Rhône

The Rhône river is more than 800 kilometres long, and is one of the most important wine-growing rivers in the world, next to the Danube, Douro, Garonne, Loire, Mosel and Rhine. The source of the river is a glacial stream in the Urna Alps in Switzerland, then flows through the Valais, where it is known as the Rotten, into Lake Geneva, crosses the French border, turns south at Lyon, and flows into the Mediterranean south of Arles-sur-Rhône. In the 6th century BC, the Greeks founded the city of Marseille (Massilia) at the mouth of the Rhône on the Mediterranean coast, and brought vines to the valley. A pact with Rome led to the region becoming a part of the Roman province of Narbonensis. The Romans were involved in viticulture here from the 1st century AD, as is documented by numerous amphorae, statues of the wine god Bacchus as well as many mosaics with wine motifs found here. Since then, wine has been transported up the Rhône river. The Celts (Gauls) too were involved in viticulture in what are now the famous regions of Côte Rôtie and Hermitage. Many items of interest can be viewed at the „Musée de la Civilisation Gallo-Romaine” in Lyon. It is claimed that the favourite wine drunk in the Rhône valley in the 1st century AD was the legendary Falernian. In his book ”Naturalis Historia”, the elder Pliny (23-79 AD) describes a grape variety called Allobrogica, which was cultivated here by the Allobrogians, a Celtic tribe. The papal court was moved to Avignon in the early 14th century, providing a further stimulus for viticulture. Around three quarters of the wine drunk at the papal court was sourced from the Rhône valley. The name of the famous region of Châteauneuf-du-Pape is derived from the castle of pope John XXII. (1245-1334 AD), which he had built as a summer residence 16 kilometres north of Avignon.

The Rhône wine-growing region, or „La Vallée du Rhône” is a stretch of around 200 kilometres, running due south from Lyon to Avignon in south-eastern France. Some 60.000 hectares of vineyards lie to both sides of the Rhône river and its tributaries, distributed over six départements: Ardèche, Drôme, Gard, Loire, Rhône and Vaucluse. Only a very small area in the far north is located in the département Rhône, and surprisingly enough this ist he source of 70% of the production of the neighbouring region to the north, Burgundy. The Rhône runs parallel to the Loire, which gave its name to this large wine-growing region located to the east, over a distance of some 150 kilometres. At this point, the two rivers lie only around 50 kilometres apart, but flow in opposite directions. The long. Stretched out wine-growing region is divided into two sections, „Rhône Septentrional” (septentrional = northern) and „Rhône Méridional” (méridional = southern). The two sections are very different in terms of climate, soils and grape varieties. A feature both share is the mistral, a cold, dry north wind. Many vineyards are lined with poplar and cypress trees to provide protection from this wind. The wines from the left (eastern) bank are generally considered to be heavier and more alcoholic.

The northern section begins at the city of Vienne, close to the appellations of Château-Grillet, Condrieu and Côte Rôtie. It stretches due south as far as the city of Valence, where the appellations of Cornas and Saint-Péray are located. The climate is continental, the soils are dominated by granite and slate. The vineyards are often located on steep terraced slopes with a gradient of up to 65 degrees. Syrah, which is the only permitted red variety, dominates here. The most important white varieties are Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier. The large majority of wines produced is red, dark, concentrated and tannic. These are mainly produced in a classic style, less dependent on new oak than the wines of Bordeaux or Burgundy. Further south there is a gap of 50 kilometres on the river in which no vines are grown. However, to the east of this gap lies the appellation Clairette de Die. The southern section begins near the town of Montélimar, and stretches south as far as Avignon. The climate is Mediterranean, the soils are varied, with clay on a limestone-rich sub-soil dominating. Here, too, mainly red wines are produced, the most important variety is Grenache Noir. In total, however, 21 different red varieties are permitted, leading to a wide range of blends and different styles. Other important varieties are Carignan, Cinsaut, Mourvèdre, Muscat Blanc and Picpoul. The southern section is dominated by the regional appellation Côtes du Rhône (which also includes some small areas in the northern section), as well as by the higher classification Côtes du Rhône-Villages, which is found only here. The most important appellations in the Rhône region are:

* Beaumes-de-Venise (Côtes du Rhône Beaumes-de-Venise)
* Brézème-Côtes du Rhône
* Château-Grillet
* Châteauneuf-du-Pape
* Châtillon-en-Diois
* Clairette de Die (Clairette de Die Méthode Dioise Ancestrale)
* Collines Rhodaniennes (vin de pays)
* Comtés Rhodaniens (vin de pays)
* Condrieu
* Cornas
* Coteaux de Die
* Coteaux de Pierrevert
* Coteaux du Tricastin
* Côte Rôtie
* Côtes du Lubéron
* Côtes du Rhône
* Côtes du Rhône-Villages (with an additional 16 communal appellations)
* Côtes du Ventoux
* Cotes du Vivarais (C.d.V. Orgnac, C.d.V. St-Remèze, C.d.V. St-Montan)
* Crémant de Die
* Crozes-Hermitage
* Drôme (vin de pays)
* Gigondas
* Hermitage (Hermitage Vin de Paille)
* Lirac
* Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise
* Rasteau (Côtes du Rhône Rasteau, Rasteau Rancio)
* Sables du Golfe du Lion (vin de pays)
* Saint-Joseph
* Saint-Péray
* Tavel
* Vacqueyras