France

French started producing wine from 6 B.C. Nowadays, France has a total cover of more than 800,000 hectares under vine, producing 50-60 million hectoliters wine annually. It has second largest viticulture area in the world and competes with Italy for the largest total wine production volume. In the world of wine, French wines are regarded as the best in the world. Many new world competitors started their wine industries with copying French wine styles, viticulture philosophies and winemaking technologies etc. It is also the origin of important international grape varieties such as: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon etc. The winemaking practice and key wine regions: Champagne, Loire, Alsace, Burgundy, Rhone and Bordeaux are widely well-known.

French produce sparkling, white, rose, red, dessert and fortified wines. The style varied from the crisp, lean Sparkling from the North to the rich, ripe, full bodied reds from the South.