The Framework That Conquered The World: French Red Wines
The Framework That Conquered The World: French Red Wines
The Through-Line: Why France Sets Every Standard
By the end of this seminar, you'll understand the five pillars of French wine dominance:
1. CLASSIFICATION Bordeaux invented hierarchical quality assessment. Every wine region since has copied it.
2. TERROIR Burgundy proved place matters more than anything. Every "single-vineyard" wine owes debt to this insight.
3. DIVERSITY The Rhône showed that multiple expressions of greatness exist. Power and elegance aren't opposites—they're a spectrum.
4. VALUE Beaujolais (and the South) prove that greatness doesn't require fame or price. Quality exists at every level when terroir and skill align.
5. ADAPTATION Southern France demonstrates that tradition and innovation coexist. France isn't just history—it's future.
Why Everyone Compares to France
When a new wine region emerges, the first question is always:
"What's the French equivalent?"
Napa = American Bordeaux
Oregon = American Burgundy
Barossa = Australian Rhône
Stellenbosch = South African Bordeaux
Priorat = Spanish Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This isn't French chauvinism. It's recognition that France created the template, the vocabulary, the quality standards that make discussing wine possible.
Why This Class Matters
Understanding French red wines isn't just about France—it's about understanding wine itself.
These wines are the reference points, the benchmarks, the standards against which all others are measured. When you taste a California Cabernet, it's implicitly being compared to Bordeaux. When someone describes a wine as "Burgundian," they're invoking centuries of Pinot Noir perfection.
French red wines are wine's global language. Learning them isn't snobbery—it's literacy.
This class gives you fluency in that language, context for those comparisons, and appreciation for how one country came to define quality for the entire world.
What You'll Learn
✓ How Bordeaux created the classification systems used globally
✓ Why Burgundy's terroir obsession changed viticulture forever
✓ How Rhône varieties became the "alternative" to Bordeaux/Burgundy dominance
✓ Why Beaujolais's rediscovery matters for understanding value and terroir
✓ How Southern France represents wine's climate-adapted future
✓ The connection between French colonialism and global wine culture
✓ Why "French" became shorthand for "fine wine"
✓ How to taste critically, comparing French originals to New World interpretations
✓ The ongoing relevance of French wines in a changing wine world
Your Experience Includes:
Five Legendary French Red Wines:
Bordeaux Left Bank blend (Cabernet Sauvignon-based)
Burgundy Pinot Noir from Côte d'Or
Rhône Valley Syrah or Grenache-based blend
Cru Beaujolais (Gamay from top villages)
Southern French blend or historic appellation
Expert Instruction: Led by knowledgeable educators who connect wine to history, culture, and global influence.
Intimate Setting: The Médoc Room provides perfect atmosphere for focused tasting and discussion.
Comprehensive Materials: Detailed tasting notes, maps of French wine regions, comparison charts with New World equivalents, recommended reading.
Perfect For:
Wine enthusiasts seeking to understand French wine's dominance
Anyone planning to visit French wine regions
Professionals in hospitality, restaurants, or wine retail
Those interested in wine history and cultural influence
Travelers wanting context before visiting France
Anyone who's tasted "Bordeaux-style" or "Burgundy-style" wines and wondered about the originals
Gift-givers seeking sophisticated, educational experiences
Details:
When: Sunday Afternoon, 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Where: The Médoc Room, Meritage Restaurant, Minneapolis
Investment: $85 per person
Includes: Five French red wines, expert instruction, tasting notes, regional maps, comparison materials
Can be purchased individually or as part of our Wine School series
Hosted in the Médoc Room, the private dining room of Meritage just across the hall, bedecked with historical maps and surrounded by our wine cellar. Seminars are taught by Desta Marée and team, including Alex Seide our Assistant Wine Director and Nick Rancone, our Hospitality Manager, as well as invited professionals.
Details:
When: Sundays in January 2026, 2:00pm-4:00pm
Where: The Médoc Room, Meritage Restaurant
Investment: $85 per person, per seminar (or $300 for all four sessions, a $40 savings only available with full course registration)
Includes: Five wines per tasting, expert instruction, tasting notes, historical materials and information
You are welcome to join us at Meritage, of course, as we offer Brunch from 10am-2pm & dinner service begins in the Oyster Bar at 4pm. All enrolled students are offered 10% off their entree & even beignets or dessert on class days, as a benefit for enrollment.
Off-street parking is free on Sundays, and they are just wrapping up multi-year construction, so parking this time of day is ample outside of events.
PRO TIP: recent students have reported taking ride services like Uber or Lyft to and from class, with positive feedback about the cost being offset by not having to find parking, pay for a lot, or deal with the weather - or drive after class and the wine tastings for that matter.
