to Napoleon Bonaparte, the island of Corsica has a long wine making history, stretching back to the 6th century BCE. Due to the island's proximity to Italy, many of the grapes grown on Corsica are Italian, including the Nielluccio, Sciacarello or Vermentino, instead of French varietals.

Answer: Rhone

Proceeding north along the Rhone river from Avignon, the Rhone region extends to Vienne. Syrah grapes, which are used to make the Hermitage wines, were once thought to come from either Persia or Syracuse, but it turns out they were native to the region. President Jefferson was partial to Hermitage wine, as well as other French wines from Rousillon, and Nice.

Answer: Burgundy

The Burgundy region runs from Macon north towards Dijon. Most of the reds made in this region come from the Pinot noir grape. Whites are usually Chardonnay. Famous wine villages from the region include Nuits-St-Georges, Vougeot, Chambolle-Musigny and Gevrey-Chambertin. The Burgundy region includes the Beaujolais which is famous for Beaujolais Nouveau, freshly pressed every fall.