Five years ago, the French wines that were available in Bulgaria were good enough for getting drunk cheaply, and that was about it. But attitudes – and imports – have started to change, and a presentation of French wines now available in Bulgaria, held on March 11 2009 at Trovatore Vino Bar in Sofia, showed just that.

Rennes, France, native Anthony Perrais, who grew up in a family of cavistes (wine cellar managers), has been in Bulgaria for about four years. He started importing French wines to Bulgaria in November 2005, retailing them in his Sofia wine shop, La Cave.

"At that time, the French wines on the market were just bad, the dregs of the barrel," he tells The Sofia Echo. "It was hard to convince people to try what I was importing."

Another factor was that France had rather ignored the Bulgarian market, and did not make an effort to send over drinkable wines; as a result, Bulgarians formed a preference for Italian wines.

Perrais says that thanks to his web of contacts in France, whom he calls the "best" such possible, he was able to assure a supply of quality vintages for reasonable prices. Both of those factors – the good quality and the attractive cost – plus the fact that he knows the people who make the wine he sells, thus ensuring its traceability, helped to establish a leg in the Bulgarian market.

"It makes it more interesting to have shops like mine – La Cave – and like CasaVino and Vinopolis, where it is professionals, people knowledgeable about the product, who are selling the wine. A wine that I do not like has no place in my shop."

At the Trovatore event, Perrais presented five wines from Bordeaux. Throughout the evening, he also explained the technicalities and strict requirements that comprise the French system of appellations, and how each of the wines were made.
A Grand Bateau Blanc AOC 2007 (75 per cent sauvignon blanc, 25 per cent sémillon) started things off, with Perrais saying that it was a nice, aromatic white, good for an aperitif, but that Bordeaux's strength was in red wines.

The Grand Bateau Rouge 2006, a coupage of merlot (75 to 90 per cent) and cabernet sauvignon, had a nose of ripe red fruits, spices and a hit of oak, with soft tannins.

When it came to the Château Beaumont 2004, Haut-Médoc cru bourgeois, things became a bit more serious. The blend of 62 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 30 per cent merlot and eight per cent cabernet franc was made of grapes from vines with an average age of 20 years. An elegant, rich, fruity wine with round tannins and a bit of spiciness.
A special cuvée from Château Monbrison 2003, cru bourgeois superieur Margaux was made from vines with an average age of 38 years. It was a blend of 50 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 30 per cent merlot, 15 per cent cabernet franc and five per cent petit verdot, with a rich nose, concentrated taste and soft tannins.

Rounding up the night was a Château la Pointe 2001 Pomerol cru classé, which was a blend of 75 per cent merlot and 25 per cent cabernet franc. Its nose expressed violets, plum and leather, while it was well-structured in the mouth, with mature tannins.