Côtes du Rhône ~ Wine Region

 Wine has been made in France's Rhone Valley since before the Roman empire, and the decision in the 1700's to lay down rules for wines from the region and label them with "CDR" to insure quality and protect its reputation would be the inspiration for France's AOC system.

(This article was written for GrapeBunch, our weekly wine periodical. Click here to read the original!)

Rhone Valley is in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea, separated into two halves: Northen and Southern. The two are part of the same valley along the Rhone River but the regions are not connected. Northern Rhone is a thin strip that focuses mostly on Syrah, while Southern Rhone is larger and is more about blends based on the Grenache grape.

RHONE MAP BY WINE FOLLY

The appellation of Côtes du Rhône covers the entire Rhone region but it's mostly a Southern Rhone thing, and the orange above are the hot spots. Côtes du Rhône Villages comes from specific villages whose quality and rules allow them to qualify for the higher tier above Côtes du Rhône. That red spot is the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Red Côtes du Rhône must include two of these three varietals: Grenache, Syrah, or Mourvedré. Listing those three comes so naturally to the tongue, like they were always meant to be together. In Southern Rhone it must be at least 40% Grenache, while in the north it's Syrah instead. How much Mourvedré (or Syrah in the south, or Grenache in the North) that is included in the remainder of the blend is up to the winemaker. Up to 30% of the blend is allowed to include ten other varietals, with Carignan and Cinsault being two of the more well known ones. White CDR's are also very nice, utilizing mostly Rousanne, Marsanne, Viognier, and Grenache Blanc.

Julien from Social Vignerons discusses Vidal-Fluery Côtes du Rhône

In my opinion CDR is one of the perfect forms of red blends out there. It goes great in the cold months with beef stew, and it also goes great with the Spring as things start to warm up. It's no wonder they're imitated all over the world as "GSM's" (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedré), and why the "Rhone Rangers" of California adore them so much.

VIDAL-FLUERY CÔTES DU RHÔNE

Vidal-Fluery Côtes du Rhône is one of my favorite everyday affordable CDR's. Consistent and delicious. Check out my buddy Julien's video above from a few years ago! And while you're at it, follow his YouTube channel. You won't regret it.

This article was written for The GrapeBunch Wine Periodical.

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Joey Casco
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