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Appellation · France

Vacqueyras

Gigondas’ flatter neighbour, warmer and rounder, and one of the Southern Rhône’s most dependable buys.

Vacqueyras AOCmediterraneanwarm
What to expect in the glass

Full-bodied dry red, warm and spicy, with ripe red fruit, garrigue and pepper. Soft tannin and generous alcohol. Drink at three to eight years.

About Vacqueyras

Vacqueyras lies just south of Gigondas on flatter, warmer, stonier ground, and became a cru in its own right in 1990.

The wines are rounder and warmer than Gigondas, with more overt fruit sweetness and softer tannin — closer in character to Châteauneuf, at a fraction of the price.

What the name means

Legal name
Vacqueyras AOC
Type
Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée / Protégée (AOC / AOP)
Set by
INAO
Recognised
1990
Regulates
Origin, plus grape varieties, maximum yields, minimum ageing.

The delimited area, permitted varieties, maximum yields, minimum alcohol, pruning and training methods, and in many cases minimum ageing. Administered by INAO.

Grapes

Wines from here

red

Southern Rhône blend

Grenache-led Mediterranean blends — warm, herbal and generous, and among the most reliable value in French wine.

Rules worth knowing

Confirmed in the EU register

Vacqueyras is registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), file number PDO-FR-A0151, protected at EU level since 1973.

Article 107 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Specification published: Ares(2020)7587676 · Official Journal

Only the rules that change what to expect in the glass or on the label. WineHQ does not reproduce production specifications, and each entry carries the date it was last checked because appellation rules change.

The designation is confirmed above. WineHQ has not read this appellation’s production specification, so it publishes no yields, ageing minima or permitted-variety lists for it — those come from the document linked above, not from a summary of it.

What to eat, and how to serve it

Derived from this region’s signature styles. Each is listed separately, because a region does not have one serving temperature.

Southern Rhône blend

Serve at 15–17°C (cellar cool).

Try with beef stew, lamb chops or steak and ale pie.

Where to go next

Places worth trying if you like this one — neighbours, rivals, and the obvious step across.

  • Gigondas — Grenache grown high beneath the limestone teeth of the Dentelles de Montmirail, giving a firmer, fresher answer to Châteauneuf.
  • Châteauneuf-du-Pape — The Southern Rhône’s flagship, France’s first appellation in all but name, and the wine with thirteen permitted grape varieties and a field of enormous stones.
  • Rasteau — A cru that makes both a dry red and a fortified sweet wine under the same name — an unusual pairing even in France.

Sources

Sources consulted