South West France (wine region) South West France (wine region) South West France, or in French "Sud-Ouest", is a wine region in France covering several wine-producing areas situated respectively inland from, and south of, the wine region of Bordeaux. These areas, which have a total of 16,000 hectares (40,000 acres) of vineyards, consist of several discontinuous wine "islands" throughout the Aquitaine region (where Bordeaux region itself is situated), and more or less to the west of the Midi-Pyrénées region. Thus, South West France covers both the upstream areas around the rivers Dordogne and Garonne (which also flow through Bordeaux where they combine to form the
Mosel (wine region) is centered on the city of Trier. The Middle Mosel or "Mittelmosel" is the main wine growing region and includes the villages of Bernkastel and Piesport. The Middle Mosel begins at the village of Zell and extends south to just north of the village of Schweich. The slate-based soil here is said to have one of the most recognizable "terroir" with the wines, especially Riesling, displaying slatey mineral notes. The Lower Mosel includes the region south of the city of Koblenz to the village of Alf near Zell. It is the most northern wine region of the Mosel and includes