France was a wine country even before Joan of Arc heard her first voice. Records indicate that the Greeks may have introduced wine to Marseilles as early as 600 BC. Later, the Roman colonization of Gaul resulted in the wide dispersion of vines throughout France[md]no doubt because wine tasted good, could be kept for a long time, and could be easily traded.

The ancient wines actually bore little resemblance to the wines we enjoy today, but the ever-resourceful French perfected the art of winemaking to produce some of the finest wines on the market. The French like to regulate everything, even their chickens. This is good, because France produces the very best chickens. Similarly, the French regulate their wine to the nth degree, all for the better. The French regulations provide the most specific guidelines for interpreting the contents of a wine bottle from its label. In theory, the structure is simplistic and easy to understand. However, in the real world, theory and application do not always match. While the French regulations are strict for the winemakers, they require no more than that the designated appellation appear on the label. Therefore, judging the quality of the wine by the appellation alone requires doing some homework. Technically, the more specific the appellation, the costlier the contents. However, that does not necessarily mean that the wine will be higher quality[md]even French regulations have loopholes. You may also see the word Cru on the label. Within certain appellations, the wines are classified into Crus which have legal standing. The Cru is another factor affecting the quality of the wine.In short, the French wine label looks fairly simple. Deciphering it for quality and value, however, is a lot harder than it appears at first glance. You have to know your French wines to decipher what's in the bottle from the label.