Rhone Valley Red Wines

The Côtes du Rhône descend the Rhône for 200 km between Vienne and Avignon. You should know that from 1937, the Côtes du Rhône were classified as AOC, it was a first in France. There was already at that time the desire to mark the specificities of each region of red wine production.

The red wines of the Rhône Valley, which represent approximately 90% of production volumes, can be classified into two main categories, the wines of the North (Northern) such as Côte Rôtie, St Joseph red, Cornas, Crozes Hermitage red, Hermitage red and wines from the south of the "Southern" Rhône Valley such as Châteauneuf du Pape, Gigondas, Beaumes de Venise, Vacqueyras, Lirac, Vinsobres, Rasteau and the vast majority of Côtes du Rhône and Côtes du Rhône Villages. Other beautiful appellations also deserve their place in this Article, Ventoux and Luberon, Grignan les Adhémar the new name of formerly the Coteaux du Tricastin (a little too marked by the image of the nuclear power plant ....)

Rhône red wines are naturally rich and opulent.

The rise in temperatures, which sometimes leads to over-ripeness of the grapes and therefore wines that are too heavy in alcohol, is a real issue. The winegrowers monitor this particularly in order to produce "drinkable" wines.

Which grape varieties for the red wines of the Rhône Valley?

Give honour where honour is due !! We can affirm that Syrah is the grape variety par excellence for the red wines of the Rhône. Some vineyards such as Châteauneuf du Pape go so far as to authorize 13.
the most frequently used are grenache for its tannins and aromatic qualities, cinsault provides finesse and elegance; other grape varieties such as Carignan and Mourvèdre are making a place for themselves in the sun.