Harvesting in the Ardèche
🍇 Between mid-August and the end of September, it’s all buzz in the vineyards for the Ardèche grape harvest. From the first light of day, the winegrowers get down to harvesting the grapes, and in the vineyards, you can watch the round of tractors and harvesting machines. It’s this sun-drenched fruit, harvested with love, that will make the next great vintages from our winegrowers 💜
History of vines and wine in the Ardèche
🧐 Vines first appeared in the Ardèche over 2,000 years ago, well before the Roman conquest. However, it was not until the Middle Ages that the vineyards and wines of the Vivarais acquired a certain renown. By the beginning of the 20th century, the vineyard had grown to over 25,000 hectares and winegrowers were grouping together. This marked the emergence of cooperative wine cellars, which still vinify up to 90% of the harvest today.
In the early 1960s, the vineyards of the southern Ardèche had just one appellation, Côtes-du-Rhône de Bourg-Saint-Andéol. But for the most part, Ardèche méridionale production was made up of ordinary wines that easily found a commercial outlet as blended wines.
But a handful of men were to work to change this economic model and promote quality winegrowing, requiring a complete change in methods and attitudes. The Ardèche vineyards went through an essential stage: conversion. Hybrid plants were uprooted and, depending on the terroir, noble grape varieties such as Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Gamay, Cabernet-Sauvignon or Merlot were replanted.
Nearly 90% of the vineyards have been restructured in this way, and Ardèche wines have now acquired their letters of nobility 🍷
Southern Ardèche wines
In the Sud Ardèche, the vineyards are spread over 3 denominations:
🍇 IGP Ardèche and IGP Ardèche mention Côteaux de l’Ardèche, produced throughout the department
🍇 PDO Côtes du Vivarais: Bidon, Gras, Larnas, Labastide-de-Virac, Orgnac-l’Aven, Saint-Montan, Saint-Remèze, Lagorce, Vinezac + Gard
🍇 PDO Côtes du Rhône and Côtes du Rhône Village Saint-Andéol: Bourg-Saint-Andéol, Saint-Just-d’Ardèche, Saint-Marcel-d’Ardèche and Saint-Martin-d’Ardèche.
