Editing Château (section)

==French châteaux—particular regions==

===Bordeaux region===
There are many estates with true châteaux on them in the [[Bordeaux wine regions]], but it is customary for any [[Bordeaux wine|wine-producing estate]] since the 19th century, no matter how humble, to prefix its name with "Château". This term became the default way of designating an estate in [[Bordeaux]], in the same way that ''Domaine'' did in [[Burgundy wine|Burgundy]]. Both ''Château'' and ''Domaine'' are aristocratic in implication, but Bordeaux had a better claim to the association: nobles had owned Bordeaux's best vineyards for centuries. Most of Burgundy's best vineyards, in contrast, had been owned by the Church. The term ''Château'' became a permanent verbal fixture in Bordeaux, and it was emulated in other French regions and outside France.<ref>{{cite book|author= Rod Phillips|title= ''Wine: A social and cultural history of the drink that changed our lives''|publisher= Infinite Ideas Limited|year= 2018|isbn= 978-1-910902-48-6}}, pages 148-152, [https://books.google.com/books?id=gwhQDwAAQBAJ&dq=word+chateau+denomination+bordeaux+wine+english&pg=PA149 excerpts] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231228181547/https://books.google.com/books?id=gwhQDwAAQBAJ&dq=word+chateau+denomination+bordeaux+wine+english&pg=PA149#v=onepage&q=word%20chateau%20denomination%20bordeaux%20wine%20english&f=false |date=28 December 2023 }}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed">
File:Chateau Margaux 01 by-dpc.jpg|[[Château Margaux]]
File:Haut Brion exterior.jpg|[[Château Haut-Brion]]
File:Château d'Yquem.jpg|[[Château d'Yquem]]
File:Château Cheval-Blanc.jpg|[[Château Cheval-Blanc]]
</gallery>

The winery denomination ''Château'' is now protected by French law, and confirmed in 1981 by European Union law,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:L:1981:106:TOC |title=Commission Regulation (EEC) No 997/81 of 26 March 1981 laying down detailed rules for the description and presentation of wines and grape musts, Article 5 |access-date=24 May 2020 |archive-date=28 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231228181438/https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:L:1981:106:TOC |url-status=live }}</ref> as "traditional appellation". The term Château may be used only if two conditions are fulfilled:
* The wine concerned have to be made exclusively from grapes harvested from wine belonging to that vineyard,
* The wine-making process was carried out there.

===Loire Valley===
{{Main|Châteaux of the Loire Valley}}
[[File:Vue du château du Rivau depuis les jardins (allée des fées).jpg|thumb|left|[[Château du Rivau]]]]
The [[Loire Valley]] (Vallée de la Loire) is home to more than [[châteaux of the Loire Valley|300 châteaux]].<ref name="Whittaker2008">{{cite book |last=Whittaker |first=Andrew |title=France: Be Fluent in French Life and Culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rPXlfvqY55UC&pg=PT25 |year=2008 |publisher=Thorogood Publishing |isbn=978-1-85418-493-1 |page=25 |access-date=6 November 2015 |archive-date=29 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129130015/https://books.google.com/books?id=rPXlfvqY55UC&pg=PT25#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> They were built between the 10th and 20th centuries, firstly by the French kings followed soon thereafter by the nobility; hence, the Valley is termed "''The Valley of the Kings''". Alternatively, due to its moderate climate, wine-growing soils and rich agricultural land, the Loire Valley is referred to as "''The Garden of France''". The châteaux range from the very large (often now in public hands) to more 'human-scale' châteaux such as the Château de Beaulieu in [[Saumur]] or the medieval [[Château du Rivau]] close to [[Chinon]] which were built of the local [[tuffeau]] stone.<ref>{{cite book|title=Ouvert au public|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KYgMAQAAMAAJ|year=1983|publisher=Editions de la Caisse nationale des monuments historiques et des sites|language=fr|page=111|access-date=6 November 2015|archive-date=29 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129125944/https://books.google.com/books?id=KYgMAQAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{clear}}