Land and Wine: The French Terroir
Apr 2014 · University of Chicago Press
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About this ebook
This in-depth tour of the French winemaking regions illustrates how the soil, underlying bedrock, and microclimate shape the personality of a wine.
France has long been the world’s greatest wine-producing country. Its various regions each offer unique tasting experiences, from the spice of Bordeaux to the berry notes of the Loire Valley. In Land and Wine, geologist Charles Frankel guides readers through these and ten other regions, including Alsace, Burgundy, Champagne, Provence, and the Rhône valley, to explore the full meaning of terroir.
Frankel describes how Cabernet Franc takes on a completely different character depending on whether it is grown on gravel or limestone; how Sauvignon yields three different products in the hills of Sancerre; how Pinot Noir will give radically different wines on a single hill in Burgundy as the vines progress upslope; and how the soil of each château in Bordeaux has a say in the blend ratios of Merlot and Cabernet-Sauvignon.
Land and Wine provides a detailed understanding of the variety of French wine as well as a look at the geological history of France, complete with volcanic eruptions, dinosaurs, and a menagerie of fossils flavoring the vineyards. Frankel also blends in anecdotes about winemakers and historic wine enthusiasts while offering travel tips and itineraries for visiting the wineries today.
France has long been the world’s greatest wine-producing country. Its various regions each offer unique tasting experiences, from the spice of Bordeaux to the berry notes of the Loire Valley. In Land and Wine, geologist Charles Frankel guides readers through these and ten other regions, including Alsace, Burgundy, Champagne, Provence, and the Rhône valley, to explore the full meaning of terroir.
Frankel describes how Cabernet Franc takes on a completely different character depending on whether it is grown on gravel or limestone; how Sauvignon yields three different products in the hills of Sancerre; how Pinot Noir will give radically different wines on a single hill in Burgundy as the vines progress upslope; and how the soil of each château in Bordeaux has a say in the blend ratios of Merlot and Cabernet-Sauvignon.
Land and Wine provides a detailed understanding of the variety of French wine as well as a look at the geological history of France, complete with volcanic eruptions, dinosaurs, and a menagerie of fossils flavoring the vineyards. Frankel also blends in anecdotes about winemakers and historic wine enthusiasts while offering travel tips and itineraries for visiting the wineries today.
Ratings and reviews
5.0
1 review
Dr C. Mansfield
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May 3, 2015
I am using Frankel's Land and Wine as one of my key texts in my five year research project on Tourism Knowledge and the Loire. It is proving extremely useful, both as a guide book to understand the Loire Valley and as an accessible guide to the geology of the regions the river passes through. I would be interested in what other readers think.
About the author
Born in Paris, Charles Frankel is a science writer and lecturer specializing in geology and planetary exploration. His books include The End of the Dinosaurs: Chicxulub Crater and Mass Extinctions and Worlds on Fire.
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