Appellation
Gros Plant du Pays nantais
Identity card
VillageAOPWhite
Loire Valley
- Village
- Regional
Key points
- Dry white only: at most 70 hl/ha, at least 9% natural alcohol.
- Folle Blanche, from the Charentes, is at least 70% of the vines.
- The Loire wine "closest to the ocean", in the specification's words.
Grape varieties
White wine onlyFolle Blanche
Accessory varieties: Colombard, Montils
Folle Blanche · at least 70% of the holding's vines
Colombard · 10% at most of the holding's vines
The blend follows the proportions of the vineyard
In italics, without a link: grapes with no entry yet.
Production rules
70
hl/ha
Maximum yield
9
% ABV
Minimum natural alcohol
5,000
vines/ha
Minimum planting density
- Maximum yield
- How much wine a hectare may produce under the appellation (a higher, exceptional ceiling often exists). The lower it is, the less can be made: one of the levers on how concentrated the grapes are. For reference: 35 hl/ha to 80 hl/ha across 115 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
- Minimum natural alcohol
- The alcohol the grapes' own sugar must be able to give, without enrichment: a ripeness threshold at harvest. For reference: 9 % ABV to 14.5 % ABV across 63 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
- Minimum planting density
- The fewest vines allowed per hectare. For the same yield, more vines means fewer grapes on each. For reference: 4,000 vines/ha to 9,000 vines/ha across 125 Oenopia appellations of the same colour.
Terroir
- Lie of the land: Mounds and slopes of Grandlieu, Goulaine and the Loire
- Soils: Old bedrock: granite, gabbro, gneiss, mica schist
- Climate: Oceanic: mild winters, cool, dry summers
Wine style
- Iodine
- dry white
- tangy and light
- fruity or floral
- slight prickle (sur lie)
Boundaries: INAO, AOC vineyard plot delimitation (September 2026 edition) · Open Licence
Specification
26 November 2025
Order of 26 November 2025 approving the specification of the AOC “Gros Plant du Pays nantais” (JORF no. 0280 of 29 November 2025, text no. 41; BO-Agri no. 50 of 11 December 2025). First recognised as a VDQS (a delimited wine of superior quality) by the order of 26 November 1954.
Labelling terms
- "Sur lie": on its lees until at least 1 March, unracked
- "Sur lie": bottled locally, by 30 June of the second year at the latest
- "Sur lie": at least 9.5% natural alcohol, vintage compulsory
- The geographical name "Vin de Loire" may be added
- The name of a registered lieu-dit may appear on the label
Nearby appellations
Sources
- Official sourceCahier des charges de l'appellation d'origine contrôlée « Gros Plant du Pays nantais »— Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité (INAO) / Ministère de l'agriculture
Gros Plant du Pays nantais covers the western tip of the Loire Valley vineyard, south and east of Nantes, across communes of Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire and Vendée, as far as the bay of Bourgneuf. The appellation makes only still white wines, at least 70% from Folle Blanche, a variety that came from the Charentes, with Colombard and Montils alongside. The specification describes them as tangy, fresh and light, often with an iodine note. Under the "sur lie" mention, the wine spends the winter on its fine lees and is bottled within the area.
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