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The wines of Southwest France: a buyer’s guide

Andy Howard MW takes a deep dive into the wines of Southwest France, looking at the key appellations and producers, and highlighting 10 top bottles to try.

The southwest is a beautiful region of France, much loved by visitors from many countries and one seeming to hold even greater affection for those from the UK and Ireland.

Yet, despite the region’s relative proximity and popularity as a tourist destination, the wines of the Southwest have a low profile back home – a great pity given the region’s cornucopia of terroirs, huge range of unusual grape varieties and wine styles, and inspirational winemakers.


Scroll down to check out Andy Howard’s top 10 wines of Southwest France


In a recent article, leading wine writer and judge Andrew Jefford posed some questions. ‘What is France’s greatest undiscovered wine region? Where do you find the greatest value for money in French wine? Where would you look around France to find potential fine wine quality at affordable prices? Three questions from me and the same answer to each: Southwest France.’

Map of Southwest France


Andy Howard MW’s 10 best wines of southwest France


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