The appellation Côte Roannaise might not be familiar to you. A long way from us here in Noizay, the vineyards are situated between Clermont-Ferrand and Lyon and are some of the most southerly in the Loire.
Wines of the Cote Roannaise are red or rosé from the Gamay grape (the same grape you find in Beaujolais).
At the beginning of the 19th century there were 9,350 hectares of vines around Roanne with around 100,000 hl being sold to Paris (10 million litres!). Prices were high and the wines were very popular.
Gradually, other crops replaced vines and phylloxera took its toll. Production fell dramatically between 1910 and the 1950’s and it was not until 1994 that it became an appellation wine.
Today the vineyards of the Cote Roannaise are spread along a 20km coteau . Just 215 hectares of vineyards on granite soils, perfectly suited to the Gamay grape.
Around 30 independent wine growers make wine in the appellation. Domaine Sérol is perhaps the best known but we also love the wines of Vincent Giraudon.
Gamay is truly suited to the terroir and makes fabulous wines that have beautiful minerality and balance.
