Corbières

Corbières takes its name from the Corbières hills in southern France, that reach from Narbonne and Carcassonne to the north and Perpignan and the Pyrenees mountains to the south.

Within this wide area, the Corbières Appellation spreads over 87 villages in 11 different areas known as ‘Terroir’ and covers 19,000ha of vines. Corbières is the first AOC in Languedoc and fourth in France in terms of volume produced with an annual average of 600,000hl.

94% of all Corbières is red, 4% rosé and 2% white. Red Corbières is made of a blend of Carignan, Grenache and Syrah. The Rosé is blended between Syrah, Cinsault and Grenache Gris. The White is Grenache Blanc, Maccabeu and/or Muscat.

Mont Tauch is part of the ‘Terroir de Durban’ centred around the village of Durban, which makes some of the best Corbières available.

History

The origins of the Corbières vineyard date back to the Greeks, but the Romans were the ones who developed wine production in the area. At one time, the wines of Narbonne were so popular that they became harsh competition to the indigenous practice back in Rome. At the end of Roman occupation, the area was subject to a number of successive invasions that destroyed a large amount of the vineyards.

In the middle Ages, the monks from the abbeys of Lagrasse and Fontfroide restored the reputation of Corbières wines, which were even served at the court of Charlemagne. But war once again, in the form of the Albigensian Crusade, ended the time of prosperity and it wasn’t until the 18th century that things got better. The 19th century witnessed vast replanting campaigns as vines begin to be seen on the steep slopes of the area. By the mid-1800s, 25% of all cultivated land in Aude was planted with vines.

At the dawn of the 20th century, the wines of Corbières had gained a fantastic reputation. However, increased competition and the lack of control over the quality of the wine, culminated in the 1907 sales crisis and violent riots followed. These events encouraged the growers to regroup the following year in the Union of the Vine-growers of Corbières (le Syndicat de Défense des Corbières Viticoles). This grouping covered a vast and badly defined area, thus in 1923 a delimited production area was decided.

In 1951, the Appellation was awarded the VDQS seal (Vin Délimité de Qualité Supérieure), which recognised its quality and in 1985, Corbières finally became an AOC.