Preparing your Bordeaux Wine Tour

Chateau Margaux - Medoc

Here you are comfortably sitting with family and/or friends and yes it has now been decided that not only have you chosen France as your next holiday destination (promise we don't bite!!) but also, as you sip on your preferred wine, you have included a stop over in one of the most famous vineyards in the world: 

The Bordeaux vineyard

Good choice, but you must realize that this is the beginning of a somewhat complicated adventure for those of you who do not know what to expect or don't have a clue of what a Bordeaux wine tour implies... I hope that this post will give you all the information you need to really enjoy your Bordeaux wine tour.

To better understand how one can visit wineries in Bordeaux it is necessary to understand a tiny bit of local wine business facts first: the way the Bordeaux wines are sold is quite complex but roughly most of the Classified growth estates ( TOP GUYS - the one's visitors want to see usually) sell between 80% - 100% of their wine production even before it is actually bottled to people we call "Negociants" (traders). This is important to know tourism wise because when compared to wineries in the US, AUS, NZ and other wine countries (or even other French wine producing regions), wine tasting tours are not considered as essential in Bordeaux and one could even add that they are frowned upon by some of the wineries. What some owners could say is this: "The wine is sold so why bother organizing visits - We are a 1st Classified growth why welcome visitors in shorts and so on..." 

Some visitors are surprised after a winery tour to find out that the wineries don't even sell any of their wines and have to figure out if there is an importer in their country that might get the wine for them back home. Imagine, here you are tasting a fabulous "Chateau something" that you have always dreamed of, your buying desire is at a peak level but the guide turns around and says: "I am sorry Monsieur, this will not be possibeuul" (French for FORGET IT!)       

• POINT N°1: Most wineries don't need/want visitors touring their estate. Most wineries do not sell or sell only some vintages. NO WINERIES will ship wine back to your country.

So, does that mean that you cannot tour in the Bordeaux vineyards? In fact, no. In the past 10 years a lot of pressure has been put on the wine growers for them to organize wine tours for visitors ( both French and foreign). However, because of the wine business system of Bordeaux, the number of wineries opened to the public is limited. Moreover, wineries have decided that they would always include a tour of their facilities and a wine tasting as their offer. Keep in mind that if you are visiting more than 1 winery (which is often the case, you will get the visit of the facilities each time!). Therefore, if you visit more than one winery you will always have the visit of the facilities and the wine tasting included. Also, since there are no established rules, each winery will proceed according to what they consider appropriate: some are free while others will make you pay a fee (up to 30€ per person for Mouton Rothschild!); some make you taste one wine while others will make you taste four different wines; some put forward the visit rather than the tasting... it all depends. One thing all wineries have in common is that you have to make a reservation - you cannot just turn up and say: "Hi, I would really like to wine taste some of your wines." This is usually mind boggling for those of you who are accustomed to just showing up, but hey that's the way it is in Bordeaux and there is nothing anyone but the wineries can do about it.

• POINT N°2: You need a reservation for the wineries - you will have to visit the facilities and you might taste from 1 - 4 wines depending on the winery. Tasting fees can range from 0€ to 30€ per person depending on the winery. Tours are not always in English - sometimes French & English, sometimes only French.

Now that you understand a bit more about the system of touring in the Bordeaux vineyards, one thing I have noticed quite often is the mistake travelers make when choosing the wine region of Bordeaux they head for. The Bordeaux vineyard is composed of 8 different regions that all have their specificity - we call this 'Terroir' in French. Different soil and different climate means a different type of use of varietals and a different type of blend (we have to blend wines in France). If you are unaware of this when you prepare your tour you could well end up tasting Merlot driven wines when in fact you prefer Cabernet's, white wines when you prefer reds and so on. Here is a list that will help you choose your destination:
St Emilion - Red wines, Merlot orientated
Graves - Red and whites, Cabernet for the reds, Sauvignon & Semillon for the whites
Sauternes - Sweet white wines, Sauvignon & Semillon grapes
Medoc - Red wines only, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc orientated

• POINT N°3: Choose your destination wisely depending on the type of wines that you prefer.For those who are not into wines but are accompanying wine lovers head for St Emilion as the village is charming and those who like wine can also enjoy themselves.

To finish, the easiest is to book a half day or full day trip with one of the many tour companies that organize wine tours in the Bordeaux area. Of course we at Ophorus will be pleased to take you on one of our day trips and make all necessary reservations for you. However, more than just to sell you a Bordeaux wine tour my goal here was to inform all of you who are interested in Bordeaux wine tours as these are unique in their organisation and it is always better to know what to expect rather than arrive and be faced with an unusual situation.

Christophe.