Wines with strong characters: the Cévennes d’Ardèche terroir is ideal for the Chatus grape variety.
Grapes
Vernon village
The Ardèche vineyards have proved their outstanding credentials by obtaining the wine tourism label. The winegrowers’ efforts have multiplied the grape varieties selected: Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, not forgetting the oldest among them, Chatus, which gives a wine for cellaring, matured in oak barrels.
You can enjoy tours and tastings at many of the area’s wineries:
- Château des Lèbres
- Caveau des Vignerons de la Croisée de Jales
- Domaine de Cassagnole
- Cave de Lablachère
- Caveau La Cévenole
- Domaine du Grangeon
Chatus, or the excellence of the Cevennes terroir
Chatus was the main grape variety grown in the 19th century on the edge of the Cevennes in Bas Vivarais area.
A few plots survived the phylloxera crisis in the 1880s. Now over a hundred years old, these vines have made it possible to revive this famous wine that now takes pride of place for Cevennes winegrowers.
The cultivated terraces known as “faïsses” provide the ideal terrain for this now highly-prized grape variety to flourish.
Harvested by hand, vinified according to traditional methods and matured in oak barrels, Chatus gives a distinguished wine with excellent cellaring potential.
It’s the ideal partner for red meat, Provençale cooking, goat cheese and dark chocolate!
A centenarian plot in Vernon
The oldest Chatus vine stock is found in Vernon. On the centenarian plot, the prolific stumps intertwine in incredible shapes, and the roots reaching deep down into the soil are exceptional.
Chatus vineyards
Worth seeing!
To enjoy the best view of the terraces, ask your tourist office about the proposed circuit – a fun version is available for families.
Listed terraces in Ribes
Chatus is spicy, robust and unique, much like the people and terraces that have contributed to its reputation. The terraces in Ribes are an extraordinary testimony to an ancestral culture that encouraged people to tame the slopes (listed by the Ministry of the Environment since 1993).
Wine and Geology: Geopark reveals the wealth of our terroir
With two accessible trails, you can learn about the wealth of the sandstone landscape, part of a winegrowing heritage that now has the UNESCO Geopark label in the heart of the Monts d’Ardèche Regional Natural Park.