Lirac AOC
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Lirac is a wine-growing AOC in the departement of the Gard situated in the low hills along the right bank of the Rhône river in the southern Rhône wine region of France. Bordering on the neighbouring cru of Tavel AOC, arosé only cru in the next village, Lirac is one of the 13 crus of the Rhône valley family. On the opposite river bank is the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape vineyard.
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[edit] History
Lirac wines have been produced in the region since pre Roman times and were the favourite wines of kings and the the papal community in Avignon at the time of the schism. In the mid 17th century the right-bank district of Côte du Rhône had issued regulations to govern the quality of its wine and in 1737 the king ordered that casks of Lirac wine shipped from the nearby river port of Roquemaure should be branded with the letters CDR to introduce a system of protecting its origin. The rules for its Côte du Rhône thus formed the very early basis of today's nationwide AOC system governed by the INAO[1]. The name was changed to Côtes du Rhône when the left-bank wines were included in the appellation some hundred years later. The appellation received full recognition by a High Court decision in 1937.[2] In the 1930s, Count Henri de Régis, the owner of the Château de Ségriès in the heart of the village of Lirac improved the quality of his wines until in 1945 he obtained the highest distinction, a cru, of the Côtes du Rhône. Two years later in 1947 the appellation was confirmed by government decree. Lirac is the oldest wine in the Côtes du Rhône region and was the first to be produced in all three colours: red, rosé, and white.
| Rhône (wine region) | |
| Official name | Lirac AOC |
|---|---|
| Appellation type | AOC |
| Year established | 1945 |
| Years of wine industry | 2,000 |
| Country | France |
| Part of | Rhône Valley |
| Other regions in vicinity | Laudun AOC |
| Climate region | mediteranean |
| Soil conditions | sandy, loess, quartzite pebblesM |
| Planted area (ha) | 619 |
| Yield (hl/ha) | 42 |
| Yield (hl) | 19,500 |
| No. of vineyards | 100 |
| Grapes produced | Grenache blanc, grenache noir, syrah, morvèdre, cinsault, carignan, bourboulenc |
| No. of wineries | 53 |
| Wine produced | red, white, rosé |
| Data | 2005 |
| Key | ha: hectares, hl: hectolitres, hl/ha: hectolitres per hectare |
[edit] Wines
Red wines are made from Grenache Noir(minimum 40%), Syrah and Mourvèdre (minimum of 25% together, Cinsault, Carignan (maximum 10%).
Rosé: The same varieties are used as for the red, and up to 20% of the allowed varieties for white wine may be used.
White wines are produced from Clairette, Grenache Blanc and Bourboulenc No variety may be used in a proportion greater than 60%.
The minimum alcohol for all three colours is decreed at 11.5%.
[edit] Economy[3]
The Lirac wines are produced by a total of 100 concerns which include 93 growers, 43 private wineries, 6 cooperative wineries, and one producer/merchant. The vinyards are located in the four communes of Lirac, Saint-Laurent-des-Arbres, Saint-Géniès-de-Comolas, and Roquemaure.
[edit] See also
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