Bordeaux, with its many chateaux and the renowned 1855 Classification, is a leading destination for wine lovers, as well as the bedrock of the fine wine market and a benchmark for winemakers around the world. Found in the southwest of France, the region needs little introduction as one of the world's most famous, prestigious and prolific wine regions. The majority of Bordeaux wines (nearly 90 percent of production volume) are the dry, medium- and full-bodied red Bordeaux Blends that established its reputation. The official Bordeaux viticultural region stretches for 130 kilometers (80 miles) inland from the Atlantic coast. 111,000 hectares (274,000 acres) of vineyards were recorded in 2018, a figure which had remained largely consistent over the previous decade. Bordeaux is often carved along its rivers, with the left bank on the Atlantic Ocean side of the rivers Gironde and Garonnne, and the right bank to the right and north of the Dordogne river, which also feeds into the Gironde. The area in between the rivers is known as Entre Deux Mers – literally, ‘between two seas’ in French. There are 57 appellations across Bordeaux, making it the biggest producer of appellation wines in France.
