Côtes du Marmandais is a satellite district of the Bordeaux wine region in Southwest France. It owes its name to the town of Marmande at its centre, which Lies on the North bank of the Garonne. The appellation AOC Côtes du Marmandais covers red, white and rosé wines produced from grapes grown in defined areas of the parishes around Marmande. The Garonne River divides the Marmande district into two Parts, the north and the south, which are eastern extensions of the Entre-deux-Mers and Graves regions respectively.
The northern part has the clay-limestone soils of Entre-Deux-Mers, in which Merlot grows well, while the gravels provide excellent growing conditions for Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The alluvial silts of the plateaus are also suitable for wine growing. The quality of the wines produced in the Côtes du Marmandais has steadily improved over the last few decades, with the prestige of Bordeaux having reached its current peak and the region having obtained its own appellation contrôlée in 1990. Previously, its wines were labelled with the less prestigious VDQS designation.
Malbec, a high-yielding red grape variety, produces tannic and colourful wines. It is produced in different wine-growing regions and changes its name according to the grape variety. Called Auxerrois in Cahors, Malbec in Bordeaux, it is also known as Côt. 6,000 hectares of the Malbec grape are grown in France (in decline since the 1950s). Malbec is also very successful in Argentina. The country has become the world's leading producer of Malbec and offers wines with great potential.
red wines from the region of Côtes du Marmandais go well with generally quite well with dishes of beef, lamb or poultry such as recipes of beef tongue with vegetables, merguez - courgettes gratin (leftover barbecue) or turkey osso buco.
