South West France (wine region) the grapes to be harvested earlier and the wines to be of a stronger alcohol level. Many Bordeaux wine merchants saw the wines of the "High Country" as a threat to their economic interest and during the 13th & 14th century a set of codes, known as the "police des vins", were established which regulated the use of the port of Bordeaux for wine trading. The "police des vins" stated that no wine could be traded out of Bordeaux until the majority of Bordelais wine had already been sold. This had a devastating effect on the wine industry of the
Bordeaux wine regions Bordeaux's production uses these generic appellations. Red wine produced under the Bordeaux AOC is made mostly from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with the addition of Cabernet Franc and small amounts of Petit Verdot, Malbec and Carmenère. This appellation covers around 42,600 hectares of vines and produces around 223 million litres of wine (which is nearly a third of the total wine production of Bordeaux). White wine produced under the Bordeaux Sec AOC is made mostly from Sauvignon blanc and Sémillon, with the addition of some Muscadelle, Colombard, Mauzac, Merlot blanc, Ondenc and Ugni blanc. It must contain no more than