The Rhône Valley/Le Vins de la Vallée du Rhône (Comité
Interprofession des vins AOC Côtes et vallée du Rhône) Phocaean
Greeks established viticulture in the Rhone as far back as 600
BC, but until the 14th century the wines were not seen outside
the region. The establishment of the Avignonese Papacy
(1305-1377) brought fame to the region's wine-so much so that
their Burgundian neighbors to the north banned wines from the
Rhone in 1446, a measure that effectively cut off trade with
England and other Northern European markets for over 200 years.
Stretching southward from Lyon to just south of Avignon, the
Rhone produces a wide variety of wines, with the appellations
north of Valence producing the least (in volume), and the towns
south of Montelimar producing prodigious amounts. As in other
regions, the most interesting wines come from small farms.
Saint-Joseph, in the northern Rhone, extends for some distance
between Condrieu in the north to Saint-Peray in the south. The
reds are made from Syrah and the rare whi