California wine Department of Viticulture and Enology. The seven leading grape varieties are: Other important red wine grapes include Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Carignan, Grenache, Malbec, Mourvèdre, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Sangiovese, and Tannat. Important white wine varietals include Chenin blanc, French Colombard, Gewürztraminer, Marsanne, Muscat Canelli, Pinot blanc, Pinot gris, Riesling, Roussane, Sémillon, Trousseau gris, and Viognier. Up until the late 1980s, the Californian wine industry was dominated by the Bordeaux varietals and Chardonnay. Sales began to drop as wine drinkers grew bored with the familiarity of these wines. Groups of winemakers like Rhône Rangers and a new wave of Italian winemakers
Petite Champagne Petite Champagne Petite Champagne is a geographic zone of Cognac production of approximately 66,000 hectares, of which about 15,000 are dedicated to wines destined for cognac. It is situated in the départements of Charente and Charente-Maritime. The principal towns of the region are Barbezieux (Charente), Archiac and Jonzac (Charente-Maritime). In order of importance among the cognac "crus" (regions), Petite Champagne is second in place after Grande Champagne. While having similar characteristics, the cognacs of Petite Champagne have always been considered of a lesser quality than those of Grande Champagne. Geologically, this region is composed of a thinner layer of Calcareous