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Val de Loire · Loire du Massif central · Red and rosé

Côtes du Forez — terroir, soils & grape varieties

The most southerly of the Loire Valley's gamay appellations, at the foot of the Monts du Forez. On its granitic sandy soils, it gives lively, fruity reds and rosés, in an easy-drinking mountain register.

At the Foot of the Monts du Forez

Across seventeen communes in the Loire département, the plain and hillsides of the Forez carry a vineyard devoted entirely to gamay, in red and rosé. Granted AOC status in 2000, the appellation belongs to the group of Loire vineyards in the Massif Central, alongside neighbouring Côte roannaise.

Terroir and Style

The soils, essentially sandy arena, come from the weathering of the granitic and metamorphic rocks (schist, gneiss) that form the bedrock of the Monts du Forez. On this high-altitude crystalline terroir, gamay yields light, fruity reds and lively rosés, best drunk young for their brightness — fresh, generous wines of pleasure.

The grape varieties of Côtes du Forez

Gamay →sole variety — fruit and freshness
Buy a Côtes du Forez →
Sources: Wikipédia — Côtes du Forez (AOC)