Provence

In an effort to shed some light on how I study for WSET Diploma Course’s D3 exam, Le Club des Vins is running a series of posts covering wine regions. Today’s topic: Provence.

📍 Location

The Provence is located in the southeast corner of France and is known for its pale pink rosé.⠀⠀⠀

In a nutshell

France
Known for its pale pink rosé
Warm mediterranean climate
Cinsault, grenache, tibouren

⠀☁️ Climate

Warm mediterranean climate. There’s some cooling influence from the Le Mistral, a strong wind, which has both pros and cons. It can reduce fungal diseases but can also damage the vine or interrupt flowering. Altitude (up to 400m) can also have an moderating effect on temperature.⠀

🌋 Soils

Soils are varied, ranging from limestone in the west and granite in the east.

🍇 Grapes & styles

Rosés are typically made from cinsault, grenache and the local grape tibouren. Red wines are made from the same grapes plus mourvedre, syrah and carignan. There’s a bit of white made from rolle (vermentino) and clairette.

💡 Something you didn’t know (did you?)

The pale pink color of the Provence Rosé is related to the grapes used, they all have low levels of color. The grapes are pressed directly or undergo a short maceration (not more than a couple of hours). AOC rules indicate that the wines have to be fermented to dry and the temperature is restricted to between 14 and 18 degrees (so the end product is a fruity wine with delicate aromas and without pear drops / banana smell associated with very low temps).

Your turn now

I always put a new region on instagram first. If you have any additions or comments on a region, please do share. You can drop a comment on instagram or on the website – see below. Your help is much appreciated!