A Matter of Taste - Soil: Reflections on the Basis of our Existence - page 113

Taste of the earth? The quality of a wine depends to a large extent on vineyard location. Wine
connoisseurs talk about a region's terroir . This French word is the basis of the quality designa-
tion Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC), which guarantees that a wine originates from a par-
ticular region. Growing grapes that yield good wine demands a limited water supply, soil that is
not too rich in nutrients, and strong sunlight. But opinions vary as to whether the soil itself gives
the wine its taste