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The Rhône wine region in
Southern France Southern France, also known as the south of France or colloquially in French as , is a geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', Atlas e ...
is situated in the
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...
valley and produces numerous wines under various ''
Appellation d'origine contrôlée In France, the ''appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (, ; abbr. AOC ) is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the ''terroir'' – and using ...
'' (AOC) designations. The region's major appellation in production volume is Côtes du Rhône AOC. The Rhône is generally divided into two sub-regions with distinct vinicultural traditions, the Northern Rhône (referred to in French as ''Rhône septentrional'') and the Southern Rhône (in French ''Rhône méridional''). The northern sub-region produces red wines from the
Syrah Syrah (), also known as Shiraz, is a dark-skinned grape variety grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce red wine. In 1999, Syrah was found to be the offspring of two obscure grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse ...
grape, sometimes blended with up to 20% of white wine grapes, and white wines from Marsanne,
Roussanne Roussanne () is a white wine grape grown originally in the Rhône wine region in French wine, France, where it is often blended with Marsanne. It is the only other white variety, besides Marsanne, allowed in the northern Rhône appellation d'Orig ...
and
Viognier Viognier () is a white wine grape variety. It is the only permitted grape for the French wine Condrieu AOC, Condrieu in the Rhone Valley (wine), Rhône Valley.J. Robinson ''The Oxford Companion to Wine'', Third Edition, p. 754, Oxford Univers ...
grapes. The southern sub-region produces an array of red, white and rosé wines, often blends of several grapes such as in Châteauneuf-du-Pape.


History

The first cultivated vines in the region were probably planted around 600 BC. The origins of the two most important grape varieties in the northern Rhone (
Syrah Syrah (), also known as Shiraz, is a dark-skinned grape variety grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce red wine. In 1999, Syrah was found to be the offspring of two obscure grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse ...
and
Viognier Viognier () is a white wine grape variety. It is the only permitted grape for the French wine Condrieu AOC, Condrieu in the Rhone Valley (wine), Rhône Valley.J. Robinson ''The Oxford Companion to Wine'', Third Edition, p. 754, Oxford Univers ...
) have in the past been subject to speculation. Some suggested that the
Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...
were responsible for bringing the Syrah grape from the Persian city of
Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...
. Others that the grape came 50 years later when Greeks fled from the Persian king
Cyrus I Cyrus I (Old Persian language, Old Persian: ''Kuruš'') or Cyrus I of Anshan or Cyrus I of Persia, was King of Anshan (Persia), Anshan in Persia from to 580 BC or, according to others, from to 600 BC. Cyrus I of Anshan is the grandfather of C ...
. Yet others suggested the grape came from the Sicilian city of Syracuse, whence circa 280 AD the Romans brought it and the Viognier grape. However, extensive DNA typing and viticultural research has established beyond doubt that Syrah originated in the Rhône region itself. When the Romans left the area interest in the wine of the region disappeared. Rhône reappeared in the 13th century when the Popes and their considerable purchasing power moved to
Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...
, at which time the production of wine expanded greatly. The wines were traded to such a degree that the Duke of Burgundy banned import and export of non-Burgundian wines. In 1446 the city of
Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...
forbade all wines from Lyon, Tournon and Vienne, arguing that they were "''très petits et pauvres vins''" – very small and miserable wines.Niels Lillelund: ''Rhône-Vinene'' JP Bøger - JP/Politikens Forlagshus A/S, 2004. , pp. 13 The name Côtes du Rhône comes from public administration in the Middle Ages and was the name (Côte without 's') of a district in the Gard ''département''. In 1650, to guard against forgeries a set of rules was passed in an attempt to guarantee the origin of the wine. In 1737 King Louis XV of France decreed that all casks destined for resale should be branded C.D.R. These were the wines from the area around Tavel, Roquemaure, Lirac and Chusclan on the western ('right') bank of the Rhône. Just over 100 years later, wines from the 'left' bank were included in the C.D.R. definition.


Production

The various AOC wines of the Rhône Valley region are produced by over 6,000 wine growing properties including 1,837 private wineries and 103 cooperatives. Those vineyard owners which do not vinify their wines themselves deliver their grapes in bulk either to a winemaking cooperative, for example
Cellier des Dauphins Cellier des Dauphins is a union of Côtes du Rhône AOC, Côtes du Rhône winemakers in France. It unites thirteen local cooperatives, and is headquartered in Tulette. Business history Established in 1963, the company had 110 employees as of 20 ...
, or sell them to one of the 51
négociant A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes: *Cooperating with viticulturists *Monitoring the maturity of grapes to ensure their quality and to de ...
s (wine producers and merchants) who blend, distribute, and export on an industrial scale. The entire Rhône region produces around 4 million hl of wine each year, of which over half is classified under the Côte du Rhône and Côte du Rhône-Villages appellations. The prestigious Northern Rhône appellations account for less than 5% of the total Rhône wine production.


Northern Rhône

The northern Rhône is characterised by a
continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm to hot summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in central and eastern parts of the three northern-tier continents (North America, Europe, and Asia), typi ...
with harsh winters but warm summers. Its climate is influenced by the mistral wind, which brings colder air from the Massif Central. Northern Rhône is therefore cooler than southern Rhône, which means that the mix of planted grape varieties and wine styles are slightly different. Syrah is the only red
grape variety This list of grape varieties includes cultivated grapes, whether used for wine, or eating as a table grape, fresh or dried (raisin, Zante currant, currant, sultana (grape), sultana). For a complete list of all grape species, including those unimp ...
permitted in red AOC wines from this sub-region. The grape, which is believed to have originated in or close to the Rhône region, is also widely known as Shiraz, its name in
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and much of the English-speaking world, and has recently become very popular with consumers around the world. For wines bearing the Cornas AOC designation, Syrah must be used exclusively, whereas other reds from the northern Rhône sub-region may be blended with white wine grapes, either Viognier or Marsanne and Roussanne, depending on the appellation. However, while this is allowed by the AOC rules, blending with white grapes is widely practiced only for Côte-Rôtie. Viognier by itself is used for white wines from
Condrieu Condrieu () is a Communes of France, commune in the Rhône (department), Rhône Departments of France, department in eastern France. It is situated on the right bank of the Rhône, some south of Vienne, Isère, Vienne and 44 km south of Ly ...
and Château-Grillet. Marsanne and Roussanne are in turn used for the whites from Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage,
Saint Joseph According to the canonical Gospels, Joseph (; ) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. Joseph is venerated as Saint Joseph in the Catholic Church, Eastern O ...
, and Saint Péray. From north to south the appellations in the northern Rhône are: * Côte-Rôtie AOC - reds of Syrah and up to 20% Viognier. * Condrieu AOC - whites of Viognier only. * Château-Grillet AOC - whites of Viognier. * Saint-Joseph AOC - reds of Syrah and up to 10% Marsanne and Roussanne; whites of only Marsanne and Roussanne. * Crozes-Hermitage AOC - reds of Syrah and up to 15% Marsanne and Roussanne; whites of only Marsanne and Roussanne. * Hermitage AOC - reds of Syrah and up to 15% Marsanne and Roussanne; whites of only Marsanne and Roussanne. * Cornas AOC - reds of Syrah only. * Saint-Péray AOC - sparkling and still whites of only Marsanne and Roussanne. Northern Rhône reds are often identified by their signature aromas of green olive and smoky bacon.


Southern Rhône

The southern Rhône sub-region has a more
Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...
with milder winters and hot summers. Drought can be a problem in the area, but limited
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
is permitted. The differing terroirs, together with the rugged landscape which partly protects the valleys from the Mistral, produce
microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often slightly but sometimes substantially. The term may refer to areas as small as a few square m ...
s which give rise to a wide diversity of wines. A feature of the cultivation of the region is the use of large pebbles around the bases of the vines to absorb the heat of the sun during the day to keep the vines warm at night when, due to the cloudless skies, there is often a significant drop in temperature. The southern Rhône's most famous red wine is Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a blend containing up to 19 varieties of wine grapes (ten red and nine white) as permitted by the Châteauneuf-du-Pape AOC rules. Other nearby AOC regions including Côtes du Vivarais AOC, Grignan-Les Adhemar AOC, Lirac AOC, Tavel AOC, Vacqueyras AOC, and Ventoux AOC may contain even more varieties in the blend.
Gigondas AOC Gigondas () is a French wine ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) in the southern Rhône wine region of France. It is primarily a red wine region, with a very small amount of rosé wine produced. As of September 2022, the AOC Gigondas ap ...
, on the other hand, is predominantly made from Grenache noir has a more restricted set of permitted grapes. Depending on the specific AOC rules, grapes blended into southern Rhône reds may include Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Carignan and Cinsault. Similar wine blends globally are known as
GSM The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a family of standards to describe the protocols for second-generation (2G) digital cellular networks, as used by mobile devices such as mobile phones and Mobile broadband modem, mobile broadba ...
, after the first three varietals. The reds from the left bank are full bodied, rich in tannins while young, and are characterized by their aromas of prune, undergrowth, chocolate and ripe black fruit. The right bank reds are slightly lighter and fruitier. Southern Rhône appellations: * Côtes du Vivarais AOC * Côtes du Rhône AOC * Côtes-du-Rhône Villages AOC *Côtes du Rhône Villages (named villages) *
Châteauneuf-du-Pape AOC Châteauneuf-du-Pape () is a French wine, an ''Appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (AOC) located around the village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the Rhône wine, Rhône wine region in southeastern France. It is one of the most renowned appellations ...
* Grignan-Les Adhemar AOC * Vacqueyras AOC * Rasteau AOC * Cairanne AOC *
Gigondas AOC Gigondas () is a French wine ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) in the southern Rhône wine region of France. It is primarily a red wine region, with a very small amount of rosé wine produced. As of September 2022, the AOC Gigondas ap ...
* Vinsobres AOC * Lirac AOC *
Beaumes de Venise AOC Beaumes de Venise () is an appellation of wines from the eastern central region of the southern half of the Rhône Valley. It produces wines of two distinctly different types: 1. A sweet fortified wine of the type '' vin doux naturel'' (VDN), u ...
* Muscat de Beaumes de Venise AOC * Tavel AOC
Laudun AOC
White wines from the southern Rhône sub-region, such as in Châteauneuf-du-Pape whites, are also typically blends of several wine grapes. These may include
Ugni blanc Trebbiano is an Italian wine grape, one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world. It gives good yields, but tends to yield undistinguished wine. It can be fresh and fruity, but does not keep long. Also known as ugni blanc, it ...
,
Roussanne Roussanne () is a white wine grape grown originally in the Rhône wine region in French wine, France, where it is often blended with Marsanne. It is the only other white variety, besides Marsanne, allowed in the northern Rhône appellation d'Orig ...
, Bourboulenc, Picpoul, and Clairette. Since about 1998
Viognier Viognier () is a white wine grape variety. It is the only permitted grape for the French wine Condrieu AOC, Condrieu in the Rhone Valley (wine), Rhône Valley.J. Robinson ''The Oxford Companion to Wine'', Third Edition, p. 754, Oxford Univers ...
is increasingly being used and is also appearing as a single varietal. Tavel AOC, produced in the special microclimate of the ''sillon rhodanien'' (the furrow of the Rhône) by some thirty producers including Château d'Aqueria, Domaine Maby, Domaine de la Mordorée, Domaine Pelaquier, is an elite rosé only, which has been referred to as 'the wine of kings".
Fortified wine Fortified wine is a wine to which a distilled spirit, usually brandy, has been added. In the course of some centuries, winemakers have developed many different styles of fortified wine, including port, sherry, madeira, Marsala, Command ...
s ( vin doux naturel) are made in the Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise AOC and Rasteau AOCs.


Côtes du Rhône

Côtes du Rhône AOC is an AOC that covers both the northern and southern sub-regions of Rhône. Typically it is only used if the wine does not qualify for an appellation that can command a higher price. Therefore, almost all Côtes du Rhône AOC is produced in southern Rhône, since the northern sub-region is covered by well-known appellations and also is much smaller in terms of total vineyard surface. This AOC is also used by the commercial blenders ''(négociants)'' who buy grapes in bulk from various parts of the region to bottle, distribute, and export on an industrial scale. This nevertheless makes it the most commonly known, produced, and distributed appellation of the region. Produce from vineyards surrounding certain villages including Laudun and others may be labeled Côtes-du-Rhône Villages AOC. Red Côtes du Rhône is usually dominated by Grenache.


Other appellations

Other appellations falling outside the main Rhône area in terms of wine styles but administratively within it are Clairette de Die AOC, Crémant de Die AOC, Grignan-Les Adhemar AOC, Luberon AOC, Ventoux AOC, Côtes du Vivarais AOC. These are more similar to the wines of
Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...
. In 2004 ten new appellations were officially added to the Rhône region, 9 in the Gard and one in the Vaucluse, which largely parallel the wines of Southern Rhône proper, while two appellations were discontinued for reasons of reforesting and urban encroachment. In 2004,
Costières de Nîmes AOC Costières de Nîmes () is an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) for wines that are produced in an area between the ancient city of Nîmes and the western Rhône delta, in the French department of the Gard. Formerly part of the Langued ...
, which previously had been counted as part of eastern
Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (, , ; ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately . History ...
, was also attached to the Rhône wine region. In that year, INAO moved the responsibility for oversight of this appellation's wine to the regional committee of the Rhône valley.JORF n°177 du 1 août 2004 page 13753 texte n° 25: Arrêté du 19 juillet 2004 relatif à la composition des comités régionaux vins et eaux-de-vie de l'Institut national des appellations d'origine
/ref> Local producers of Côtes du Rhône-styled wines made from Syrah and Grenache lobbied for this change since the local winemaking traditions did not coincide with administrative borders, and presumably due to the greater prestige of Rhône wines in the marketplace. Such changes of borders between wine regions are very rare.


Other wines

Many private wineries also produce wines including
sparkling wine Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it, making it fizzy. While it is common to refer to this as champagne, European Union countries legally reserve that word for products exclusively produced in the Champagne ( ...
s and
fortified wine Fortified wine is a wine to which a distilled spirit, usually brandy, has been added. In the course of some centuries, winemakers have developed many different styles of fortified wine, including port, sherry, madeira, Marsala, Command ...
s, single varietals - particularly from the Syrah grape - and even brandies. These wines usually do not conform to the rules of a VDQS or AOC. They are usually only sold on the premises. Several wineries produce wines from organically cultivated vines that, provided they comply with the rules for varieties, plant spacing, pruning and maximum yield, are admitted in the AOC. The excess production of many domains and cooperatives is released as Vin de Pays which are marketed as Vin de Pays du Gard, Vin de Pays de Vaucluse, etc., or are sold to blenders of wine from the European Union, and mass food distribution for sale as own brands. Excess wines of the lowest quality, Vin de Table, occasionally become part of the wine lake and are reprocessed into industrial alcohol.


Classification

Rhône does not have an official
classification Classification is the activity of assigning objects to some pre-existing classes or categories. This is distinct from the task of establishing the classes themselves (for example through cluster analysis). Examples include diagnostic tests, identif ...
using " Grand cru", or similar terms, in contrast to
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
or
Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
. There are, however, differences between the Rhône AOCs regarding their geographical delineation and naming practices, which, in turn, provide a classification into four distinct categories: * Côtes du Rhône only displays the region, and may be used in the entire wine region, in 171 communes. For some communes, this is the only allowed AOC. It is therefore the lowest classification for Rhône AOC wine. * Côtes du Rhône-Villages is an AOC allowed for 95 communes, with a higher minimum requirement for grape maturity than basic Côtes du Rhône. It is therefore a higher classification. In general, the appellation does not allow the village name to be displayed. * Côtes du Rhône-Villages together with village name is allowed for 20 communes that have been deemed to be of a higher standard than the majority. * Cru are the 16 named appellations which display only the name of the cru, and not Côtes du Rhône. These include the most famous Rhône wines, such as Hermitage, Côte-Rôtie and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. There is no official classification differentiating between different crus, but the market prices of some AOCs are much higher than others. Sometimes, individual vineyard names (such as La Landonne within the Côte-Rôtie appellation) are displayed on the labels. Most producers will only do this for top wines, but vineyard-labelled wines enjoy no different official status from other cru wines.


Grape varieties

Different grape varieties are allowed in the different Rhône appellations; a few appellations are single variety appellations, while the regional Côtes du Rhône appellation allow 21 different varieties. In most cases, Northern Rhône appellations allow many fewer varieties than those of Southern Rhône. In many appellation regulations, a division is made into main grape varieties (indicated by "M"), supplementary varieties (indicated by "S"), and accessory varieties (indicated by "(A)").


See also

*
List of wine-producing regions Wines are produced in significant growing regions where vineyards are planted. Wine grapes berries mostly grow between the 30th and the 50th degrees of latitude, in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, typically in regions of Mediterranean ...
* French Wine
Official Rhône wine trade association website

INAO AOC/AOP IGP Vin Specifications


References


External links


Les Vins des Côtes du Rhône - Côtes du Rhône official site
(6 languages)

(Committee for the promotion of the production, economy and marketing of Rhône Wine) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhone Wine Wine regions of France