Monbazillac: The Sweet Wine of the Dordogne That Was There From the Very Beginning | Food Tour de France
Monbazillac — the extraordinary sweet white wine of the Dordogne and one of the oldest protected appellations in France — has a story that begins at the very birth of the French AOC system. In 1936, six wines in France received the very first controlled designations of origin — the first AOCs in French history. Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Cognac. Tavel. Arbois. Cassis. And Monbazillac. A sweet white wine from five villages on the south bank of the Dordogne, just outside Bergerac, considered important enough to be among the first six things France ever decided were worth protecting. Today's Food Tour de France episode finishes in Bergerac and tells the full story of this remarkable wine — its botrytis-driven production, its extraordinary ageing potential and its perfect partnership with the foie gras and pâté de Périgueux we covered in yesterday's episode from Périgueux.
The episode covers the full story of Monbazillac — from the legal dispute of 1934 that almost prevented the appellation from existing at all, through the extraordinary north-facing vineyards above the Dordogne where morning mists from the river create the humid conditions that noble rot needs to develop, to the harvest done entirely by hand in multiple passes through the vineyard selecting only the botrytised berries at the right moment of concentration. Made from Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle — the same quartet that dominates the white wine vineyards of Bordeaux — Monbazillac at its best carries aromas of honey, acacia, peach blossom and mirabelle that deepen over decades into candied citrus, spices and beeswax. The great Monbazillacs can age for twenty to thirty years or more. Which puts them in the same company as the greatest sweet wines in the world.
The Food Tour de France is a daily series running alongside the 2026 Tour de France on Fabulously Delicious — one episode for every stage start and finish. The Monbazillac episode connects directly to the pâté de Périgueux episode from Périgueux — the combination of this sweet Dordogne wine with the foie gras at the heart of the pâté is one of the great regional food and wine pairings in southwest France — and to the broader picture of Dordogne and Périgord food culture this part of the series has been building. Search Fabulously Delicious on Spotify and Apple Podcasts for the full series.
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