Cerons is an appellation for wines produced in the the communes of Cerons, Illats and Podensac, in south of the Bordeaux wine region. The Cerons appellation is specifically for sweet white wines, made from Muscadelle, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and (less commonly) Sauvignon Gris.
The least glamorous of the Bordeaux sweet white wine appellations, Cerons is overshadowed by its southerly neighbor appellations Sauternes and Barsac, whose concentrated, rich sweet wines it cannot match. This is due to a combination of factors. The heavier clay content in the soils here mean more consistent temperatures, and thus less chance of morning mists, and second, the flatter landscape fails to create the mesoclimates found around Sauternes in particular. An important geographical factor, by cruel irony, may well be the presence of the river Ciron, from which Cerons took its name. This tributary of the Garonne runs between Sauternes and Barsac, providing the increased required humidity for the development of botrytis. The final reason for the lack of concentration in Cerons' sweet whites is that its more relaxed appellation laws allow much higher yields than in Sauternes or Barsac.
There is new growth in Cerons, however. A handful of producers are making dry red and white wines instead of (or alongside) sweet wines, with wide acceptance in international markets. These are sold under the Graves appellation, which is permitted due to Cerons' status as a sub-division of the larger Graves district. The more successful of these are the red wines, made from the classic Bordeaux grapes as set out by the Graves appellation laws: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Carmenere, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Whites are as listed in the Cerons AOC.
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