Bordeaux is both a city sitting on the juncture of the Garonne River and the Gironde Estuary and the name of perhaps the most famous wine region in the World. But beyond Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and having enough money to pop bottles of Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Petrus, what do you really know about this regions wines. Well in 2 minutes more or less, let me illuminate you.

This is the inspiration home to arguably the most popular grape in the World - Cabernet Sauvignon but also to the sometimes maligned Merlot and Cabernet Franc. What is not so well known is that it is the home to some of the greatest dry versions of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon to be had. Though I will not dwell on it in this short treatment, it is also the home of some of the greatest dessert wines in existence - those of Sauternes-Barsac, the Chateaux of which also produce some of the finest dry whites of Bordeaux, either as AOC Graves or Bordeaux, as law permits them.

Bordeaux is a complex wine region gathering in over 60 different AOC's (Appellations of Control or Origin) with the principal ones residing along the Left or Right Bank of the Gironde Estuary but also straddling the Garonne and Dordogne Rivers that empty into the Gironde. These AOC's are classified as Left Bank or Right Bank and noted for the dominance of either Cabernet Sauvignon (Left Bank) or Merlot/Cabernet Franc (Right Bank) with not much thought given to white varieties, that pretty much reside on the Left Bank and in the middle isle like area known as the Entre Deux Mers ("between two seas"allowing for poetic license).

Bordeaux sits very near the Atlantic Ocean and as a result, has a cool maritime climate that is conducive to the cultivation of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle. To a lesser extent it can also produce quality Peitit Verdot, Malbec and Carmenere, if the climatic conditions and vineyard siting is favorable. Bordeaux reds and whites tend to be nearly all blends of the red or white varieties respectively. Some dry Rose wines and sparkling Cremant are also produced in the region. Semi-sweet whites or Moelleux wines are produced in the region and late harvested sweet wines often affected by botrytis cinerea or noble mold is also a famous product of the region. 

Dry reds are often referred to as either "left bank" or "right bank" depending on which side of the Dordogne that they are located upon. Left Bank wines include the more Cabernet Sauvignon dominant wines of the Haut Medoc, home to St. Estephe, Pauillac, St. Julien and Margaux. Most of the famous Chateaux wines of Bordeaux are on the left bank and associated with the famous 1855 classification. Even the now popular "Cru Bourgeois" are located in either the Haut Medoc or larger Medoc AOC. The Right Bank is home to much smaller Chateaux that were excluded from the 1855 classification and the Cru Bourgeois. These wines sit upon cooler soils with higher clay and limestone rather than gravels and sand and are more conducive to Merlot and Cabernet Franc because Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Carmenere all do better in warmer soils. 

Stylistically, the Right Bank wines based more heavily on Merlot will drink better at a younger age than those of the Left Bank that are based more heavily on Cabernet Sauvignon. Also, clay soils tend to produce wines that are fuller, fleshier but less structured. The Medoc AOC is characterized by higher clay soils and do tend to have much more Merlot in the blend for a Left Bank wine but this combination is far more prevalent on the Right Bank. The famed appellations of control on the Right Bank are St. Emilion and Pomerol but look for Lalande de Pomerol and the St. Emilion satellite AOC's for values like Montagne, St Georges, Lussac and Puisseguin. 

Other AOC for value priced wines include the Cotes de Bordeaux that include Castillon, Blaye and Franc. The Cote de Bourg, Bourg, Fronsac and Canon Fronsac are four other AOC located on the Right Bank that provide some excellent values in red wines.

The Entre Deux Mers and Haut Benauges offer affordable early drinking reds and whites, much bottled as simple Bordeaux AOC. 

If you are a fan of sweet dessert wines, you may want to look for offerings from Cerons, Ste. Croix do Monts and Loupiac that offer affordable alternatives to the more pricy wines of Sauternes-Barsac. 

I didn't call out any Chateaux in this short read because there are about 10K of them and too many AOC's to even name one from each, which would be a pretty limited and useless list. I'll do a subsequent short read that focuses just on the top buys in the region.