Wines
of the Rhone Valley
Wines
of Côtes du Rhône can
be separated into two geographic areas:
Northern
vineyards :
Côte
Rôtie
The Côte
Rôtie with its hills bathed in sun, produces
a warm, robust, full-bodied, richly colored red wine.
Harsh and dark when they are young those wines become
softer and develop with age an excellent bouquet.
Two grape-varieties dominate the production, Viognier and Syrah.
Wines of Côte Rôtie are often considered
as the best Côtes du Rhône.
Hermitage
The
"Coteaux (slope) de l'Hermitage" dominates the small
town of Tain l'Hermitage. The first plantations date
from the 10th century but it is under Louis the XIV that
l'Hermitage obtains its credential letters... It was
the favourite cru of the Tsar court in Russia.
The red wines of Hermitage are
generous and well balanced, strong aromas and a complete
bouquet. They tolerate aging very well and become smooth
and mellow when they mature.
Southern
vineyards :
The
southern vineyards produce 80% of Côtes du Rhône
wines.
Châteauneuf-du-Pape
The Châteauneuf
du Pape is the most famous Côtes du Rhône
wine. The "Coteaux"
(slope) is between Orange and Avignon, in one of the
most beautiful landscapes of Provence, where the Popes
had their summer residence.
The Châteauneuf du Pape is thick, harsh, powerful
and richly colored. It is elaborated with 13 authorized
and controlled grape-varieties among which Syrah, Grenache and Clairette.
They
are produced in large quantity and are of a very
good value for every day consumption.
Read
more about Côtes du Rhône wines with Amazon.com
:
- Rhone
Valley: The 90 Greatest Wines
About
the Rhone Valley wine region :
Wines
of Rhône - Côtes
du Rhône wine information - Côtes
du Rhône region information - Rhône
wine history - Rhône
wine making - Côtes
du Rhône map - Rhône
wine and food - Buy
Rhône wines - Rhône
main page
Wines
from Côtes du Rhône :
Côte
Rôtie - Condrieu - Château
Grillet - Hermitage - Crozes
Hermitage - Cornas - Côtes
du Rhône aoc - Côtes
du Rhône villages - Gigondas - Châteauneuf
du Pape - Côtes
du Ventoux - Wines
from Côtes du Rhône
Other
french wine regions :
Alsace - Bordeaux - Burgundy - Champagne - Corsica - Languedoc-Roussillon - Loire
Valley - Provence - South
West
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