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France

Southern Rhône

66 000 ha under vine

Soils
Rolled quartzite pebbles — galets — over clay, with sands, marls and limestone screes
Climate
Mediterranean, swept dry and clear by the mistral

On the map

Southern Rhône — 66 000 haLanguedoc — 220 000 haBordeaux — 110 000 haSicily — 98 000 haVeneto — 96 000 haPuglia — 87 000 haRioja — 66 000 haTuscany — 60 000 haLoire Valley — 57 000 haEmilia-Romagna — 50 000 haKakheti — 48 000 haSouth-West France — 45 000 haPiedmont — 43 000 haDouro — 43 000 haChampagne — 34 000 haAbruzzo — 33 000 haUtiel-Requena — 32 000 haBurgundy — 29 500 haProvence — 27 000 haSardinia — 27 000 haFriuli — 25 000 haRibera del Duero — 25 000 haPenedès — 25 000 haPfalz — 23 000 haCampania — 23 000 haAlentejo — 22 000 haMinho — 21 000 haRueda — 20 000 haDão — 20 000 haMarche — 16 000 haAlsace — 15 600 haBeaujolais — 13 500 haBurgenland — 13 000 haUmbria — 12 000 haCalabria — 9 000 haMosel — 8 800 haDalmatia — 8 000 haJerez — 7 000 haCyprus — 7 000 haAttica — 6 500 haFranken — 6 100 haCorsica — 6 000 haTokaj — 5 800 haAlto Adige — 5 600 haValais — 4 800 haNorthern Rhône — 4 400 haRías Baixas — 4 300 haNahe — 4 200 haSussex & Kent — 4 000 haRheingau — 3 200 haBierzo — 3 000 haNemea — 3 000 haSavoie — 2 200 haJura — 2 000 haPriorat — 2 000 haWachau — 1 350 haValdeorras — 1 300 haSantorini — 1 100 haNaoussa — 700 haMadeira — 450 haColares — 20 haSouthern RhôneLanguedocBordeauxSicilyVenetoPugliaRiojaTuscanyLoire ValleyEmilia-RomagnaKakhetiSouth-West FrancePiedmontDouroChampagneAbruzzoUtiel-RequenaBurgundyProvenceSardiniaFriuliRibera del DueroPenedèsPfalzCampaniaAlentejoMinhoRuedaDãoMarcheAlsaceBeaujolaisBurgenlandUmbriaCalabriaMoselDalmatiaJerezCyprusAtticaFrankenCorsicaTokajAlto AdigeValaisNorthern RhôneRías BaixasNaheSussex & KentRheingauBierzoNemeaSavoieJuraPrioratWachauValdeorrasSantoriniNaoussaMadeiraColares
Blob size ≈ vineyard area · approximate locations · coastlines from Natural Earth

Rome's Gallia Narbonensis, planted within a generation of the legions' arrival, and still recognisably Roman country: olive, vine and garrigue under a hard blue sky. The mistral scours the valley clean of cloud and rot; the rolled quartzite pebbles — the galets — that pave Châteauneuf give back the day's furnace heat all night.

The Avignon popes gave the vineyard its first fame in the fourteenth century, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape gave France a template: Baron Le Roy's rules of 1936 made it a founding appellation contrôlée. Around it stretches the sea of the Côtes du Rhône, Grenache-led, warm and generous — the largest reservoir of serious everyday red in France.

The vineyard

Indicative share of plantings

The wines

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red wine

Through time

Indicative presence index, 0–100Origins & Antiquity — 5The Monastic Middle Ages — 40Exploration & the Fortified Age — 30Classifications & the Golden Age — 35Phylloxera & the World Crises — 35The Modern & New World Era — 60Antiquity5500150017001875195060
Origins & Antiquity Antiquity The Monastic Middle Ages 500 Exploration & the Fortified Age 1500 Classifications & the Golden Age 1700 Phylloxera & the World Crises 1875 The Modern & New World Era 1950