Definition: bourgueil

Loire Valley region in Touraine. AOC production area located west of Tours, on the right bank of the Loire, bordering the Maine-et-Loire department, more precisely within the municipalities of Benais, Bourgueil, Chouzé-sur-Loire, Ingrandes-de-Touraine, La Chapelle-sur-Loire, Restigné, Saint Nicolas-de-Bourgueil and Saint-Patrice in the Indre-et-Loire department. Classified as an AOC in 1937. Production area of nearly 1,300 hectares. Black grape varieties: Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Mainly vinified as rosé and red, with very little white from the Chenin grape variety. The rosé can be kept for 1 to 2 years; the red for a very long time, up to 20 years. Ideal serving temperature for the rosé is between 8 and 10°C; between 15 and 16°C for the red. Rosé wines are best enjoyed with cold meats or grilled meats; red wines with turkey stuffed with chestnuts or pork with prunes, teal braised in port, duck terrine, pork fillet in milk, or veal grenadines with oranges.