- FRANCE 24

07/01/2012 - FRANCE BON APPETIT

Gérard Depardieu, winegrower

Gérard Depardieu is a "bon vivant" in real life and on screen; in one of his most recent films, "Grenouille d’hiver", he plays a wine grower. We discover the vineyard he owns in real life.

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24/12/2011 - BEYOND BUSINESS

Battle of the bubbly: how Champagne producers protect their brand

Some call it bubbly, some call it fizz... but almost all of us know it as champagne. Sparkling wine producers from the Champagne region here in France are spending millions each year to ensure their product is the only wine that is labelled as champagne. And as we found out, they're willing to stretch the principle to other products, including even perfume.

01/10/2011 - FRANCE BON APPETIT

The wines of Paris and its surrounding area

There are now over 40 vineyards in Paris and around 150 others in the surrounding Ile de France region, thanks to a revival in wine-growing activity over the past 20 years. We went to meet some of these wine growers.

24/09/2011 - BEYOND BUSINESS

The pesticide war

In this edition of Beyond Business, we ask if French farmers and wine growers are carrying a heavier burden than their Spanish peers. This follows claims that French rules on pesticides are much stricter. Some farmers flout the rules, and those who abide by them say they're being weighed down.

22/08/2011 - CHINA

French wines fall victim to Chinese counterfeiting

After designer handbags, perfumes and tablet computers, the latest global success story to fall victim to Chinese counterfeiting is French wine. The process is easy, a vender tells FRANCE 24, and most customers don’t seem able to tell the difference.

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06/07/2011 - IN THE PAPERS INTERNATIONAL

"Brooks contacted Dowler private detective herself"

In today's international papers - did News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks order the hacking of teenage murder victim Milly Dowler's phone herself? The political fallout grows from those shocking revelations - while in the US journalists point out that even if Strauss-Kahn's accuser lied in the past, that doesn't mean she wasn't raped.

25/06/2011 - FRANCE

French wine industry ponders shift in marketing strategy

French winemakers are gradually giving in to global marketing trends, focussing on grape type rather than the region of production. Though it may boost sales worldwide, in a country with a proud wine tradition, this shift is hard to swallow.

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12/05/2011 - FRANCE

French champagne giant to plant vines in China

One of the world's largest champagne producers Moët Hennessy announced Thursday it is planning to plant its first vineyard in China. The champagne house will locally produce sparkling wine for the burgeoning Chinese market.

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04/10/2011 - FRANCE

French riot cops angry over lunchtime wine ban

France’s riot police insist there is nothing wrong with a glass or two of wine with their lunch, even when they are on duty.

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09/04/2011 - BEYOND BUSINESS

Wine-tasting: is London taking the lead?

France is being overshadowed in a field that has always been a source of national pride: the business of wine-tasting. An increasing number of professionals are now being trained at London's Wine and Spirits Education Trust. This school is shaping the palate of future sommeliers, making French experts and wholesalers concerned that France could lose its share of the market.