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.
Cabernet Franc is one of the oldest red grape varieties in Bordeaux. The Libourne region is its terroir where it develops best. The terroirs of Saint-Emilion and Fronsac allow it to mature and develop its best range of aromas. It is also the majority in many blends. The very famous Château Cheval Blanc, for example, uses 60% Cabernet Franc. The wines produced with Cabernet Franc are medium in colour with fine tannins and subtle aromas of small red fruits and spices. When blended with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, it brings complexity and a bouquet of aromas to the wine. It produces fruity wines that can be drunk quite quickly, but whose great vintages can be kept for a long time. It is an earlier grape variety than Cabernet Sauvignon, which means that it is planted as far north as the Loire Valley. In Anjou, it is also used to make sweet rosé wines. Cabernet Franc is now used in some twenty countries in Europe and throughout the world.
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 brazilian feijoada, lamb mouse with figs and grapes or turkey osso bucco.
