7 French Wines You Should Try at Least Once in Your Life

You could argue that the greatest wines in the world are French: the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Burgundies, Pétrus in Bordeaux, and Krug’s Clos du Mesnil in Champagne. All of those are over $1,000 a bottle (often by a lot), so wait to try them till the lottery payment comes in. But anyone who loves wine deserves to experience the standard-setting wines made by France’s top regions at least once, to know what heights wine here can reach. The prestige cuvées of Champagne, the classified growths of Bordeaux, and the top red wines of the Rhône — while pricey, the cost is well justified by the experience (especially since the standard 750-milliliter wine bottle is really meant for sharing). So pop one of these corks at least once in your life. Or maybe twice. Or, what the hell, maybe even three or four or five times. Because with gas prices where they are, some of these may actually cost you less than a full tank.

A Stellar Sancerre  

2024 Domaine Delaporte Les Monts Damnés Sancerre ($45)

Yes, you can get a glass of Sancerre in almost any restaurant in America these days, but that doesn’t mean all Sancerres are created equal. Domaine Delaporte, founded in the 17th century in the village of Chavignol, has been a standard-bearer for the region for decades, and that legacy is capably carried on today by winemaker Matthieu Delaporte. This wine comes from the renowned Les Monts Damnés vineyard, in the west of the appellation (its 45-degree slope gives rise to its name, which translates as “the damned mountains”), and is full of vivid citrus and stone fruit flavors, steely minerality, and herbal notes suggesting blackberry leaves.

A Benchmark White Burgundy

2023 Joseph Drouhin Clos des Mouches Blanc Beaune Premier Cru ($269)

Drouhin owns more of the Clos des Mouches Premier Cru than any other grower, with 35 acres equally split between Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and its wines from the cru — particularly the white — are benchmarks. There’s tremendous depth here, yet the wine is graceful at the same time; its floral, citrusy aroma leads into supple, faintly honey-tinged flavors and a long, rich finish. (Mouches means “flies,” a reference to the fact that beehives were once kept on this sunny, sublime plot of land.)

A Top Châteauneuf-du-Pape

2023 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape ($99)

The Perrin family has been one of the defining voices of Châteauneuf-du-Pape since they acquired their estate in 1909 and began developing the vineyards there. All 13 allowed varieties go into this dark, complex, layered red, but Grenache and Mourvèdre make up the largest percentages, and its luscious, red-fruited Mediterranean character is the backbone of the flavor here. If you find you love this wine, keep an eye out for their white Châteauneuf as well, which is just as delicious.

A Classified Growth Bordeaux 

2020 Château Batailley ($109)

In 1855, the wine merchants of Bordeaux issued a “classification” of the region’s top châteaux (specifically those in the Médoc). Somewhat surprisingly, that ranking still holds in terms of quality, and certainly in terms of reputation. A bottle from one of the five first growths typically runs you around $500 minimum, but stellar properties exist at all levels of the classification, and some can be had for far more reasonable prices. Consider the fifth-growth Château Batailley, which lies next door to the first-growth Château Latour in Pauillac and has a string of impressive recent vintages. In 2020, the wine is firm and powerful, with deep cassis-blackberry flavors, cedar and graphite accents, and ample tannins. A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot, it’s a seriously impressive red.

A Great Red Burgundy

2023 Louis Jadot Beaune Clos des Ursules Burgundy Premier Cru ($129)

If you love wine, it’s vital to try a premier or grand cru red Burgundy at some point in your life (ideally more than once). Many grands crus have become unaffordable even to those with deep pockets, but this signature bottling from Louis Jadot’s oldest estate vineyard — Louis Henri Denis Jadot purchased it in 1826 — is a perennial star. Clos des Ursules’ 5 acres produce a wine with waves of spicy red fruit, its Beaune generosity strengthened by a mineral spine. Drink the 2023 now or seal it away in your cellar; I’ve had vintages of this wine back to the 1920s that were still drinking beautifully.

A Tête de Cuvée Champagne

Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle Iteration No. 27 ($330)

The top wine from Laurent-Perrier is its iconic Grand Siècle, which has been made only 27 times since its launch in 1959. It’s unusual for a tête de cuvée in that it’s a blend of three different vintages (2015, 2013, and 2012 in this iteration). Always thrillingly precise on release, it can age beautifully, as a recent retrospective at its home in Champagne showed — even iterations as far back as No. 20 (composed of the 1999, 1997, and 1996 vintages) were remarkable.

A Decadent Sweet Wine

2023 Château d’Yquem Sauternes ($399)

There are sweet wines, and then there is Château d’Yquem. The only Sauternes estate named as a premier cru supérieur in the historic 1855 Bordeaux classification, Yquem is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, the grapes’ flavor concentrated by the “noble rot” (Botrytis cinerea) of the region. The wine gains its legendary depth and complexity thanks to the ultra-rigorous practices in the vineyard (the pickers traverse the vineyard as many as 13 different times during harvest, picking only the most perfect grapes each time) and immaculate winemaking, today overseen by estate director Lorenzo Pasquini. This is more an elixir than a wine: golden-hued; wildly aromatic; and kaleidoscopic with flavors of honey, apricots, tangerine marmalade, saffron, and more. And it will age for decades.