📜 Cairanne

Cairanne is a French protected designation of origin (AOC) for red and white wines from the municipality of Cairanne in the department of Vaucluse, in the southern Rhône Valley. It has been in the EU register since 11 June 2018.

The red wines are produced mainly from Grenache noir associated with Syrah and Mourvèdre. The specification describes them as generous, with high colour intensity, red fruit aromas and a floral fragrance. The white wines are produced mostly from Clairette, Grenache blanc and Roussanne. The main varieties listed are Grenache noir, Grenache blanc, Clairette, Mourvèdre, Syrah and Roussanne. The specification adds that Grenache must make up at least 50% of the blend, against 40% for Côtes du Rhône Villages.

Red wines have a minimum natural alcoholic strength of 12.5% vol and a maximum total alcoholic strength of 14% vol. White wines have a minimum of 12% vol and a maximum of 13.5% vol. Maximum total sulphur dioxide is 100 mg/l for reds and 150 mg/l for whites.

The maximum yield is 40 hectolitres per hectare for red wines and 42 hectolitres per hectare for white wines. Harvesting is manual, with sorting of the grapes, and continuous presses, wood chips and heat treatment above 40 °C are prohibited.

The grapes are harvested and the wines made, developed and aged within the municipality of Cairanne, whose demarcated area covers 2,042 hectares. The name has been recognised since 1953 as a complementary geographical designation of Côtes du Rhône and since 1999 of Côtes du Rhône Villages.