What is Bordeaux? Are there any romantic allusions?

Bordeaux, a port city in southwest France with a population of 925,253 (65,438+0,999), is the fourth largest city in France, next to Paris, Lyon and Marseille. It is the capital of aquitaine and the capital of Gironde province. It used to be the capital of the old French province of Gina, which belonged to Gascon in history. Bordeaux is the research and manufacturing center of European military, aerospace and aviation, and also the core of French strategic nuclear bomb research and physical experiment. It has many high-end technical institutions, such as the Atomic Energy Research Center and the Megafocal Laser Program. Bordeaux is rich in tourism resources, with many well-preserved medieval castles and beautiful scenery. Bordeaux is also known as the world wine center. Bordeaux Wine Association holds a grand international wine exhibition-Vinexpo every two years.

Bordeaux's memory begins with a poem about water phobia: "Damn water bearer, charming God has filled my bucket/do you want to fight him?" /get out of the way! Don't come near me ... you scoundrel, restrain yourself .../I will flee to the ends of the earth as soon as I see the bucket/if you don't want to make me angry/don't bring me too much water/just enough for me to wash the cup. "."The Curse of an Alcoholic "really means that people who drink water don't like drinking, and do people who drink water hate drinking? If we want to talk about the macro memory of Bordeaux, it gives people the impression that there is only wine in this city, and water is just like an object that is conveniently lost when you go back to the hotel and turn on the tap every day. During the five-day trip in Bordeaux, wine was the only drink. However, Bordeaux is obviously not short of water. The famous "Bordeaux Mirror" in the municipal square, however, water will come out every 15 minutes, and it will gradually change from a blister to a current, which will slowly submerge people's ankles. On the other side of the "mirror", there is the wide Garonne River, which is opened by the long gironde Bay connected with the Atlantic Ocean, reflecting the wealth of the whole city. This is indeed a rich city about wine, with Bordeaux as the center and facing the Atlantic Ocean in a semicircle. Fiona Fang's 65,438+028,800 hectares are covered with large and small wine estates and indescribable wine legends. The story of each winery is an indispensable chapter in the Bordeaux wine map, which is different from each other, but each has its own wonderful. When we visit Bordeaux near winter, compared with those tall trees that wish to lose all their leaves, is it the best welcome ceremony for us to spread a golden carpet on the endless Bordeaux with golden grape leaves? We didn't smell fresh grape fragrance in some cold air either, because Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon was sleeping in the underground of Bordeaux in 2008, and Beaujolais new wine has been listed in Paris, and only those who have a soft spot for time, under the careful care of the wine cellar manager (Caviste), slowly matured according to the schedule of this time. This is obviously not the ideal Bordeaux tourist season. The sparse figure of the whole country makes it hard to imagine how busy the first two months are-"March to 10 is the best tourist period in Bordeaux, so when the grapes are ripe, we must make an appointment to visit the winery in advance", and the staff who received us were so sure. But all the surprises happened after the doors of castles and manors were pushed open, the spaces full of historical sense, the filled places, the artistic conditions and, of course, the wine flavor that can be drunk at one gulp. The first drink that every winery owner greets us is never water, but wine. This is their own housekeeping skill and a proud gift, so is every family. Therefore, France, with a population of 62 million, drinks 3.8 billion bottles of wine every year. It seems that water has never been a necessity in their lives, but wine is. Jean-Michel Cazes, the owner of Lynch Bages Winery managed by Ryzberg Hyundai, can also see his inner pride in his just-concluded long-distance trip when he puts all the photos he took during the Beijing Olympic Games in front of us. He is a typical Frenchman who knows how to enjoy life. He spends most of the year on the road, and Lynch Bages' transliteration of "Liang Zibo" in Hong Kong is the same as that of Liang Zibo, a famous Cantonese opera actress, so Jean Michel said that he has extraordinary special feelings for China. Jean Michel started out as a company executive who worked for IBM. The biggest gain that he brought to Jean Michel by traveling around the world was that he used a very modern way of thinking when running the brewing foundation left by his ancestors. For example, he is committed to cross-border cooperation in the fields of art and wine. Starting from 1989, he entrusted Paris Gallery to look for artists from all over the world, went to the winery for artistic creation, and supported artists' exhibitions in Paris Gallery, and there was one in Lynch baggs Winery every year. As the only reward, the artist wants to leave a work for LynchBages permanently, which is often used as a print advertising element for Lynch Bages. Semi-theme creation has brought extraordinary significance to Lynch baggs, and it has often become a unique feature on Lynch baggs wine labels. Lynch Bages is not only a pure wine enterprise for Jean Michel, because the ancestral industry covers more than half of Bages village. Jean Michel has developed diversified tourism projects centering on his manor, such as opening bakeries, cafes and boutiques, and even invited Michelin chef Thierry Marx to run a restaurant. In the Bordeaux countryside surrounded by vineyards, Lynch Bages' diversified projects have become a rare local consumption place. Of course, Jean Michel's free-style business philosophy has not affected his main business wine production, and his professionalism has still been fully exerted here. Otherwise, his winery could not be upgraded from a fifth-class winery to a second-class winery, which was more than 20 years ago. The legend of Medoc is also based on the wine industry to expand tourism, and the legend of Les Médocaines in Medoc is another case. Speaking of Medoc, the most unforgettable historical story is, of course, the "1855 classification" that established the Bordeaux wine classification system. At that time, at the Paris World Expo, champagne and Burgundy wine industries invited Bordeaux to show the status of French wine together. Bordeaux wine merchants who did not intend to participate in the exhibition did not want the other two producing areas to dominate, so they were prepared to send the best wineries in the area. When evaluating the question "Who is the best", the middlemen of liquor marketing put forward the ranking based on the market share at that time (because the market comes from the demand, and the demand is based on the quality), so they found out 60 wineries from the wines with registered prices in the market for 40 years and divided them into five grades according to the convention. Unexpectedly, the ranking wineries that rely on commercial performance are all from Medoc. Although there have been requests for revision since then, the classification of 1855 is only an important reference, but Medoc, located on the left bank of gironde, as the top wine producing area in Bordeaux, is truly worthy of the name. ChateauMargaux, Latour, Lafite Rothschild and Mouton Rothschild all come from here. Plain areas without highlands and slopes, because of the mild climate from the Atlantic Ocean, the warm current brought to the sea by the circulation of the Gulf of Mexico, and the impact layers of rivers such as gironde and Dordogne, have brought rich environment for the growth of Medoc Cabernet Sauvignon. Legend of Medoc is not only a gathering of top wineries, but also an alliance of female wineries, consisting of four female wineries, spanning 30 years. It is also a hot topic in recent years, known as the "four women in Medoc", and has become a star figure pursued by many media because of the special phenomenon of "womanhood and debauchery". In 2005, four female business owners formed an alliance and launched a winery tour route, so that tourists can go to the winery very conveniently according to their arrangements. For each of them has a huge family business, the concept of tourism alliance seems to have more significance to them, but it is more convenient for tourists who come to Bordeaux and brings some relief to their lives. For example, they will have a base camp for activities and often hold art exhibitions or parties. We were received by Almer farsi Cruz, the owner of Chateaudu Taillan. Although she is the third in the family and works in a famous wine company, she doesn't want to manage the family winery herself. After her parents died, she worked in a wine company among her children, and other brothers and sisters were not interested, so Almer and her husband inherited this career which was highly valued by their parents. Antoine's family business is a deep tradition in Bordeaux, and many small wineries are like this, while the big wineries that take the family business route generally have many backgrounds. In ChateauLe Grand Verdus winery with aristocratic background, we met the Antoine family who lived under one roof for four generations. When Antoine, the owner of Chateau Le Grand Verdus, came out of this 400-year-old castle to meet us, wild geese flew over the autumn sky and formed an unforgettable picture with the bright colors of maple leaves. Antoine said with French humor that he sent those geese to meet us. Working in such a deserted place for many years requires such humor to adjust the taste of life, so we always keep a happy smile when we see their family. Of course, this active lifestyle should also be related to the aristocratic lineage in their bones. As a descendant of Claude Deschamps, the most famous architect in the Napoleonic era, Chateau Le Grand Verdus owned by Antoine is also Claude Deschamps' private residence. It has a history of 430 years and is now rated as a French historical and cultural heritage, so no buildings are allowed within its 360-degree view. So Antoine's family has the most enviable view of Bordeaux. The green space and Woods around the castle, as well as two good horses enjoying the sunshine leisurely on the grass, remind people of the ancient aristocratic life, but all this is the real life of Antoine family in 2 1 century. Father Philip is 60 years old, and he has given all the wine business to Antoine. Taking care of roses in the garden has become his best pastime to maintain his life. Antoine, who is fully in charge of Chateau Le Grand Verdus, has a very effective helper, 28-year-old son Thomas. Thomas, who originally studied marketing, is responsible for the sales of winery wine, and Yunnan is his next market. Thomas, 28, has two children. It seems that this French aristocratic family, like Bordeaux wine, is full of vitality. In Bordeaux's long life, the whole journey is like a long life line. Grapes whose dead leaves are about to be buried will turn green again next year, and old trees ten feet deep will be cherished more and more. We followed this touching life phenomenon to Abbayela Sauveankele, the earliest grape growing place in Bordeaux, or the Saint-Emillion Church in the Middle Ages. It is said that Bordeaux can become such an important wine producing area, thanks to the early monks here. Although monks can't drink alcohol, grape cultivation was introduced from them, which provided the origin of life for Bordeaux wine. The ruins of Lassoff Monastery lie on a slope. Standing on the top of the burned-out main building, you can see the scattered scenery of late autumn vineyards on the sloping land at a glance, while standing on the top of St. Emilion Cathedral, which is already a world cultural heritage, on the plain terrain, the ancient medieval town looks like a stamen on the land of St. Emilion, and the surrounding vineyards become yellow leaves. Because wine making, as a core industry, has not changed for many years, the sense of history also makes this land carefully preserve a consistent atmosphere of life and a pure and clean spirit. This reminds me that there is an ancient church one foot square in the cellar of Smith Haut Lafitte winery run by former French skiing champion Daniel Cathiard. Due to the unique life of each winery, we visited Pressac winery in Saint Emilion. The winery surrounded by terraced vineyards is not only quite beautiful, but the most special place is of course that it was the signing place of the armistice agreement at the end of the Anglo-French War. If history has given Bordeaux many unique characteristics, then the mental state of everyone who lives here and deals with grapes has given Bordeaux the most touching inner feelings. The passion for wine and the beautiful management of life itself give people the warmest impression of Bordeaux. Just like Daniel Cartier's Smith Haut Lafitte winery, he designed it as a transparent underground space with soft and bright lights and just the right jazz music. Daniel, who loves photography, gave us his signature album, which is full of his joyful shutter sound about grapes and wine. This is not the Bordeaux we take for granted, but the Bordeaux with more vitality. The enjoyment of wine is far from as simple as in ancient times. When it is closely related to all aspects of modern life, it has become something we love more and more. Daniel should know the truth.