Ultimate Provence Rose Wine | Cotes De Provence Rose | Seductively-refreshing | 75cl

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Cassis, on the Mediterranean coast, was the first AOC in Provence, created in 1936. The village sits at the edge of the limestone national park called “ Les Calanques”, a series of inlets carved out of the cliffs by the sea over centuries past. Provence wines share many characteristics, and yet you’ll find enough variety to keep your tastebuds tantalised. Whether you’re planning a wine tasting at home or a long-yearned for trip to the South of France, I hope this guide to the Provence wine region has helped quench your thirst! These shale soils are perfect for growing Grenache, Syrah and Cinsault grapes for rosé and reds, which Pierrefeu vineyards mostly export – about 470,000 litres per year (124,000 US gallons).

Planted by the Romans in 100 BC, there are now over 25 different types of grape, with 16 allowed in the whites and 15 in the reds. Mourvèdre is the main red grape, whilst the whites (which are about 40% of what the region produces) must contain 55% of Clairette grape. South of France vineyards – and the varieties of Provence wine they produce – are as loved as the local lavender and Mediterranean coastline. It’s recorded as among the oldest wine regions in France and is undoubtedly among the most popular. So it may come as a surprise that the vines themselves were actually an import – in the form of a gift from the Phocaeans. Whilst its vines were lost by the same Phylloxera epidemic in the 19 th century, Bandol’s sandy, limestone, arid, infertile soil is perfect for the Mourvèdre red grape, which accounts for the spice and power found in these wines of Provence.Today, Provence rosé wine accounts for 82% of the total wine produced in the region. The vineyards in Provence produce more rosé than any other region in the world, and 40% of all French rosé comes from here. It’s no wonder then, that its reputation precedes itself. Coteaux Varois de Provence was created in 1993 to cover the Provence vineyards north of Toulon. It is characterised by limestone mountain ranges – the Massif des Maures in the south-east and the Massif de Saint-Baume in the north. Palette is one of the smallest Provence wine regions found in the hills to the east of Aix-en-Provence. Just as its name suggests, it has an astonishingly wide colour palette of red, white and rosé wines, all of which grow over limestone soils from the nearby Sainte-Victoire mountain.

Rosé wine makes up of about one-third of Bandol vineyard’s output. Alexandre Dumas’ Count of Monte Cristo in 1844 famously enjoyed a glass of Bandol rosé, “bien frais” but if Cassis is known for its white wine, its coastal neighbour, Bandol, is very definitely red. The hilly landscapes and Mistral wind keep the skies clear, so the vines don’t rot, and in turn, they need less chemicals to grow. For this reason, over 85% of the area is farmed organically and local producers have been campaigning to become the first completely organic AOC in France. The region is also called the “Valley of Hell” because it gets so hot in the summer. French geologist Pierre Berthier discovered aluminium ore in the valley, giving it the name Bauxite, after the local town. The city of Nice, on the Côte d’Azur, sits at the far side of Provence and many of its hillsides form the very small wine region of Bellet. Its dominant white grape is Rolle and it is the only AOC in Provence that can add Chardonnay grapes to its blends.It’s rare to find Bellet wine outside of Nice and north-western Italy, as most is drunk by locals and visiting tourists, although vineyards in Bellet today are under threat from more profitable tourism investments such as real estate. Bellet’s rosé wine actually smells of roses, produced by blending Braquet and Folle Noire grapes. This inhospitable climate, which allegedly inspired Dante’s Inferno, makes it perfect for producing all its red wines, from a mixture of GSM with some Cabernet Sauvignon grapes – which makes the red wine not too dissimilar from that found in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, 20 miles (30km) to the north. verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{

In the mid 19th century, insects were carried by steam ships from America to France and wiped out many Provence vineyards in the Phylloxera epidemic. Since that time, Cassis has been known for its white wines, as it was the white Marsanne grape which was replanted. Cassis’ white wines have strong citrus, peach, honey and herb flavours. It has quartz soil, which means it retains heat and produces grapes with lower acidity. La Londe is predominantly rosé, using Cinsault and Grenache grapes with Syrah, Tibouren, Mourvèdre and Rolle added in. Nestled next to the Luberon, Pierrevert is the most northerly AOC in Provence, with grapes which mirror those found in the Rhône Valley to the north. Obtaining its AOC in 1998, the region is made up of 11 parishes in the foothills of the Alps, at some of the highest altitudes for any French vineyard, some reaching 1,000 metres (3,000 ft) above sea level; the altitude increases the wine’s acidity. This area north of the naval city of Toulon is characterised by shale soils with sand, clay and limestone deposits. As the land gently heads downhill to Marseille, the local garrigue scrubland gives the wine a tinge of wild fennel. The Luberon is an area of three mountain ranges in Provence with picturesque villages hung precariously on the sides of cliffs.Much of Provence’s landscape is covered in limestone soil, which is perfect for growing vines. In the west, this limestone came from an ancient shallow sea, which once covered the land. Further east, the soil is made of granite and in one area, it is volcanic. These differences affect when harvesting occurs, with a time lag of as much as 60 days between the coast and the cooler, inland areas.

Provence white wine must be at least 50% Rolle. The next 30% must be any combination of Clairette, Grenache Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Ugni Blanc. Bourboulenc and Semillon grapes must make up the remainder. This is the second-largest AOC grown in Provence vineyards, to the west of the region. The geology determines that all vineyards in the AOC Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence have limestone soil in various forms. Its reds and rosés use a blend of 70% GSM with up to 30% of Cinsault, Counoise, Carignan and Cabernet Sauvignon allowed. In all of the south of France vineyards, Pierrevert is the only wine region in Provence allowed to use it. All of the wine from this Provence wine region is consumed by locals and visitors and very little is exported. The red grapes used in Côtes de Provence rosé wine are primarily a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre grapes. These three grapes blend well together­– they even have their own acronym, GSM. The Mourvèdre gives its tannins, colour and body to the wine, Grenache gives spice, red fruit and alcohol. And Syrah gives structure and dark fruit tones. The Sainte-Victoire mountain is an 11 miles long (18km) limestone ridge on the outskirts of Aix-en-Provence, which produces 80% rosé wine and 20% red, from its limestone soils. Celebrated French painter, Paul Cezanne, born and raised in Aix-en-Provence so loved the Sainte-Victoire mountain that he painted it over 180 times.

The Phocaeans found optimal vine growing conditions in Provence 2,600 years ago. The mountain ranges provide ideal slopes and sheltered valleys, with warm days and cool evenings. The Mediterranean breezes and the Mistral wind from the Alps, clear the skies of pests. There is not a lot of rain and Provence averages 2,700-3,000 golden hours of sunshine each year (much more than the minimum 1,400 required to grow vines). This is the highest point (hence the ‘angels” in the title) of the Massif des Maures at an altitude of 767 metres (2,516 ft) and home to the 10 local communities who produce wine. Among the pine trees, chestnut groves and oaks, the area produces reds and rosés from a blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah grapes with a helpful addition of Carignan, which provides some lovely cherry, raspberry and plum aromas. The 5% of white wines produced here are different from the typical wine of Provence in that they are made predominantly of Rolle, Semillon and Ugni Blanc grapes, which gives them less acidity. There is so much that defines a bottle of wine – the marketing, the label, the shape, how it is sealed, stored, and for how long. With the wine from Provence, as elsewhere, so much is also decided before the grapes are even harvested – by the climate (how much rain, versus how much sun), by the altitude and angle of the earth, and by the type of soil the vines are grown in. The Cabernet Sauvignon grape was introduced in the 1960s and is allowed in some AOC blends in the wine of Provence, but additional blends usually favour Tibouren.