Wine

Regions

Old World

France

Other French Regions

PROVENCE & CORSICA

Provence and Corsica

Provence is famous for its exotic-shaped bottles of rose wine; it is, however, the lesser-known reds of Provence that should excite the knowledgeable wine drinker. Modern technology now used in Corsica has turned its wines into fruity country wines that are a delight to drink. For most people, Provence evokes beaches at St.-Tropez or the rich bouillabaisse laden aromas of back-street Marseilles, but there are other experiences to be had in this sun-blessed corner of southern France. For while the wines of Provence may not have the classic status of Burgundy or Bordeaux, they have an abundance of spice laden flavors that show more than a bit of class.

In Corsica, the advent of France's vin de pays system meant that one-third of its vineyards were uprooted and put to better use. If the vin de pays system was intended to encourage the production of superior quality wines from the bottom of the market upwards, then here at least it has been successful, for this island is no longer the generous contributor to Europe's "wine-lake" it used to be.

PROVENCE'S ROSE WINES

Fancy flasks of Provence pinks used to dominate this wine region, but lost their ground when consumers became sufficiently sophisticated to realize how bad they were. Although few realized that there was any significance in the fansy shapes, they were in fact designed in the 1930s for a specific purpose-to differentiate between negociant and single domaine wines. The fat-bottom bottle tapering upwards to form a slim and slightly distorted triangle was to be used only by negociants, while the curvier bottle could only he used by growers. It was, however, a concept that the consumer was unaware of and because, unlike Bordeaux and Burgundy Provencal producers use other types of bottle, a bizarre- range of shapes, sizes and gaudy colors evolved.

Although sales of rose have dropped in recent years, they still represent 60 per cent of all Provencal wines produced, and it is fair to say that the quality has soared. Without resorting to such drastic measures as actually acidifying the wines, modern vinification techniques cannot entirely remove the softness verging on flabbiness that is their sunny southern heritage and most growers who are true to their terroir would not wish to do so. All that can be done is to produce considerably more aromatic and fragrant wines that remain expressive of their Provencal origins.