Delicious Wines from Northern France

France is known internationally for its wine. The country has continuously produced some of the best wine in the world and attracts millions of people each year because of the wine. While the south of France gets most of the credit for being a great wine area, northern France also has some areas where the vineyards produce delicious wine. It’s harder to grow and maintain these vineyards in the north because of the weather, but, with the right amount of time and patience, the wine prevails.

The Champagne region of France is home to the most northern vineyards. Unlike wine, Champagne is blended to produce either non-vintage or vintage. The distinct taste of the champagne produced from this region is due to the chalky soil and continental growing conditions. The most highly ranked blends are Krug, Mumm and Bollinger.

A little further down and toward the west is the Loire Valley. This area produces a large amount of wines, but there are a few ranked among the best French wines. Some of the best are Muscadet and Gros Plant from Nantes, France. In addition, the region is known for producing grey wine, a very pale rosé made from black grapes. They are the second-largest producer of sparkling wines after Champagne.

On the other side of France, Alsace produces different wine than the rest of France. Its wine is steeped in the German culture and therefore the wines are more dry or fruity white wines. The most popular are Riesling and Pinot.