Côtes du Rhône Wine Making
Very diverse wines take most advantage of the weather and winemaking conditions of the Rhône valley.
The climate in Côtes du Rhône is hot and sunny, more constant than in the other French wine producing regions. The soil is stony, mainly made of granite.
The main grapes in Côtes du Rhône are Grenache, Syrah and Carignan for red wine, Clairette, Ugni Blanc and Grenache Blanc for white wine. Côtes du Rhône is also famous for the Viognier white wine made in the northern part of the region (Condrieu, Château Grillet) which is one of the most distinctive in France.
Over 75% of Côtes du Rhône wines are red. They are generally thick, robust and their alcoholic content higher than that of most French wines.
Côtes du Rhône wine making information:
Size of the vineyards:
70,000 hectares (170,000 acres)
Vineyards:
8 to 10,000 winemakers
Soil:
Granite in the north of the Rhône region
Limestone in the south
Weather:
Continental in the north of the Rhône region (cold winter warm summer)
Mediterranean in the south (mild winter hot summer)
Red Grapes in Rhône: Grenache 55%
Syrah 15%
Carignan 15%
Mourvèdre
White Grapes in Rhône: Clairette 35%
Grenache blanc 20%
Ugni blanc 20%
Bourboulenc
Marsanne
Roussanne
Viognier
Production:
450 million bottles
77% red wine - 8 % rosé - 5 % dry white wine
14% of French wine production
Type of Wine:
Full body red wine (north)
Light to medium body fruity red wine (south)
Dry full body white wine (north)
