Languedoc

This wine-growing region makes up the northern part of the large Languedoc-Roussillon region in France (see there for the history). It includes the départements of Aude, Gard and Hérault. The region is located in the extreme south of France, on the Mediterranean coast, and its name is frequently mentioned in the same breath as that of Roussillon. Roussillon is considerably smaller, with only one sixth of the vineyard area, and borders the Languedoc in the west. To the east of the Languedoc lie the bordering regions of Provence and the Rhône. The name is derived from „langue d´oc“, which translates roughly as „language yes“ (oc = yes). This Occitanian language was spoken south of the Loire river in medieval times, while those north of the Loire spoke the „langue d´oil“ (and „oil“ then developed over time to the well-known word „oui“). A perlé sparkling wine was produced here long before this was the case in Champagne, today known as Blanquette de Limoux. Even well into the 1980’s, the Languedoc had the reputation of a region producing mainly cheap mass-production wines. From the early 1990’s, an uprooting programme subsidised by the EU was implemented, with the aim of reducing the surplus wine production in the European Union. This led to a significant reduction of the vineyard area in the space of only 10 years, from more than 350.000 hectares to only 250.000 hectares. This declining trend is still continuing. The vineyards are widely spread, and stretch from Nimes, with the appellation Costières de Nimes in the east to Narbonne with the AC´s Limoux and Corbières in the west. Most of the vineyards are on low-lying alluvial soils, and it is in this area that most of the uprooting took place. The vineyards in the foothills of the Pyrenees go up to an altitude of several hundred metres, they are on slopes and have limestone and slate soils. As is the case in the Roussillon region, a Mediterranean climate predominates. The dominant variety, with around a third of the total area, is the red Carignan, followed by Grenache Noir, Cinsaut, Syrah and Mourvèdre. The following traditional varieties are also permitted: Artisan, Bourboulenc, Clairette, Duras, Fer, Lladoner Pelut, Macabeo and Picpoul. Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Marsanne, Merlot, Rolle, Sauvignon Blanc, Rolle and Viognier may generally be used only for the varietal country wines. The methode macération carbonique (carbon dioxide maceration) is widely used in red wine production. Languedoc is the main supplier in France of basic table wine (vin de table) and also produces 80% of all country wine (vin de pays). The Mas de Daumas-Gassac estate played an important role in establishing the good reputation of the country wines. The most important appellations and VDQS regions are:

* Coteaux du Languedoc (with La Clape and another 11 Crus)
* Blanquette de Limoux (Blanquette Méthode Ancestrale)
* Cabardès (Côtes du Cabardès et de l´Orbiel)
* Clairette de Bellegarde
* Clairette du Languedoc
* Corbières
* Costières de Nîmes
* Côtes de la Malepère
* Côtes de Millau
* Crémant de Limoux
* Faugères
* Fitou
* Limoux
* Minervois (Minervois la Livinière, Muscat de Saint-Jean de Minervois)
* Muscat de Frontignan
* Saint-Chinian