<p><strong>Sauternes</strong> is home to arguably the most prestigious and long-lived sweet wines in the world. Located 65 km south of the city of Bordeaux at the southern tip of the Graves, the appellation has 2100 ha of vineyards planted on flat, alluvial gravels overlying thick layers of limestone. Although viewed as one appellation, Sauternes actually consists of five communes; Barsac, Bommes, Fargues, Preignanc, and Sauternes with Barsac also a designated appellation in its own right. What makes Sauternes unique is its special mesoclimate caused by the confluence of the Ciron and the Garonne rivers.</p>

<p><strong>St.-&Eacute;milion</strong> is the star of Bordeaux&rsquo;s Right Bank, north of the Dordogne River. The rich red wines produced in St.-&Eacute;milion, based on Merlot and Cabernet Franc, are less tannic and generally more fruit-driven in flavour than the Cabernet-based wines of Left Bank. Merlot thrives on the plateaus high above the Dordogne, where the soil is filled with sand and clay, a perfect medium for creating opulent, fruit-forward wines. With a typically savoury character, St.-&Eacute;milion wines are sometimes called the &ldquo;Burgundies of Bordeaux.&rdquo; These refined reds, with loads of finesse, are elegant companions to beef, chicken, pork and duck.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<strong>Cotes de Castillon</strong> is tucked at the easternmost edge of Bordeaux's right bank, adjacent to St.-Émilion. Red Cotes de Castillon wines are Merlot-based, offering complex and elegant flavors of red and black fruits. Wines from the best Cotes de Castillon producers can present excellent value for fans of the St.-Émilion Grand Cru style.

<p><strong>Pomerol</strong>, on the Right Bank of Bordeaux&rsquo;s Gironde River, produces some of the world&rsquo;s most sought-after wines, including those from such storied properties as Chateau Petrus. Yet Pomerol, the smallest of the fine-wine-producing districts of Bordeaux, offers no Grand Cru or Premier Cru wines: It&rsquo;s the most significant Bordeaux appellation not included in any quality ranking. At the time of the historic 1855 Classification of Bordeaux, Right Bank chateaux were considered remote and difficult to travel to, and so were ignored by the merchants who created the classification. (St. &Eacute;milion, a notable neighbour on the Right Bank, created its own classification system in 1954.)</p> <p>Pomerol has managed to do quite well without this form of validation. Pomerol&rsquo;s predominantly clay soil is ideally suited for Merlot, the primary grape used in the

<p><em><span>&ldquo;For fifteen years the Emperor [Napoleon] constantly drank the same wine&nbsp;</span>[Gevrey-Chambertin]&nbsp;, which he liked and which we believed was good for him."</em></p> <p><span><strong>M&eacute;morial de Sainte-H&eacute;l&egrave;ne by The Count of Las Cases</strong></span></p> <p>&lt;p class="m_104224110535