Wine pricing is all over the place, and has never been a sure guide to quality. But this is particularly true about French wine. Certain regions – notably Bordeaux, Burgundy and Champagne – manage to command sky-high prices whereas others – Muscadet and Beaujolais spring to mind – are chronically underpriced. But no one could accuse the wines of Muscadet and Beaujolais of being wildly varied. These are one-grape regions with a certain similarity of terrain. The variation available is qualitative rather than stylistic. 葡萄酒的定价受到很多因素的影响，所以并不一定完全并且直接地体现质量的高低，尤其是法国葡萄酒，价格与质量水平相关性更小。很多波尔多(Bordeaux)、勃艮第(Burgundy, Bourgogne)和香槟(Champagne)产区的葡萄酒能卖出天价，而慕思卡岱(Muscadet)和博若莱(Beaujolais)这样产区的葡萄酒却总给人们留下低价的印象。但是我们不该因为后两者产区的葡萄酒比较多变而横加批判，因为它们都属于单一葡萄品种酿造的产区，而且都以梯田的形式种植——这里所谓的“多变”，并非类型的多样化，而是质量水平的参差不齐。

There is one French wine region, however, whose wines are dramatically underpriced, and which produces a vast array of different wine styles. The Languedoc makes red wines that can vary from relatively delicate Pinot Noir grown on high ground; lively, light and fruity reds based on Cinsault; racy answers to red Bordeaux from Cabardès; and all manner of dense, terroir-driven expressions of the local geography from various combinations of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan and other local grapes. In the far east of the Languedoc, wines can be remarkably like Châteauneuf-du-Pape but at much lower prices. Rosés vary from what are essentially pale reds through to the most delicate vins gris. 有这样一个法国产区，这里生产多种类型的葡萄酒，而且其价格被严重低估，这就是朗格多克(Languedoc)。朗格多克生产的葡萄酒类型非常广泛：有来自高地产区的黑比诺(Pinot Noir)，也有口感活泼清爽的果香型仙梭(Cinsault)；有来自卡巴尔黛(Cabardès)产区的波尔多风格红葡萄酒，也有很多采用西拉(Syrah)、歌海娜(Grenache)、慕合怀特(Mourvèdre)、佳丽酿(Carignan)和其他当地品种来酿造的受到地文条件(Terroir)影响很大的浓郁型红葡萄酒。而在产区的东部地区，不仅有很多价格低廉的葡萄酒可与教皇新堡(Châteauneuf-du-Pape)媲美，还有各种类型的桃红(Rosé)葡萄酒（从常见的浅红色到淡到接近白葡萄酒的灰葡萄酒(vins gris)应有尽有）。

Until recently Languedoc whites were far less exciting. They were either tart and neutral or a bit too heavy and oaky, but now the region produces a range of respectable dry whites. These are not just the varietal bottlings that used to characterise the wines most exported from the Languedoc – Chardonnays and Viogniers in particular – but all sorts of blends of such southern white wine grapes as Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne, Bourboulenc, Clairette, Maccabeo, Terret and Rolle/Vermentino, each with its own distinct personality but, blended together in various combinations, they can be satisfyingly complementary ingredients. 朗格多克产区的白葡萄酒曾经并不出色——要么太酸且缺少个性，要么太厚重且橡木特征过于明显。如今情况有所不同，产区已涌现出了很多令人称道的干白葡萄酒，不仅是霞多丽(Chardonnay)和维奥尼(Viognier)酿造的那些单酿酒(varietal)，还包括采用白歌海娜(Grenache Blanc)、玛珊(Marsanne)、瑚珊(Roussanne)、布尔布朗克(Bourboulenc)、克莱雷特(Clairette)、马卡贝奥(Maccabeo)、泰雷(Terret)以及霍尔(Rolle)（该品种在意大利称作费曼提诺(Vermentino)）这些南法国葡萄品种酿造的混酿酒(blend)。这些葡萄品种本身具有自己独特的个性，而经过混合后能够达到互补，为葡萄酒带来了更加丰富的风味。

The region also has its own great-value traditional method fizz, both Blanquette de Limoux and the more champagne-like Crémant de Limoux made in the foothills of the Pyrénées. It also produces various worthwhile sweet wines, not least from the small-berried Muscat grapes that are grown all over the Languedoc. 比利牛斯山(Pyrénées)脚下还生产两种性价比很高的传统法酿制的(traditional method)汽酒(fizz)，即利慕布朗克特汽酒(Blanquette de Limoux)，和与香槟非常相似的利慕产区汽酒(Crémant de Limoux)。除此之外，朗格多克地区的甜型葡萄酒也引人注目，其中以小果粒麝香(Muscat)葡萄为原料酿造的为最佳。

The prospect of such a wide array of wine styles was one of the things that attracted me to the region when we decided to buy a house there in 1989. At that stage the majority of production was pretty mediocre stuff from the plains with just a few bright lights shining in the hills. Today the situation is reversed. Over our two-plus decades there we have watched the landscape be transformed. Every summer we arrive to find cereals, olives, sunflowers or melons growing where once there was an uninterrupted vinescape – the EU’s efforts to decimate what had become an embarrassing surplus of poor-quality wine appear to have been effective. The number of vignerons in the Languedoc-Roussillon has plummeted from 43,000 in 2000 to 25,800 in 2010, with most of those driven or bribed off the land, or at least out of viticulture, being those who had been growing high-yielding vines on the plains and taking their less-than-inspiring produce to the local co-op. 我在朗格多克置业是在一九八九年，当时这里的葡萄都种植在光照不足的平坦区域，酿造的葡萄酒当然也非常一般。不过由于产区内葡萄酒的种类如此繁多，我认定它将来一定会有很好的发展前景，而这个良好的前景也是吸引我前来置业的原因之一。随着时光飞逝，此处世事俱变，在这二十多年间，我们见证了翻天覆地的变化：由于欧盟为了降低葡萄酒供过于求而缩减低质葡萄酒的产量，曾经连绵不绝的一些葡萄园已经不复存在，取而代之的是谷物、橄榄、向日葵和瓜类作物。从2000到2010十年间，整个朗格多克-鲁西荣(Languedoc-Roussillon)地区的种植农数量从43000减少到了25800。这些种植农曾在平坦地带种植高产量葡萄树，并将自己质量平平的产品卖给当地合作社，后来其中的大多数人或受劝而出售土地，或将土地作为他用。

But at the other end of the quality scale, the picture is much rosier. As throughout the world of wine, quantity has been swapped for quality and there seem to be more and more ambitious smallholders in the higher, better vineyards. Many of them have been attracted by the relatively low land prices there – certainly much lower than in wine regions with a reputation, particularly Burgundy and Champagne. There is also the fact that the climate in this southern swath of France is attractively Mediterranean and fairly dependable. I cannot remember any disastrous summer in our 24 years there, even if there is considerable variation between vintage years. 但是位于质量金字塔顶端的葡萄酒面对的却是一副美妙的画卷。在葡萄酒行业中，低产量常常意味着高质量，所以如今越来越多的酿酒人所拥有的葡萄园面积很小，品质却非常棒。很多人在这里建立葡萄园，主要有两个原因，一是其地价相比于著名产区（如勃艮第和香槟）来说要低得多，二是这条位于法国南部的种植带属于适合种植葡萄的地中海气候类型(Mediterranean)，在原料质量上很有保证。自一九八九年置业到如今的这么多年中，即便年份间的差异巨大，我都从来没有遇到过恶劣的夏季气候。

But the sad fact is that there are just so many small producers in the Languedoc, it can be very difficult for any of them to make much of an impact on export markets, or even the domestic market. Most importers of any size tend to prefer to deal with the handful of big negotiants who specialise in the Languedoc such as Les Grands Chais de France, UCCOAR/Val d’Orbieu, Jeanjean, Foncalieu, LGI, Skalli and Gérard Bertrand (whose quality is generally very sound) rather than go to the bother of sourcing small quantities of wine at the end of an unpaved road, however exciting the wine. 但有一个令人沮丧的现实是，由于朗格多克产区有太多小型生产者，以至于其中任何一家都无法在本国市场上占有重要一席，而更不用说国际市场了。在进口朗格多克葡萄酒时，所有的公司无论规模大小，都倾向于与少数专注于此产区葡萄酒的几家大型酒商(negotiant)进行贸易往来，例如法国联合酒窖酒业(Les Grands Chais de France)、雨格与欧标联合集团(UCCOAR/Val d’Orbieu)、让•让(Jeanjean)、芳嘉丽(Foncalieu)、朗格多克酒业公司(LGI)、斯格利(Skalli)以及产品质量非常可靠的杰拉•贝特朗(Gérard Bertrand)————因为对于这些葡萄酒进口公司来说，尽管很多小型酒庄确实能够酿造出非常好的葡萄酒，但登门拜访常常意味着在历经驱车颠簸后，得到的仅仅是非常有限的供应量。

Fortunately, there is a handful of importers specialising in the Languedoc but there should be far more, for there are pearls there to be harvested – and at great prices. These are the sorts of wines that France does best: handmade, dry-grown wines shaped by the particularity of the terrain in which they are grown, often from mature, low-yielding vines. 幸运的是，除了那些专注于朗格多克产区葡萄酒的酒商外，仍有很多待发掘的优质生产者，而且他们酿造的葡萄酒价格非常吸引人。他们采用酿造顶级法国葡萄酒的方式操作——手工酿制、依靠当地特有的梯田特点进行土旱育株(dry-grow)以及采选来自成熟且低产量葡萄藤的果实为原料。

Admittedly Languedoc geography is far from a piece of cake. In the west there are the old appellations Fitou, Corbières, Minervois, St-Chinian and Faugères but those names themselves are not enough to guide you straight to fine wine. There are cheap, uninspiring versions of, particularly, Corbières and Minervois from the big bottlers. Best to head for what looks like a small, individual domaine. 无可否认，在法国的各个产区中，朗格多克不是一个小角色：该地区西部有很多老牌法定产区(appellation)包括菲图(Fitou)、科比埃(Corbières)、密内瓦(Minervois)、圣-希尼昂(St-Chinian)和佛日尔(Faugères)，只是它们还无法让人们将其与所谓的“精品葡萄酒”联系在一起；另外，还有很多产区（尤其是科比埃和密内瓦）的许多大批量生产商酿造质量很一般的低价酒。如果选酒的话，最好去小型的独立庄园(domaine)，在那里淘到好酒的几率非常高。

The eastern Languedoc is arguably even more difficult to navigate. Interesting-looking producers using the appellation Languedoc with such suffices as Terrasses du Larzac (especially), Pic St Loup and Montpeyroux are usually worth a punt. But now there is the pan-Languedoc-Roussillon IGP (Indication Géographique Protégée, protected geographical entity) Pays d’Oc, a bit like the old Vin de Pays d’Oc, which a number of even quite ambitious producers seem to be using, even though its regulations are less strict than those of the traditional appellations. 朗格多克东部地区情况比较复杂。很多标注有拉赫扎克阶地(Terrasses du Larzac)（尤其值得推荐）、皮圣路(Pic S Loup)和蒙比卢(Montpeyroux)的葡萄酒非常值得一试；但是还有与曾经的奥克地区餐酒产区(Vin de Pays d’Oc)有点类似的奥克产区(Pays d’Oc)，目前属于泛朗格多克-鲁西荣(pan-Languedoc-Roussillon)地理标志保护产区(IGP, Indication Géographique Protégée, protected geographical entity)————尽管这里的葡萄酒法规相比法定产区而言比较宽松，但仍有很多有志于酿造优质葡萄酒的生产者。

The expression Sud de France is often found on relevant bottles, but I find myself frustrated by how difficult it is to provide a shortcut between you the wine lover and all these great producers. Imagine how they must feel. 这里生产的很多葡萄酒酒标上常常采用南法国(Sud de France)字样，但是令我沮丧的是，它们很难为葡萄酒爱好者与所有这些优质酿造者提供一个联系的捷径。想象一下他们的感受吧！