Gaillacoise

The appellation named after the small town of the same name is located in the east of the wine-growing region of south-west France. Gaillac is one of the oldest wine-growing regions in France. Viticulture has been practised here by the Romans since at least the 1st century. However, it is possible that the Celts (Gauls) were already growing grapes before that. It came to a standstill during the Migration Period and was only re-established in the 10th century by the Benedictine monks of the Saint-Michel-de-Gaillac monastery. In the 13th century, the Count of Toulouse Raymond VII issued a decree for a controlled designation of origin for his wine region. As early as the 12th century, the wine was exported to northern Europe, particularly England, where it enjoyed great popularity. The Aquitanian poet Auger Galhard (1540-1593) praised the sparkling wine long before the invention of champagne. Until the middle of the 20th century, they specialised in sweet white wines, but then they also began to produce rosé and red wines.

The trademark is the cockerel with three lilies from the Gaillac coat of arms, which is why the wines used to be called "Vins du Coq".

Vineyards

The vineyards cover around 3,500 hectares north of Toulouse in the Tarn department in the valley of the river Gaillac. This is just over a third of the 9,000 hectares of vineyards in the department. The area is divided into the lower slopes with...