Bergerac

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Accessory grape varieties

Terroir

• Upstream from Bergerac, the outcropping geological formations consist of marine Cretaceous limestones deposited during the Mesozoic era.
• Between Bergerac and Le Fleix, the soils rest on the Périgord sands and clay-gravels derived from the erosion of granitic arenas of the Massif Central.
• From the commune of Le Fleix to the Gironde, the Tertiary argillaceous-limestone substratum marks the limit of the Stampian sea's extent, where asteria limestone was deposited.
• The most characteristic soils are rendzinas and calcareous brown soils, leached boulbène soils over the Périgord sands, clays and gravels and over the Tertiary molasses, as well as the argillaceous-gravelly alluvial soils of the Dordogne terraces.
• The entire geographical zone extends across a territory of 90 communes, between the valley and the hillsides of south-western Périgord.
• The tempered oceanic climate is less rainy and slightly cooler than on the Atlantic seaboard, with higher summer temperatures and colder winters due to the distance from the coast.
• The Dordogne valley, opening like a funnel towards the ocean to the west, allows Atlantic mildness to penetrate nearly 100 kilometres inland.

• In 1254, Henry III authorised wines from Bergerac shipped from Libourne or Bordeaux to be exported in any season to Northern Europe without hindrance from the Bordelais.
• The revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 caused the exile of the Huguenots to Holland, Germany and Switzerland, fostering a flourishing trade in white wines and clarets with Northern Europe.
• The vineyard upstream from Bergerac disappeared on account of a series of rapids known as the "Pas de la Gratusse", which made navigation by flat-bottomed barges extremely difficult.
• The grape variety composition has evolved little, with a predominance of Merlot and Sémillon, while the climatic conditions at ripening have allowed a significant proportion of Cabernet franc and Muscadelle to be retained.

• The white wines generally develop floral and fruity aromas with a certain acidity on the palate, where the presence of the Sauvignon variety can sometimes be sensed.
• The red wines are often marked by fruit aromas with a sometimes rich tannic structure, combining the suppleness of Merlot with the firmness of the Cabernets' tannins, and benefit from ageing to allow the tannins to integrate.
• The rosé wines, based predominantly on Cabernet franc and Cabernet-Sauvignon, often display a deep colour ranging from the "gris" style to the "clairet" style, and are either dry or off-dry, always with a fresh quality.

• The good water balance of the soils, combined with the tempered oceanic climate, ensures good phenolic ripeness in the grapes, which is expressed in particular in the tannic structure of the red wines.
• The difficulties of river navigation explain the current distribution of the vineyard downstream from Bergerac, a commercial wine-growing area whose medieval development was linked to the presence of a river port.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF)
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — IVBD — Vins de Bergerac & Duras