Few regions carry the weight that Bordeaux does, and it earned that reputation over centuries as a port city shipping wine to England and beyond. The Gironde estuary splits the region into a Left Bank, where gravelly soils favor Cabernet Sauvignon, and a Right Bank, where clay and limestone suit Merlot. Most of the famous reds are blends built for the cellar, though Bordeaux also turns out crisp, dry whites and the honeyed sweet wines of Sauternes. The grand châteaux get the headlines, but there is plenty of honest, age-worthy wine made by smaller producers who never make the auction catalogs.