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Appellation Sauternes Contrôlée

What does Sauternes mean on a wine bottle label?

Sauternes is, on the one hand, a municipality near Bordeaux in the south-west of France and has around 800 inhabitants. On the other hand, Sauternes is also an appellation on the left bank of the Garonne River. You can find this appellation on the wine label and it has nothing to do with the municipality of Sauternes.

By the way: The Sauternes appellation includes the municipalities of Bommes, Fargues, Preignac and Sauternes.

Read also: What is an appellation?

The Bordeaux wine-growing region is divided into the left bank and right bank of the Gironde. Gironde is a river that flows into the Atlantic, but also a department in the same area. Bordeaux is also a city and the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.

Let's look again at the Gironde river at its mouth in the Atlantic. There the river divides an area that is world famous for wine growing in Bordeaux. The Gironde river then branches off into the Garonne and Dordogne. Sauternes lies on the left bank of the Garonne, as do the appellations Graves and Pessac-Léognan located above it.

Wine is grown in the Sauternes wine-growing region. Consequently, the wineries that have their vineyards in this area belong to the Sauternes appellation. The designation "Appellation Sauternes Contrôlée" is then listed on the label of a wine bottle.

AOC Sauternes: This is an alternative spelling. AOC stands for Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée and means controlled designation of origin.

Following the Bordeaux classification of Médoc wineries in 1855, wineries from the Sauternes appellation also belong to this classification.

These well-known Bordeaux wineries are part of the Sauternes Contrôlée appellation:

1er Grand Cru Classé Supérieur

  • Château d'Yquem

1er Grand Cru Classé

  • Château Clos Haut-Peyraguey
  • Château Guiraud
  • Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey
  • Château la Tour Blanche
  • Château Rabaud-Promis
  • Château de Rayne-Vigneau
  • Château Rieussec
  • Château Sigalas-Rabaud
  • Château Suduiraut

2ème Grand Cru Classé

  • Château d'Arche
  • Château Filhot
  • Château Lamothe
  • Château Lamothe-Guignard
  • Château de Malle
  • Château Romer
  • Château Romer du Hayot

Now collect wine from Sauternes!