Premières Côtes de Bordeaux

The Premières Côtes de Bordeaux region stretches from the south-east to the north-west of Bordeaux over some sixty kilometers, from the commune of Saint-Maixant to that of Bassens, all along the Garonne river, whose meanders it follows.

It is a region with an often uneven relief, where it is pleasant to walk because the clear views are frequent. In addition, there are many small castles, monuments or historical sites, such as the fortified towns of Rions and Cadillac. Many famous people from the world of Arts and Literature were born, lived or stayed here. Among them, Rosa Bonheur, famous painter of animals and rustic scenes, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Anatole France, François Mauriac, André Berry, Pierre Larquais.

It is especially on the slopes and the tops of the hillsides which border the river that an important vineyard spreads out, distributed on thirty-seven communes whose church towers seem to mark the limits of this territory.

Until recently, the northern part of this region was known for its production of red wines while the southern part, benefiting from a microclimate favorable to the production of sweet wines, was known for its white wines. Both wines have acquired a certain notoriety because of their qualities due to a privileged terroir, but also because of the proximity of the city of Bordeaux, and the protectionism that it granted them since the Middle Ages until the 18th century.

During the 19th century, these wines were sought after for their excellent ability to travel without deteriorating. After the frosts of 1956 and until about 1970, the AOC Premières Côtes de Bordeaux fell somewhat into oblivion. It took all the will and firmness of a handful of men and women to demonstrate to their fellow winegrowers that the specific appellation to which they were entitled enhanced their terroir and served their interests. Today, the AOC Premières Côtes de Bordeaux is once again on the rise.

As in other regions producing white and red wines, winegrowers tend to replace white vines with red vines.

In this region, due to urbanization, some vineyards have been cut down by a significant part of their surface (communes of Bassens, Carbon Blanc), or even disappeared completely, to make way for numerous housing estates, industrial zones or bypasses (communes of Cenon, Floirac, Lormont). However, following the revision of the vineyard register, the area under production has been maintained and even increased as in the whole of Bordeaux.