The Côtes de Bordeaux appellation was created in 2009 to merge four existing appellations used in the Bordeaux region of France. These four appellations are The Premières Côtes de Blaye, Côtes de Castillon, Côtes de Francs and the red wines of the Cadillac region. The latter were previously under the appellation Premières Côtes de Bordeaux. The changes were a commercially motivated decision, intended to create unity between these important but lesser known appellations.
They were intended to simplify the Structure of the Côtes de Bordeaux appellation. However, the New banner of the four appellations is not entirely original or easily differentiated from the Old one. It can be said that it has added further complexity to the Bordeaux appellations. This is underlined by the fact that the four components of the appellations are geographically extensive.
Savagnin is a white grape variety originating from the Austrian Tyrol. It arrived in Franche Comté and quickly became the flagship variety of the Jura. Cousin of the gewurztraminer, it gives small white bunches. Its berries have a thick skin which resists well to grey rot and to diseases in general. Savagnin thrives on marl soils and is a very aromatic grape variety. It is used in the elaboration of yellow wine, the AOC Château-Châlon is the most representative. This grape variety also produces vin de paille which is a sweet wine for which the ripe grapes are dried on a bed of straw for at least 6 weeks before being pressed. The best known AOC straw wines are: Arbois, Côtes-du-Jura and Etoile. Savagnin is also used to make Macvin du Jura, a liqueur wine, and to make Crémants du Jura.White wines made from Savagnin have great aging potential. They have a powerful and complex aroma with notes of walnut, almonds, hazelnuts, flowers, honey and green apple.
white wines from the region of Côtes de Bordeaux go well with generally quite well with dishes of pork, vegetarian or poultry such as recipes of paupiettes with tomato sauce, quiche with leeks and fresh salmon from flo or home-made coq au vin.
On the nose in the region of Côtes de Bordeaux often reveals types of flavors of citrus fruit, mango or tropical fruit and sometimes also flavors of earth. In the mouth in the region of Côtes de Bordeaux is a powerful.
