Learning Chinese not only satisfies people’s desire to grasp a foreign language, it also becomes the greatest asset to career advancement. The opportunities for government and business careers, as well as for scientific, scholarly and cultural exchanges are virtually mushrooming and we are standing on the threshold of a booming and expanding Chinese economy.

Related Downloads

• MemChinese – Free trial
• Free Chinese Trainer
• CQuicktrans Free Dictionary
• Winvue Active Chinese
• 21CN Dictionary

1. Write vocabulary words using index or flash cards on one side with the definition on the other side.
2. Use your imagination by linking the shape of the new word by first glancing to something you are familiar with.
3. Play vocabulary by creating a 3-column vocabulary sheet with characters, pinyin, and English definitions. Fold the paper with only one or two columns showing and then take practice written tests.
4. After a while, you will notice that many characters have elements in common, either related to meaning or pronunciation. Note the common elements and use them to help you remember new characters.
5. Take advantage of free learning Chinese resources online.
6. Only way to learn Chinese characters is to memorize them, practice writing a character on paper until you remember it. Start from easy ones, which also include all the strokes, for example, ?(one), ?(ten), ?(middle),?(mountain), ?(above), ?(fire), ?(river), ?(enter).
7. Rather than writing one word many times before doing the next one, write each word once or twice then go through the whole list again until you’ve done the required number of repetitions. This will reinforce the new words more firmly in your memory.
8. Read Chinese newspapers, booklets and books found at your local library or Chinese market
9. Watch movies or TV programs with Chinese subtitles, it is a great way to learn Chinese speaking and writing at the same time in a simulated real-life scenario.
10. Use post-it notepaper to write down the characters and stick them on the objects you are about to learn.

If you can memorize about 1,000 – 2,000 characters, you will feel comfortable with reading and writing modern Chinese.

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Chinese characters are only difficult for the beginner

It’s said that mandarin Chinese is one of the toughest languages in the world for reasons that Chinese character is difficult to read and write. However many native Chinese kids can read newspaper before they go to school, and any Chinese kid can tell you what is “Tyrannosaurus” (a kind of dinosaur). why? It seems that Chinese character is not so difficult if you can master 1000-2000 Characters.

What is the easy way to learn Chinese Characters?

1. Learn Chinese characters with pinyin & tones

When you learn a new word or character, make sure you know how to pronounce it, make sure you can say its pinyin and tone. You need to combine the character’s pinyin, tone and definition, and learn them within the words or sentences.

2. Learn Chinese characters in your life

You can learn the Chinese characters fast; however, it’s more difficult to memorize them. They may get forgotten quickly. You need to use some kind of tools to help you to use them in your life. Print the characters out and paste them around you; Read Chinese news, lyrics, stories; Watch Chinese TV. In the beginning you may need some Characters-pinyin helper or Character-pinyin converter, which can add pinyin above the characters, and these tools can be found in following text.

3. Use your ear, your eyes, your mouth and your hand to learn characters

Use them at the same time. You may follow & repeat the dialogue when you watch Chinese TV. Don’t forget to use your hand and try to write the characters in the subtitles. It will help you to memorize all the pronunciation, shapes and definition of the characters.

4. Use some good tools to learn Chinese characters.

Don’t kill yourself to learn Chinese. Most of you may soon give up. I’m here recommending some tools to make things easier.

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Recommended Tools

a) Online Chinese Characters to Image Converter

This tool can create various images of Chinese character in different Chinese fonts.

b) The Firefox Addon: Words-Chinese Pinyin Popup Dictionary

This wonderful tool can pop up a small screen when you double-click or select a Chinese character / sentence, which show the translations, pinyin, tones, definitions of every characters and words of the selection. To get it, just search the name at add-on page of firefox browser.

c) Chinesebuddy the Chinese Characters Writing Animation Tool

It’s a very good Chinese teaching tool and learning tool for the beginner to learn Chinese characters. It shows you the pronunciation, writing animation and help you learn to read, write and memorize the characters.

• Find a children’s book or a newspaper article, but…how?
  

–Go to the library and pick up lots of books. Pick books depending on your reading level, no matter what your age.

–Read about things that interest you. If you are interested in what you are reading about, the words will come alive, and you will be motivated to understand. You will feel satisfaction in accomplishing a task that you enjoy, and which you consider meaningful. The more you read, the better you will become at reading. Just get started and it will become a habit, as long as you are interested in what you are reading.

–Read material that is at your level, or just a little difficult for you. Read material that you find easy to read, or just a little challenging. Looking up many unknown words in a conventional dictionary is tedious, and the results of the dictionary search quickly forgotten. It is better to stay within your comfort zone and keep reading. Soon you will be able to take on more difficult content.

–Learn to read in depth, stay on the same subject for a while. If you are familiar with the subject you are reading about, you will understand better. Do not just read short articles. Commit to books. Stay with one author for at least one book. If the subject matter is new to you, you should even try to read a few different books or articles about the same subject, before you move on. This way you will meet the same vocabulary and ideas often, helping you to learn. You will also be able to get deeper into the subject and your reading confidence will grow.

• Find a place to read where you can concentrate. This may be someplace secret where no one will bother you, or simply your home at a time when it is quiet.
• Begin your reading by looking at the pictures, or listening to the music to get a feel for what you are going to be reading about.
  

–If you have trouble reading, listen first. Many great works of literature were written to be read out loud. Learn to appreciate the art of the narrator. Listen to audio books or audio files of the material that you are reading. This will help make difficult content seem more familiar. If you can hear the new words and phrases that you are reading, you will have an easier time understanding and remembering them. Hearing the rhythm of someone reading a text will help your own reading.

• Start with titles, names, or other larger print items that you may know or ever thought about.
• Read as much as you are able. When you start getting bored or need a break, take one. Reading should be fun and enjoyable, don’t force it. After your break, return to where you were, and continue.
  

–Let your imagination get involved. Good readers get engrossed in their reading and let it trigger their imagination. Learn to enjoy your reading.  Just enjoy and look forward to absorbing the information, ideas and thoughts expressed by the writer.

–Don’t worry about what you don’t understand. Most of your reading should be for pleasure. You can enjoy reading without understanding all of what you read. You may even understand some things in your own personal way. Neither you nor a teacher needs to “monitor” your understanding. Learn to enjoy reading, even while feeling that you do not fully understand or remember what you have read.

–Recognize that the key is to read a lot. You may develop a system for keeping track of new words that you encounter in your reading, using lists, or Flash Cards, or other memory systems available on the Internet or elsewhere. However, the main growth in your vocabulary and reading skill will come just from reading as much as you can. So learn to enjoy reading and read a lot. Keep reading, and you will become a better reader.

Unfortunately not all reading is just for pleasure. When you are reading a textbook or manual, or report or other material that have to read for school or work, you may need to underline, take notes, and read some parts over again, in order to retain what you are reading. However, if you have developed the habit of reading for pleasure, you will find that the cognitive techniques you need will come naturally, and that you will understand a lot better than before.

• Reread the material. It is okay to reread something if you do not understand it fully the first time. Just read over the sentence(s) again. Try reading the words out loud to yourself. If you still don’t understand something, ask a good reader nearby to explain the sentence(s) to you, or simply pick up a book that is easier to read and more appropriate to your reading level. Feel free to use your finger as a pointer. It will keep your eyes focused on the line you are reading, improving your understanding.
• Read the page carefully. Don’t rush, take your time. Most people think that skimming the page(skimming means to just scan the whole page and hardly take in a couple of words)is a way of fast reading, but this is definitely not true.
• Use context clues to find out a word’s meaning. Context clues are when a person figures out the meaning of a word by seeing how the word was used in a sentence. For example, you were reading the following sentence and wanted to know what ‘pessimist’ means:My mother is always happy and optimistic, the total opposite of my brother, the pessimist. So from the sentence, you can gather that ‘pessimist’ means the opposite of happy, so pessimist means being moody and angry. Good, experienced readers always use context clues! If you find a word that you’re totally stumped on, use the dictionary! If you want to save time and the hassle of turning pages, go to the online dictionary.
• Keep reading! Try to read as much as you can on your free time. Reading will help you in lots of ways; your vocabulary will become larger and more sophisticated and you will notice your grades change for the better in school. Have fun reading!

STOCKHOLM: Within a decade, all Swedish primary schools should offer Chinese lessons, Sweden’s education minister was quoted as saying Wednesday, insisting the move was needed to improve competitiveness.

“I want to see Sweden become the first country in Europe to introduce instruction in Chinese as a foreign language at all primary and secondary schools,” said Jan Bjoerklund, who heads the Progress Party, a junior member of the centre-right ruling coalition.

Getting Swedish pupils to learn Chinese was vital to strengthening Swedish competitiveness, the education minister told financial daily Dagens Industri.

“Not everyone in the business world speaks English. Very highly qualified activities are leaving Europe to move to China. ” he said.

English is today the main foreign language taught in Swedish schools, followed by Spanish, German and French.

Bjoerklund acknowledged that such a move would demand a lot of resources, especially for recruiting educators who can teach Chinese, but said that within a decade all primary schools should be equipped to teach the language, while it might take 15 years for secondary schools to readjust.

Mark Cavendish of Britain won a windy and crash-marred fifth stage of the Tour de France in a mass sprint on Wednesday, while Thor Hushovd of Norway kept the leader’s yellow jersey.

Defending champion Alberto Contador fell in a crash and RadioShack rider Janez Brajkovic broke his collarbone and pulled out of the race during the 102-mile stage from Carhaix to Cap Frehel on the English Channel.

Cavendish, a sprint specialist, collected his 16th career Tour stage victory and his first this year by speeding past Philippe Gilbert of Belgium — who finished second — and Jose Joaquin Rojas in third.

“I am really happy. It was a difficult finish,” said Cavendish, who rides with the HTC-Highroad team. “I put every thing into it … If we win, it’s not because we’re lucky, it’s because we’re good.”

The British rider, known almost as much for his powerful legs as his sharp tongue, took aim at unidentified critics who he said expressed doubts about his abilities.

“It’s always sweet to silence the ignoramuses,” he said.

But Gilbert succeeded in making him work hard in the sprint.

“Normally, I try to win by a little-ish margin, just to try and save energy,” Cavendish said. “Today, I had to give everything I had. He’s taken a lot out of me, so I’ll take a couple of days to recover.”

The top standings didn’t change because the vast majority of riders crossed in a pack right behind the sprinters. Hushovd kept his one-second lead over Cadel Evans of Australia in second. Frank Schleck of Luxembourg is third overall, 4 seconds back.

Schleck’s younger brother Andy — the Tour runner-up for the last two years — is 10th, 12 seconds behind. Contador, who lost time by getting caught up in a crash in Stage 1, is 39th overall, 1:42 behind Hushovd.

The stage Wednesday included a picturesque patch along rocky Brittany cliffs overlooking the Atlantic, was mostly marked by crashes that brought down some of the biggest names in the pack. Two riders pulled out, reducing the pack to 195.

“It was very nervous, and because of that you get a lot of crashes, because there are 200 riders who want to be in front,” said Hushovd, who retained the coveted yellow jersey for a fourth straight day.

Many riders were jostling to stay at the front — and ahead of possible group spills.

Contador, the Spanish three-time Tour champion, fell at about the 44-mile mark. With his Saxo Bank jersey ripped over the right shoulder, he took off his helmet briefly, then gave a thumbs-up to signal that he was all right.

“It was very difficult day, with a lot of tension,” said Contador, who had scrapes on his right shoulder, elbow and knee. He said he took “a little knock” while braking to avoid one crash, then had his own a few miles later.

“When I got back going, 5 kilometers later, my chain came off — so I fell,” Contador told French TV, which showed images of him throwing his bike on the roadside at the time. “What matters is, I was able to get back up.”

“Yes, it’ll be a bad night, of course, but you have to think about tomorrow,” he added, suggesting his bruises and bumps might cause him to lose some sleep.

The highest-profile withdrawal was Brajkovic. The 27-year-old Slovenian was evacuated to a hospital in an ambulance. A race medical report said he had suffered a broken collarbone and a concussion.

Teammate Levi Leipheimer of the United States also was involved in a crash but returned to the course. In one of the more dramatic spills, Saxo Bank’s Nicki Sorensen bumped into the motorcycle of a race photographer, and skidded on a roadside. The motorbike dragged his bike along the road — and race organizers barred its driver from covering the race.

Robert Gesink, the leader of the Rabobank team, went down in the same spill as Brajkovic. A mass crash earlier tangled up France’s Sylvain Chavanel and Britain’s Bradley Wiggins. Yet another ensnared Belgian sprint star Tom Boonen and his teammate Gert Steegmans.

Christophe Kern, the French time-trial champion, dropped out of the race after yet another crash.

“I kept hearing over the radio, ‘Crash! Crash! Crash!’, and then I saw guys like Gesink coming back to the peloton all covered in dirt,” Evans said. “It was a dangerous day, I think.”

With his jersey torn over his right shoulder, Boonen struggled through wincing pain behind an escort from Quick Step teammate Andy Engels — and finished more than 13 minutes behind the main pack.

On top of his injury, Boonen was penalized along with Rojas for an “irregular sprint” during the intermediate sprint earlier in the day’s stage, race officials said. The riders were stripped of points used to calculate who wins the Tour’s green jersey awarded to the best sprinter.

The stages

Stage	Type	Date	Start and Finish	Distance	Details
1	En ligne	Saturday 2 July	Passage du Gois La Barre-de-Monts > Mont des Alouettes Les Herbiers	191.5 km
2	Team TT	Sunday 3 July	Les Essarts > Les Essarts	23 km
3	En ligne	Monday 4 July	Olonne-sur-Mer > Redon	198 km
4	En ligne	Tuesday 5 July	Lorient > Mûr-de-Bretagne	172.5 km
5	En ligne	Wednesday 6 July	Carhaix > Cap Fréhel	164.5 km
6	En ligne	Thursday 7 July	Dinan > Lisieux	226.5 km
7	En ligne	Friday 8 July	Le Mans > Châteauroux	218 km
8	Medium mountains	Saturday 9 July	Aigurande > Super-Besse Sancy	189 km
9	Medium mountains	Sunday 10 July	Issoire > Saint-Flour	208 km
R	Rest Day	Monday 11 July	Le Lioran Cantal
10	En ligne	Tuesday 12 July	Aurillac > Carmaux	158 km
11	En ligne	Wednesday 13 July	Blaye-les-Mines > Lavaur	167.5 km
12	High Mountains	Thursday 14 July	Cugnaux > Luz-Ardiden	211 km
13	High Mountains	Friday 15 July	Pau > Lourdes	152.5 km
14	High Mountains	Saturday 16 July	Saint-Gaudens > Plateau de Beille	168.5 km
15	En ligne	Sunday 17 July	Limoux > Montpellier	192.5 km
R	Rest Day	Monday 18 July	Département de la Drôme
16	Medium mountains	Tuesday 19 July	Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux > Gap	162.5 km
17	High Mountains	Wednesday 20 July	Gap > Pinerolo	179 km
18	High Mountains	Thursday 21 July	Pinerolo > Galibier Serre-Chevalier	200.5 km
19	High Mountains	Friday 22 July	Modane Valfréjus > Alpe-d’Huez	109.5 km
20	Individual time-trial	Saturday 23 July	Grenoble > Grenoble	42.5 km
21	En ligne	Sunday 24 July	Créteil > Paris Champs-Élysées	95 km

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The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than 3,600 kilometres (2,200 mi) and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling’s three “Grand Tours”, the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The race is broken into day-long segments, called stages. Individual times to finish each stage are aggregated to determine the overall winner at the end of the race. The rider with the lowest aggregate time at the end of each day wears a yellow jersey.^[1] The course changes every year, but the race has always finished in Paris. Since 1975, the climax of the final stage has been along the Champs-Élysées.

The tour typically has 21 days of racing and covers 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi).^[2] The shortest Tour was in 1904 at 2,420 kilometres (1,500 mi), the longest in 1926 at 5,745 kilometres (3,570 mi).^[3] The three weeks usually include two rest days, sometimes used to transport riders from a finish in one town to the start in another.^[4] The race alternates between clockwise and anticlockwise circuits of France. The first anticlockwise circuit was in 1913.^[5] The New York Times said the “Tour de France is arguably the most physiologically demanding of athletic events.” The effort was compared to “running a marathon several days a week for nearly three weeks”, while the total elevation of the climbs was compared to “climbing three Everests.”^[6]

The number of teams usually varies between 20 to 22, with nine riders in each. Entry is by invitation to teams chosen by the race organiser, the Amaury Sport Organisation. Team members help each other and are followed by managers and mechanics in cars.

Riders are judged by the time each has taken throughout the race, a ranking known as the general classification. There may be time deductions for finishing well in a daily stage or being first to pass an intermediate point. It is possible to win without winning a stage, as did Alberto Contador in 2010; this has occurred six other times. There are subsidiary competitions (see below), some with distinctive jerseys for the best rider.

Riders normally start together each day, with the first over the line winning, but some days are ridden against the clock by individuals or teams. The overall winner is usually a master of the mountains and of these time trials. Most stages are in mainland France, although since the 1960s it has become common to visit nearby countries.^[7] Stages can be flat, undulating or mountainous. Since 1975 the finish has been on the Champs-Élysées in Paris; from 1903 to 1967 the race finished at the Parc des Princes stadium in western Paris and from 1968 to 1974 at the Piste Municipale south of the capital.

GREETINGS
Hello Bonjour Good day Bonjour Good evening Bonsoir Good night Bonsoir Hi Salut Good bye Au revoir See you soon A bientôt

88

Isaac Oliver (1560-1617) Miniaturist

Nicolas Froment(1430-1485)Painter

Mathieu Jacquet (1545-1611)Sculptor

Germain Pilon 1530-1590 Sculptor

Claude Deruet 1588-1660 Painter

Toussaint Dubreuil 1561-1602 Painter

Corneille de Lyon 1500-1575 Painter

Master of Saint Gilles 1500 Painter

Jean Cousin the Elder 1495-1560 Painter

Enguerrand Quarton 1420-1466 Painter

Antoine Caron 1520-1598 Painter

Ligier Richier 1500-1567 Sculptor

Pierre Bontemps 1505-1568 SculptorToussaint Dubreuil 1561-1602 Painter

Jean Perreal 1455-1530 Painter

Francois Quesnel 1543-1619 Painter

Leonard Limosin 1505-1575 Painter

Masters of the Fontainebleau 16th Century

]]> http://www.wowlanguages.com/french-expressions-you-wont-learn-at-school/feed 0 http://www.wowlanguages.com/useful-phrases http://www.wowlanguages.com/useful-phrases#comments Mon, 11 Apr 2011 11:32:47 +0000 Wow Languages http://www.wowlanguages.com/useful-phrases

ENGLISH CHINESE MALAY FRENCH Hello / Good Morning Ni hao / Zao an Halo / Selamat pagi Bonjour Good Evening Wu an Selamat sore Bonsoir Good Night Wan an Selamat malam Bonne nuit See you soon Da yi hui-er jian Sampai nanti A bientôt See you tomorrow Ming tian jian Sampai besok A demain Good bye Zai jian Sampai jumpa lagi Au revoir Thank you (very much) Xie xie (Duo xie) Terima kaseh (banyak banyak) Merci (beaucoup) You are welcome Bu ke qi Sama sama De rien Excuse me Bu ke qi Tumpang tanyak / Permisi Excusez-moi Sorry Dui bu qi Maaf Pardon Do you speak English? Ning shuo ying yu ma? Anda cakap bahasa Inggris? Parlez-vous anglais? I do not speak French Wo bu shuo fa yu Saya tidak tahu cakap Perancis Je ne parle pas français I do not understand Wo bu ming bai Saya tidak faham Je ne comprends pas Please Qing Tolong S’il vous plait Yes Shi Betul / Ya Oui No Bu shi Tidak Non Enjoy your meal Qing yong Selamat makan Bon appétit I like / I do not like Wo xi huan / Wo bu xi huan Saya suka / Saya tidak suka J’aime / Je n’aime pas I want / I do not want Wo yao / Wo bu yao Saya mau / Saya tidak mau Je veux / Je ne veux pas

]]> http://www.wowlanguages.com/useful-phrases/feed 0 http://www.wowlanguages.com/love-phrases-in-french http://www.wowlanguages.com/love-phrases-in-french#comments Mon, 11 Apr 2011 11:21:27 +0000 Wow Languages http://www.wowlanguages.com/love-phrases-in-french French is the language of love, some people say. Even if your love is not French she will be impressed with words of love and love phrases in French.

I love you in several expressions

Speak French Language——Learn French Culture

France is the source of many grape varieties (such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, and Syrah) that are now planted throughout the world, as well as wine-making practices and styles of wine that have been adopted in other producing countries. Although some producers have benefited in recent years from rising prices and increased demand for some of the prestige wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux, the French wine industry as a whole has been influenced by a decline in domestic consumption as well as growing competition from both the New World and other European countries.

All common styles of wine — red, rosé, white (dry, semi-sweet and sweet), sparkling and fortified — are produced in France. In most of these styles, the French production ranges from cheap and simple versions to some of the world’s most famous and expensive examples. An exception is French fortified wines, which tend to be relatively unknown outside France.

In many respects, French wines have more of a regional than a national identity, as evidenced by different grape varieties, production methods and different classification systems in the various regions. Quality levels and prices vary enormously, and some wines are made for immediate consumption while other are meant for long-time cellaring.

If there is one thing that most French wines have in common, it is that most styles have developed as wines meant to accompany food, be it a quick baguette, a simple bistro meal, or a full-fledged multi-course menu. Since the French tradition is to serve wine with food, wines have seldom been developed or styled as “bar wines” for drinking on their own, or to impress in tastings when young.

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They are fabulously diverse. They brim with romance and sex appeal. They are regarded the world over as benchmarks of flavor. So why can French wines seem slightly intimidating? The truth is, French wines are complicated, in part because of their stunning variety. But in the end, that’s also one of their fantastic pluses. You’ll never run out of great French wines to try, which means learning about them can easily become a lifelong pleasure.

In France, “terroir” (which means the land itself, the composition of the soil) is all-important, which means there is considerable emphasis on where the grapes of any given wine are grown. In fact, one good rule of thumb is that French wines often bear the name of the region or village in which they were produced, a practice that can be confusing to anyone accustomed to seeing wines identified by grape. Almost all red wines from Burgundy, for example, are made using Pinot Noir grapes, yet one will rarely find these words on bottle labels.

After Champagne, the most famous French wines that arrive on U.S. shores come from five regions: Bordeaux, the Loire Valley, Burgundy, Alsace, and the Rhone Valley. Certain grapes and wines are associated with each region. Although these generalizations have their exceptions, they are useful to know when you’re scanning labels.

Bordeaux, in the southwest, is famous for its complex Cabernet Sauvignon- and Merlot-dominant blends that age beautifully and make great matches for roast beef and pot-au-feu.

The Loire, near the Atlantic coast, is known for crisp white wines made largely from Sauvignon Blanc or Chenin Blanc grapes. These are prime partners for oysters on the half shell.

What we call Burgundy (and the French call Bourgogne) is a collection of winemaking areas southeast of Paris that produce great whites (Chablis, for example, made from Chardonnay grapes) and masterful reds — many Pinot Noir based, as you now know. These can be every bit as elegant (and expensive) as fine Bordeaux. Beaujolais, the region where the famously fruity wines are made from Gamay grapes, is also part of Burgundy.

The cool Alsace region, near the German border, is an underappreciated source for outstanding white wine — Riesling and Pinot Gris especially — that can be as refreshing as a green apple or, in sweeter versions, as heady as tropical flowers.

The Rhone Valley, near the Mediterranean, is divided into two areas: the north and the south. In the northern Rhone, the reds are largely based on Syrah grapes. This includes the esteemed Hermitage, a mulberry-dark wine that would suit a roast leg of lamb at a black-tie dinner. The area’s unique Condrieu wine, an orange-blossom-scented white made from Viognier grapes, would be a distinctive brunch offering with smoked salmon. Southern Rhone wines often blend multiple grape varietals in a single bottle. Such is the case with one of the region’s best-known wines, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, which can contain as many as 13 types, including Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre. Wines marketed simply as Cotes du Rhone are made from northern or southern Rhone grapes, or both, and can be reds, whites, or roses. These make solid everyday wines, thanks to their reliably good flavor and value.

A great way to get started is to start small — with a single wine that you already adore — and home in on the region where it’s from. You might turn to Sancerre, for example, which is made in the appellation of the same name from Sauvignon Blanc grapes. After you sample a range of bottles from throughout the area, you could branch out, delving into wines from Sancerre’s Loire neighbors. These include the regionally named Pouilly-Fume (more Sauvignon Blanc) and Vouvray (Chenin Blanc). If you find yourself emboldened to dip into less familiar territories, you’ll be in good company. The thrill of a new discovery, after all, is the best part of the ride.

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Pétrus and Romanée Conti are the most expensive wines in France.

A bottle of a new Petrus vintage cost about $1,000 minimum.

Pétrus is a winery located in Pomerol, Bordeaux. Petrus is a red wine. Merlot is the dominant grape. Although Petrus does not have any ranking, the quality is the same as any first growth wines from Bordeaux.

The price of a Romanée Conti bottle is often 2 or 3 times higher than Petrus ! Romanée Conti is one of the best red wine in the world.

The winery is located in Cote de Nuits in Burgundy, meaning that winemakers use Pinot Noir grapes. It is probably one of the most traditional wineries in France. Wines are produced in small quantities while the demand is huge.

This is why a bottle of Romanée Conti can cost $3,000 and even more. A bottle of the 1978 vintage was sold $24,000 in an auction.

Other expensive wines are Cheval Blanc in Saint Emilion, Yquem in Sauternes, Margaux, Lafite, Mouton and Haut Brion in Bordeaux, Bellet in Nice, Daumas Gassac in Languedoc and many others.

On September 28th 2006, Mouton Rothschild 1945 became the most expensive vintage. An auctioneer bought 6 magnums bottles for $345,000 and 12 regular bottles for $290,000 bringing the value of Mouton Rothschild 1945 at $28,750 a bottle.

A bottle of Lafite from Bordeaux was sold $160,000 ! This 1787 vintage belonged to Thomas Jefferson. However the wine is not drinkable anymore.

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Bordeaux is the most famous french wine area.

Bordeaux is located along the Atlantic Ocean, in the South West of France.

Bordeaux hosts some of the most famous wineries such as Petrus, Margaux, Cheval Blanc, Haut Brion, Mouton Rothschild, Yquem and many others.

Bordeaux includes many famous areas such as Margaux, Pauillac, Saint Emilion, Pomerol, Sauternes…

However people in Burgundy will tell you that their region – Burgundy / Bourgogne – offers the best wine. Wine such as Romanée Conti, Clos Vougeot, Pommard, Meursault are among the best in the world.

France has a great diversity of different wines coming from different regions. Each one of them is specific and unique.

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How long can you keep wine

Wine requires time to mature and express style and personality.

Wine needs protection from high/low temperature, high/low humidity, vibration, air suspension.

Once the bottle is kept in good condition such as in a wine cooler, maturation depends where the wine is coming from. The terroir, the specific weather, soil, grapes and wine making techniques have all a word to say. The name of the terroir, usually an AOC, is written on the label such as “appellation Saint Emilion controlée”. Here are some advices from one terroir to another to tell you how long you can store wine.