A large DÉPARTEMENT in France’s LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON, or Midi, as it’s sometimes called. Aude, located in southern France along the Mediterranean not too far from the Spanish border, produces millions of bottles of very ordinary wine, most of it red wine made from CARIGNAN, CINSAUT, and GRENACHE. Along with départements of L’HÉRAULT and GARD, Aude contributes to what is called the European WINE LAKE—huge amounts of nondescript wine. There are signs that the quality is improving, in part as a result of increased planting of popular varieties like CABERNET SAUVIGNON, CHARDONNAY, and SAUVIGNON BLANC. Under existing APPELLATION rules, these varieties cannot qualify for higher classification so the wines made from them must be sold as VIN DE PAYS. The best-known appellations in Aude are BLANQUETTE DE LIMOUX (which produces decent SPARKLING WINE via MÉTHODE CHAMPENOISE), CORBIÈRES, MINERVOIS, and FITOU.