France has 806,000 hectares planted with vines. This area includes about 70,000 hectares used for Cognac. Three grape varieties take up one third of this area: Merlot (112,000 hectares), Ugni Blanc (82,000 hectares, which is used mainly for Cognac) and Grenache (81,000 hectares).
After the top three follow Syrah (64,000), Chardonnay (51,000), Cabernet Sauvignon (48,000), Cabernet Franc (33,000), Carignan (33,000), Pinot Noir (32,000) and Sauvignon Blanc (30,000). 70% of the total French vineyards are planted with these top ten grape varieties.
In summary:
- Merlot
- Ugni blanc
- Grenache
- Syrah
- Chardonnay
- Cabernet sauvignon
- Cabernet franc
- Carignan
- Pinot noir
- Sauvignon blanc
Source: oiv.org.
