📍 Médoc

Médoc is a wine area on the left bank of the Gironde estuary in south-western France, part of Bordeaux. It is a long peninsula between the river and the Atlantic Ocean, where vineyards grow on gravel hills.

Médoc makes almost only red wine. The base is Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with Merlot, Cabernet Franc and a little Petit Verdot. Gravel holds heat and drains water well, and the ocean softens the climate.

Médoc includes famous communes with their own appellations: Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, Saint-Estèphe, Moulis and Listrac-Médoc. The southern part is called Haut-Médoc, the northern part simply Médoc. Almost all châteaux of the 1855 classification are here: it was drawn up for the Paris World Fair and ranked red wines in five levels (crus). It included 60 Médoc châteaux plus Château Haut-Brion from Graves.

If a bottle says just Médoc, the wine comes from the northern part of the peninsula; the commune names usually mean more prestigious plots. Young Médoc wines are firm because of their tannins, so serious bottles are aged for ten years or longer, while simpler ones can be opened earlier. The name Médoc on a label shows that the grapes grew in this very area, which makes it easy to look for similar wines.