The left side of Bordeaux, located on the grounds of Graves, is the most important of the two sides. It is classified as followed:
- Médoc: combining the appellations of Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac, Saint Julien, Listrac, Moulis and Margaux. The best wines of the Médoc were classified in 1855.
- The Graves’s region, with the appellation of Pessac-Leognan, its classification was made in 1959.
- The Sauternes’s area, with the appellations of Sauternes, Barsac and Cérons, also classified in 1855.
Except for the wines of Bordeaux located on the left side and for the wines of Saint-Emilion, there is no official ranking for the wines of Bordeaux, so the wines are ordered as followed:
- The “Crus Bourgeois” (at least 7 hectares of vineyards and a wine’s control)
- The “Grands Crus Bourgeois” (Crus Bourgeois with aging in oak barrels)
- The “Grands Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels” (Grands Crus Bourgeois, bottled at the château and the wine comes from a vineyard located on the same ground as the crus.)
- The designations: Haut-Médoc, Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Margaux, Graves Rouge, Graves Blanc, Sauternes, Barsac and Saint-Emilion.
The wines of Bordeaux perfectly get with the typical cooking of Bordeaux: Ceps of Bordeaux, oysters, foie gras, lamb from Pauillac and caviar from the Gironde.
Wines from the appellations of St. Julien and Margaux are perfect with delicate meals, those of Saint-Estèphe and Pauillac with robust and virile dishes.
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