Savoy () is a

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

region situated in the

Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...

region in eastern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, and is sometimes referred to as the country of the

Allobroges The Allobroges (Gaulish language, Gaulish: *''Allobrogis'', 'foreigner, exiled'; ) were a Gauls, Gallic people dwelling in a large territory between the Rhône river and the Alps during the Iron Age Europe, Iron Age and the Roman period. The Allob ...

. It is the only

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

wine region in France, and is known for

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

varieties rarely grown elsewhere, including

Jacquère Jacquère () is a variety of white grape found primarily in the Savoy wine region of France. It is a high-yielding vine variety which is used to produce lightly scented, refreshing and gently aromatic dry white wine, such as Vin de Savoie. Ja ...

Roussanne Roussanne () is a white wine grape grown originally in the Rhône wine region in French wine, France, where it is often blended with Marsanne. It is the only other white variety, besides Marsanne, allowed in the northern Rhône appellation d'Orig ...

Altesse Altesse () or Roussette () is a white French wine grape variety found primarily in the Savoy wine region of France. It yields small harvests and ripens late but is resistant to grey rot. Wines made from Altesse have exotic aromas, often togeth ...

(also known as Roussette) and Gringet for white wines, and

Mondeuse Mondeuse noire () is a red French wine grape variety that is grown primarily in the Savoy wine, Savoy region of eastern France. The grape can also be found in Argentina (wine), Argentina, Australia (wine), Australia, California (wine), Califor ...

for reds. The Savoyard appellations (labels) are distributed through four

departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie () is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its Prefectures in France, prefecture is Annecy. To the north is Lake Gene ...

Ain Ain (, ; ) is a French department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...

Isère Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.

and

Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population o ...

. Crépy near Lake Geneva and Seyssel in the Ain are easy to locate. But wines labelled

Roussette de Savoie Roussette de Savoie () is an ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) for white wine in the Savoy wine region of France. The AOC covers much of the Western part of the Savoie AOC for wines made at least in part from the regional grape variety kn ...

and

Vin de Savoie Vin de Savoie () is an ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (French, AOC) and Protected Designation of Origin (EU, PDO) for red and white wines in the Savoy wine region of France, which is located in the foothills of the Alps. The region is divide ...

can come from anywhere in the wine growing area, unless the label display the name of a village in addition to the

appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the ingredients of a food or beverage originated, most often used for the origin of wine grapes. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, s ...

. There are four Roussette villages (

Frangy Frangy () is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Haute-Savoie department The following is a list of the 279 Communes of France, communes ...

, Monthoux, Marestel and Monterminod) and seventeen "Vin de Savoie" villages, the best known being Apremont,

Chignin Chignin (; ) is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. The village of Chignin is located between the communes of Les Marches, Montmélian, Saint-Jeoire-Prieuré and Challes-les-Eaux, b ...

, Chautagne and Arbin.

AOC wines

*Chignin Bergeron – Chignin-Bergeron cru of the

appellation in the

region of eastern France. The name is taken from the village of

. Bergeron is the local name of the

grape variety, from which Chignin-Bergeron wines are made. To be called "Chignin-Bergeron," the grapes must come from vineyards in the Francin, Montmelian and Chignin communes. *Chignin – Chignin is another cru of the Vin de Savoie appellation also named after the village of Chignin. These white wines are made from Jacquere grapes and are dry and light. They are less well known than the other Roussanne white wines, sold as Chignin-Bergeron. *Roussette de Savoie Monterminod – One of the four named crus of the

appellation, Monterminod is located above the village of

Saint-Alban-Leysse Saint-Alban-Leysse () is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It is part of the urban area of Chambéry.alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical climate for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of alpine cli ...

. Their elevation makes them less susceptible to low-lying frosts and they are sheltered from

extreme weather Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...

by the surrounding peaks rising to more than 4000 ft (1220 m). The wines of Monterminod and the other three crus are subject to stringent production conditions, including lower maximum yield and higher minimum alcohol levels than basic Roussette de Savoie wines.Wine Searche
Roussette de Savoie Monterminod Wines

Other grapes and wines

– another white grape of the Savoie and neighboring

Bugey The Bugey (, ; Arpitan: ''Bugê'') is a historical region in the department of Ain, eastern France, located between Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saôn ...

, also known as Roussette. *Pinot gris – Grape variety for white wine, muted of the Pinot noir. The skin of this grape has a color that can vary from almost black to white and from pale blue to pink. The color of the wine can also have a hint of pink. *Mondeuse – Mondeuse is a red wine with bluish tones. *Mondeuse d’Arbin – Mondeuse d’Arbin is also a red wine from Mondeuse with intense red deep color. *Pinot noir – Pinot is a wine with a high alcohol content (12 to 13°) and a scarlet raisin color.

References

External links

Local map

Wine regions of France Savoy {{Portal bar, Wine, France