French wine primarily a white-wine region in the Alps close to Switzerland, where many grapes unique to this region are cultivated. South West France or "Sud-Ouest", a somewhat heterogeneous collection of wine areas inland or south of Bordeaux. Some areas produce primarily red wines in a style reminiscent of red Bordeaux, while other produce dry or sweet white wines. Areas within "Sud-Ouest" include among other: There are also several smaller production areas situated outside these major regions. Many of those are VDQS wines, and some, particularly those in more northern locations, are remnants of production areas that were once larger. France has
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