BestWine Regions
Classic appellations and distinctive wine landscapes worth visiting as much for the setting as the bottle, from Lavaux's lake-facing terraces to Kakheti's qvevri cellars. Tasting access varies sharply: many estates require appointments, and harvest is often the hardest time to secure one, so confirm opening days and transport before setting out.
Mendoza
Western Argentina
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A high-altitude desert region in the Andean foothills, irrigated by mountain snowmelt and internationally recognized as the world's leading source of rich, deeply colored Malbec.
Barossa Valley
South Australia
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A warm valley northeast of Adelaide, one of Australia's oldest wine regions with some of the world's oldest surviving vines, famous for full-bodied Shiraz and dry Eden Valley Riesling.
Wachau
Lower Austria
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A UNESCO-listed stretch of terraced vineyards along the Danube, celebrated for peppery, mineral Grüner Veltliner and dry Riesling grown on ancient stone-walled terraces.
Casablanca Valley
Valparaíso Region
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Chile's premier cool-climate wine valley, cooled by Pacific morning fogs rolling in through a gap in the coastal range. Crisp Sauvignon Blancs and elegant Pinot Noirs with bright acidity define a region that established Chile as a world-class source of white wine.
Bordeaux
Gironde, Southwest France
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A vast region around the Gironde estuary known for Cabernet-Merlot blends and sweet Sauternes. The historic 1855 classification covers red estates mainly in the Médoc, one Graves estate, and sweet-wine châteaux in Sauternes and Barsac; Saint-Émilion and other areas use separate systems.
Burgundy
Bourgogne, Eastern France
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A region of precisely delimited vineyard plots known as climats, where Pinot Noir and Chardonnay express small differences in soil, slope and exposure. More than 1,000 climats shape the system; those of the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune have UNESCO World Heritage status.
Champagne
Marne & Aube, Northeast France
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The cool northern region where the traditional method of secondary bottle fermentation was perfected, producing the world's benchmark sparkling wine from chalky soils around Reims and Épernay.
Rhône Valley
Southeastern France
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A long corridor following the Rhône river, split between steep northern terraces known for Syrah-led reds and Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne whites, and the warmer south where Grenache-led blends such as Châteauneuf-du-Pape dominate.
Alsace
Grand Est, Northeast France
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A sheltered strip along the eastern foothills of the Vosges mountains, marked by German-influenced aromatic whites and a picturesque Wine Route linking half-timbered villages like Riquewihr.
Provence
Southeastern France
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A sun-drenched Mediterranean region and global benchmark for dry rosé, where Grenache and Cinsault help produce the pale, fresh style associated with Provence. The regional wine council identifies it as France's leading source of AOP rosé rather than the world's largest rosé region.
Loire Valley
Central-Western France
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France's longest wine region, tracing the Loire river past Renaissance châteaux and yielding versatile Chenin Blanc, crisp Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc, and light Cabernet Franc reds.
Kakheti
Eastern Georgia
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Georgia's most important wine region, centered on the Alazani and Iori basins, and the source of many of the country's protected appellations. Kakhetian qvevri practice ferments grape must with skins, pips and often stems in buried clay vessels; Georgia's earliest confirmed wine residue dates to about 6000–5800 BC in Kvemo Kartli, not Kakheti.
Mosel
Rhineland-Palatinate, Western Germany
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A region of steep slate slopes on tight bends of the Mosel river, producing delicate, low-alcohol Riesling with vivid acidity, ranging from bone-dry to intensely sweet late-harvest wines.
Nemea
Peloponnese
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Greece's largest PDO zone for red wine spans 17 villages and vineyards from roughly 200 to 850 metres. PDO Nemea is reserved for red wines made entirely from Agiorgitiko, ranging from fresh, fruit-driven bottles to structured, ageworthy styles; rosé made from the grape falls outside the PDO.
Tokaj
Zemplén Mountains, Northern Hungary
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The "wine of kings and king of wines" — a UNESCO-listed region on the volcanic foothills of the Zemplén Mountains, prized for centuries for its Aszú botrytized dessert wines made from Furmint grapes left to shrivel on the vine. The same terroir also produces thrilling dry Furmints now being rediscovered by sommeliers worldwide.
Tuscany
Central Italy
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A region of rolling hills and cypress-lined roads whose Sangiovese grape underpins Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino, and the Cabernet-based Super Tuscans of the coast.
Piedmont
Northwestern Italy
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A hilly region at the foot of the Alps, famed for the powerful, tannic Nebbiolo wines of Barolo and Barbaresco in the Langhe, alongside sweet sparkling Moscato d'Asti.
Veneto
Northeastern Italy
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A high-volume region stretching from Lake Garda to the Adriatic, source of sparkling Prosecco from Glera, the rich Amarone made from dried Corvina grapes, and crisp Soave whites.
Sicily
Southern Italy
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A Mediterranean island where volcanic Etna vineyards grow elegant Nerello Mascalese reds, while the warmer lowlands ripen robust Nero d'Avola and the sweet Zibibbo of Pantelleria.
Central Otago
South Island, New Zealand
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The world's southernmost commercial wine region, set among dramatic mountains near Queenstown, with a continental alpine climate that yields concentrated, structured Pinot Noir.
Douro Valley
Northern Portugal
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One of the world's oldest demarcated wine regions, a dramatic landscape of terraced schist slopes above the Douro river that produces fortified Port as well as dry Douro table wines.
Stellenbosch & Cape Winelands
Western Cape, South Africa
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The historic core of South African wine near Cape Town, set among granite mountains, and home to Pinotage, a local crossing of Pinot Noir and Cinsault, alongside widely planted Chenin Blanc.
Rioja
La Rioja & Basque Country, Northern Spain
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Spain's most celebrated red-wine region, sheltered by the Cantabrian mountains along the Ebro valley, where Tempranillo is aged in oak through the Crianza, Reserva, and Gran Reserva tiers.
Lavaux
Canton of Vaud, Switzerland
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About 30 kilometres of stone-walled vineyard terraces run along the sun-facing northern shore of Lake Geneva between Lausanne and the Montreux area. UNESCO recognizes a wine landscape shaped over nearly a millennium; Chasselas dominates the plantings, and many small producers still require advance contact for tastings.
Napa Valley
California
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California's most prestigious wine region, a warm valley north of San Francisco Bay known for bold, ripe Cabernet Sauvignon and a dense concentration of wineries along its central corridor.
Willamette Valley
Oregon
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A cool, rainy valley south of Portland whose marine climate and volcanic soils suit Pinot Noir, making it one of the New World's leading regions for the delicate Burgundian grape.
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