rhone valley

The Rhone valley stretches from northern France through to the mediterranean, but the final leg of the river is contained within the Provence region.

The northern Rhone down to Montélimar, ithe producers in the Côtes-du-Rhone region contain some well known areas like Hermitage. The climate here is continental with warm summers and cool winters. The soils are mainly granite with sand and chalk. The red wines tend to be dominated by the Syrah grape, with its smoky and blackberry flavours.

The southern Rhone contains the continuing Côtes-du-Rhone region (Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas to name but two) and Côtes-du-Rhone-Villages (including Beaumes de Venise and its sweet white wine). The climate is more mediterranean influenced with less seasonal variation in the temperatures. The main soils become limestone and pebbles and the red grape of choice becomes Grenache. The sweet white Beaumes-de-Venise is made from Muscat, but some other white grapes used in the area are Marsanne, Viognier and Grenache Blanc.

In both north and south the winds are strong and the Mistral can cause problems for growers. There are many plots on very steep slopes in the Rhone Valley which makes for some spectacular views.

The organic and biodynamic grower figures for 2005 show 155 producers growing on about 1200 hectares.

Our partners in this region are: 

Domaine Benedetti (Chateauneuf du Pape),

Domaine le Garrigon producing great Côtes-du-Rhone wines, and

Domaine Saint Henri with some lovely organic Vacqueyras and Gigondas.