LeDomduVin: Burgundy Wine Regions Map

Burgundy Wine Regions Map

by @ledomduvin 2022

Still preparing some slides for a "Bordeaux vs Burgundy" Wine Class, and, once again, as I could not find anything I wanted on the net, (either too detailed or not enough), I decided to create my own map. 

While creating my own map and drawings/icons for the slides, I realized that: 

- It is not as easy as it looks, and therefore takes time, and attention to details. 

- It is not so easy to compromise on the details, and decide what to put on it or not, when creating a map or an overview with icons and numbers, to make it easy to grasp and understand at first glance, yet, to also be detailed enough to provide you with the essentials. 

However, I tried and here is the result. Hope it might help and even be useful. 

Cheers! Santé! And drink some wines, it is good for you (responsibly of course), and you might save a producer. 

😁👍🍷🍷🍷

Big thoughts to all the producers fighting against a wave of late frost, these last  few days, with temperatures going way  below 0°C, in the vineyards, in France (and elsewhere in Europe), for the 5th consecutive year. 

Climate change is a real thing and this wave of late frost is now a recurring problem that might become the norm. 

A disaster damaging and reducing crops, putting some people out of business and pushing prices up due to small production and thus lack of availability and stocks for the last few years already. 

Until when the producers will be able to resist and survive? It has been a recurring question on everyone's lips in Burgundy and Bordeaux (and elsewhere in France and Europe) for the past 5 years already... 

Good luck to them all. And let's buy their wines to help them. 

Dom 

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LeDomduVin: Bordeaux Distances Map

Bordeaux Distances Map

by @ledomduvin 2022

Many wine buyers and wine critics will tell you, if you plan to have a busy schedule visiting Châteaux and tasting in the various appellations (during the "En Primeur" for example), you have to seriously take into account the distance and time, and plan accordingly if you don't want to be late to your visit or appointment.

Bordeaux may seem quite small and its wine regions quite close to each other, yet, a trip from Bordeaux center to Pauillac, which usually takes about 45 minutes, to drive the 45 kilometers separating them, may take more than 1 hour if you encounter traffic on the road.

More especially, when you know (or realize) that "La route des Châteaux" (i.e. the Châteaux sightseeing road), is basically the only road you can take, and, worst of all, that it is a single lane road (on both sides), where usually locals, Châteaux workers, professionals, tourists, trucks, and tractors meet to form a never-ending single line of vehicles stretching from beginning to end (meaning Bordeaux to Pauillac, even to Saint-Estèphe), and it takes forever.

That's why it is better to book your visits and appointments long in advance, to be able to group them within the same appellation (if possible), and start from north to south, with Lafite, Mouton, Pontet Canet, and Pedesclaux in the morning, then Lynch-Bages, Pichon Baron, Pichon Lalande, and Latour to finish the day. 😁👍🍷

You won't necessarily be able to do more than 4 Châteaux in the morning and 4 in the afternoon. I used to do it every year, in the 2000s, and I can tell you it is tight, especially if you have the visit + the tasting (some Châteaux have several labels + other chateau labels from the same owner). One Château per hour is usually the best plan.

Think about it next time you go to Bordeaux, there is always lots of traffic there, and do NOT plan Medoc in the morning, then Saint-Emilion/Pomerol in the afternoon, that's the worst planning ever.

Hoping my map will help you. 😁👍🍷

Cheers! Santé!

Dom

#ledomduvin #lesmapsadom #lesillustrationsadom #map #bordeaux #bordeauxmap #distance #time #roadtrip #chateauxvisits #vin #wine #vino #wein #wineknowledge

Unless stated otherwise, all right reserved ©LeDomduVin 2022 on all the contents above including, but not limited to, photos, pictures, maps, memes, posts, texts, writings, quotes, notes, tasting notes, descriptions, wine descriptions, definitions, recipes, drawings, illustrations, visuals, graphs, tables, and even music and video (when and where applicable).

LeDomduVin: Bordeaux Map of the soils

 

Bordeaux Map of the soils by ©LeDomduVin 2022

Bordeaux Map of the soils

by ©LeDomduVin 2022

Still working on that same PowerPoint presentation as yesterday, for a "Wine Class" about Bordeaux, and, this time, I was looking for a map of the soils of Bordeaux, online. And, to my surprise, there are no real maps of Bordeaux soils "Per Se". 

All the maps I could find were, (again), either too detailed or too colorful or too monochrome and too difficult to read, or, too simple and lacking essential or specific details I needed. So, once again, like yesterday, I decided to do a "Map of the soils of Bordeaux" myself.  

So, I drew a rough map of the Bordeaux wine regions and went online to search the internet for clues and practical info. Unfortunately, much has been written on the soils of Bordeaux, but rare are the maps that are truly showing the various soils or are approachable enough without being too technical.  

Fortunately, years ago, I made one of the best decisions of my life by buying a 1947 edition of "Le Vignoble Girondin", a very informative and essential book about the Gironde region and Bordeaux wines, written by Germain Lafforgue, an agricultural engineer and "Directeur Honoraire des Services Agricoles de la Gironde", (back then).   

If interest you can read my previous post introducing you to this book back in October 2017, here.  

This particular book includes 2 fantastically detailed maps: the first one is about Bordeaux wine regions, and the second one is about Bordeaux types of soils, which was exactly was I was looking for to complete my map and be able to use it for my presentation and share it with you on this blog.    

I tried to keep it as simple and readable as possible, yet, detailed enough to provide the reader with an informative experience easy to read and grab at first glance. 

So, what do you think? Not bad, isn't it? I'm pretty proud of it. Nicely done. 

Hope you will find it useful, or, at least, interesting. In the meantime, take good care of yourself and your loved ones. Peace.   

Cheers! Santé!

Thank you, 

Dom 

#ledomduvin #bordeaux #bordeauxmap #map #soils #soiltypes #mapofthesoils #lescreationsadom #lesmapsadom #lesillustrationsadom #mapwithappellations #bordeauxappellations #appellations #wine #vine #vino #wein #wineknowledge #wineeducation #wineclass #sommelier #winebuyer #sharingknowledge #sharingwineknowledge #sharing 

Unless stated otherwise, all right reserved ©LeDomduVin 2022 on all the contents above including, but not limited to, photos, pictures, maps, memes, posts, texts, writings, quotes, notes, tasting notes, descriptions, wine descriptions, definitions, recipes, drawings, illustrations, visuals, graphs, tables, and even music and video (when and where applicable).

 

Bordeaux Map by ©LeDomduVin 2022

LeDomduVin's Bordeaux Map

Working on a PowerPoint presentation for a "Wine Class" about Bordeaux, I was looking for a clear, yet, detailed enough, map of Bordeaux, online. And, there are thousands of Bordeaux Maps. However, all the maps I could find were either too detailed or too colorful or too monochrome and too difficult to read, or, too simple and lacking essential or specific details I needed. So, I decided to do one myself.  

I chose the clearest and more "color-friendly-for-the-eyes" map I could find, (original map courtesy of ©CIVB 2017), deleted everything on it, except the areas delimited by colors corresponding to the various appellations, repopulated the map with the main appellation's names, and added the main grape varieties. 

I tried to keep it simple and readable, yet, detailed enough to provide the reader with an informative experience easy to read and grab at first glance. What do you think? Not bad, isn't it? (Let me know in the comments below the post, I'm interested to have your opinion).

Cheers! Santé!

Thank you, 

Dom 

PS: I may add more details about Bordeaux to complement this post later on. In the meantime, take good care of yourself and your loved ones. Peace.   

#bordeaux #bordeauxmap #map #mapwithappellations #bordeauxappellations #appellations #wine #vine #vino #wein #wineknowledge #wineeducation #wineclass #sommelier #winebuyer #sharingknowledge #sharingwineknowledge #sharing 

Unless stated otherwise, all right reserved ©LeDomduVin 2022 on all the contents above including, but not limited to, photos, pictures, maps, memes, posts, texts, writings, quotes, notes, tasting notes, descriptions, wine descriptions, definitions, recipes, drawings, illustrations, visuals, graphs, tables, and even music and video (when and where applicable).

LeDomduVin: "Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947

I just received this amazing book I bought online today, titled "Le Vignoble Girondin" by Germain Lafforgue. It's a 1st edition from 1947, numbered 295 out of the 910 copies published. I must say, it's in superb condition for a 1st edition from 1947.

I discovered this book while conducting some research online for my post titled "Bordeaux is not only two banks and not all Bordeaux wines taste the same...."  (read it here), where I mentioned the invaluable "Geologic Map of the Gironde Soils" contained in that book.

I cannot express or hide my joy and pleasure to possess such a treasure, especially for someone passionate about vineyard soils, subsoils, topography, and geology like me.

"Juste pour vous mettre le vin à la bouche" (the correct French expression is "vous mettre l'eau à la bouche, " meaning "to make your mouth water"), here are a few pictures essentially teasing you to discover this book and all the valuable information it contains. 

It is a magnificent book that every Bordeaux lover should have on their wine library shelf, especially for the foldable Geologic Map included with it, which is a true gem.  

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Introduction

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Table des Matières

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Table des Illustrations and Héliogravures

There is even the original letter from the editor.... amazing

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Original Editor's Letter

And of course, the treasure inside, the cherry on the cake, is the unfoldable map divided into two parts: the Gironde Vineyards Map and the Gironde Soils Geologic Map. Love it!

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Vineyards Map of the Gironde Region

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Geologic Map of the Gironde Region

It is a great book filled with invaluable facts and data known during the years 1946-1947 about the wines, vineyards, soils, subsoils, geology, and topography of the Gironde Region (Bordeaux)- information that remains relevant to this day for the most part. That's what makes this book invaluable, in my opinion. I may be wrong, but I find that reading the insights of the old and wise is always a source of enlightenment. The old and wise were not always right, but if that's the case, why do we continually turn to ancient methods and traditions (i.e., Organic and Biodynamic)?

A big thank you to Denis, the person who sold it to me, the bookseller of a library called "La Belle Page," located in Prades-Le-Lez (34730), a village situated north of Montpellier (Hérault), in Languedoc-Roussillon, France. He packed the book the old way, in newspaper, which I appreciated very much as it reminds me of my grandfather and how he used to pack all sorts of things back when I was a kid growing up surrounded by vineyards in the Côtes de Bourg.

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Packed like the old days with newspaper

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Packed like the old days with newspaper

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Packed like the old days with newspaper

"Le Vignoble Girondin" de Germain Lafforgue 1947 - ©LeDomduVin 2017
Just unpacked - Nearly pristine condition

Voilà! I hope you like it as much as I do. You know what's left for you to do if you are curious enough: go buy the book. It would definitely be worth it if you could find it.

Santé,

LeDomduVin a.k.a Dominique Noël 

@ledomduvin, #ledomduvin, #wine, #vin, #vino, #wein, #geologic, #geologicmap, #bordeaux, #bordeauxmap, #map, #geology, #topography, #germainlafforgue, #bordeauxvineyards, #soil, #soils, #vineyards, #levignoblegirondin

Unless stated otherwise, all rights reserved ©LeDomduVin 2017, on all the contents above including, but not limited to, photos, pictures, drawings, illustrations, collages, visuals, maps, memes, posts, texts, writings, quotes, notes, tasting notes, descriptions, wine descriptions, definitions, recipes, graphs, tables, and even music and video (when and where applicable).