The famous French city of Bordeaux is located on the coast of South-West France, in the department of Gironde, and the Region of Aquitaine. In Bordeaux you will encounter the Bordelais (men of the city) and the Bordelaise (their lady counterparts). The city itself is traversed by the large and majestic River Garonne as it makes its way into the sea.
For those interested in history, you might be interested to learn that from the 12th century and the following three hundred years, the city of Bordeaux actually belonged to the English, following a royal marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine, formerly wife of the King of France. From then on, due to trade across the channel, Bordeaux was to become ever more prosperous. Another peak in prosperity came in the seventeenth century with the expansion of the port and the opening up of international trade routes.
Being located on a line dividing northern and southern France, climatically Bordeaux is a bit of a crossover point. The city also exudes a sort of composure or elegance, arising from its previous English domination. Bordeaux is clearly a professional town with regular trade around the world, particularly the ports of Holland. The architecture itself highlights this with its regular classical style and numerous castles made of a typical white stone.
But the heart of Bordeaux also beats to a Latin rhythm, undoubtedly due to its closeness to Spain. This is the other character of the city, one much more frivolous and given over to the fiesta!
Bordeaux's climate is of the Oceanic type, showing little marked difference between summer and winter. Winters are very mild and summers are hot. But you will also encounter rain throughout most of the year. Recently the city underwent a period of extreme dryness during the years 2002-2005.
The greater part of Bordeaux is situated on the left bank of the River Garonne. This comprises chiefly wide and marsh plains. There are some hilly areas, but in the main they are low. Nevertheless, they are ideal for vine growing, and here we encounter the famous Grave and Medoc varieties of wine.
However the right bank of the river is very different, being almost completely made of chalk. It's on this bank that the world famous vineyards are located... those such as Saint Emilion, Pomerol and Fronsac - some of the most expensive wines in the world.
Undoubtedly Bordeaux can be considered to be the world capital of fine wine. And it is here that a wine grower might be responsible for the production of not just one, but maybe several, world renowned wines. Such wines go under the title of "Vins de Bordeaux" or simply "Bordeaux". Interestingly, in the Bordeaux wine growing region, there are in the region of around 14000 wine producers, some very large, many very small. However altogether, these wine growers, or "viticulteurs", as they are known in France, produce about 700 million bottles of wine each year. The wines of Bordeaux are white and red. Indeed the name of the color known as Bordeaux originates from the distinctive color of the famous Bordeaux red wine.
And as for the local Bordeaux cuisine? Indeed Bordeaux cuisine, as the cuisine of the whole of the Gironde department, is justly celebrated throughout the country as one of the finrest local French cuisines. You won't have to go far without savouring the delights of well-known regional dishes such as the local wood pigeon speciality, palombe, or dishes made from the equally famous cepe mushroom. Then of course there are the famous shallot sauces. All of this, obviously, needing to be accompanied by a fine Bordeaux wine!
On the sweeter side of things, how about the well-known little "canele" cakes, a local speciality made from light tender pastry, a lacing of vanilla and rum, topped off with a thick tasty caramelised crust. Indeed this Bordeaux delicacy has its origins with a group of 16th century nuns who made them regularly to give to the poorest people of the town. However, these are sme of the most exotic delicacies, even more so when accompanied by a glass of famous Bordeaux white!
Other culinary delights to discover in Bordeaux are the strange lamproie fish (or lamprey), which is exceedingly unusual, possessing neither scales, backbone or jaws... in fact more like a large eel, although nevertheless quite delicious. Then of course there's "sauce d'escargots" (snail sauce), known locally as the "truffe de Bordeaux" (or Bordeaux truffle). Inteestingly enough this incorporates grapes, chocolate and alcohol. Then of course there is the famous Tome Aquitaine (a goats cheese plus Sauterne !) and last but not least the unforgettable local "foie gras", renowned throught the region.
So I hope you spend a wonderful and delicious time in and around Bordeaux, meeting the many colourful Bordelais characters!
For further information on France, the French lifestyle and Rennes in French, please visit Rencontres Rennes at Antonio Bonito's QuePourToi.com rencontres coquines web site. You can get a unique content version of this article.
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