There are more new and exciting wine developments in the south of France than in the rest of the country put together. With the exception of the Rhône valley (covered in a separate piece - see Rhône), there are few famous names with century-old reputations behind them, so southern French wines are very good value.
20 years ago, the south of France was a lake of unwanted plonk. There were a few bright spots, in Provence particularly, where tourism demand was so strong it propped up otherwise outdated wines, but consumption by locals was weakening and wine-importing countries didn't want to know. Now, from vin de pays level upwards, there are plenty of good things to be found from Provence, through the vast sweep of the Languedoc-Roussillon, right over to the south-western areas of Gaillac, Cahors, Madiran and (close to Bordeaux) Bergerac, Buzet and the Côtes de Duras.
Improvement in winemaking, often with the help of outside consultants, has been the key. And these consultants (and investors) have come from areas within France as well as from countries such as Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Scruffy old co-ops have modernised or died. Growers have stopped tearing up old vineyards, because now they can earn good money for their grapes.
Corbières, Minervois, Côtes du Roussillon, Fitou, St Chinian, Coteaux du Languedoc are all rediscovering their traditional values. Bandol, home of the dark, herby Mourvèdre grape in Provence is flourishing. The Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence is creating new red blends from traditional southern grapes and others such as Cabernet Sauvignon.
The brightest spot in whites continues to be the luscious, sweet, fortified Muscats from regions such as Rivesaltes, Frontignan and St-Jean-de-Minervois. There is renewed interest in the sweet fortified reds made principally from Grenache in Banyuls and Maury.
And the vin de pays wines, free of the regulations that surround AOC wines, can be the most creative of the lot. Sauvignons, Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs and Cabernets crowd onto shelves, barrel-fermented or barrel-aged, unoaked and steely, or soft and seductive.
There's still some of the old plonk to be found. Not everything in the garden is lovely, but the weeds are fewer and further between.
