Appellation
Montlouis-sur-Loire
Identity card
VillageAOPWhiteSweetSparkling
Loire Valley › Touraine · Recognised on 6 December 1938
- Village
- Regional
Key points
- Chenin Blanc alone, on three communes east of Tours.
- Sparkling wines: second fermentation in bottle, at most 65 hl/ha.
- Single fermentation: no added yeast, no liqueur, vintage-dated.
Grape varieties
Production rules
6,250
vines/ha
Minimum planting density
WhiteSweet
52
hl/ha
Maximum yield
11
% ABV
Minimum natural alcohol
Minimum ageing: Still: until at least 1 March; sparkling: at least 9 months after tirage
- 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.
- 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.
- Minimum natural alcohol
- The alcohol the grapes' own sugar must be able to give, without enrichment: a ripeness threshold at harvest.
- Minimum ageing
- A minimum ageing period the specification requires before the wine may be sold to consumers.
Terroir
- Lie of the land: Plateau between Loire and Cher, cliff-edged to the north
- Soils: Clay-flint, sometimes clay-limestone, often sandy
- Climate: Degraded oceanic, continental influences
Wine style
- White
- Sweet
- Honey
- Quince
- Toasted almond
- fruity, floral when young
- from dry to sweet
- Sparkling
- Brioche
- fine, light mousse
- white fruit, citrus
Boundaries: INAO, AOC vineyard plot delimitation (September 2026 edition) · Open Licence
Specification
8 June 2026
Order of 8 June 2026 approving the specification of the AOC “Montlouis-sur-Loire” (JORF no. 0135 of 11 June 2026, text no. 26; published in the Bulletin officiel of the Ministry of Agriculture on 18 June 2026). Appellation first recognised by the decree of 6 December 1938, as “Montlouis”, renamed “Montlouis-sur-Loire” in 2002.
Labelling terms
- The geographical name "Vin de Loire" may be added
- Single-fermentation sparkling wine: vintage compulsory
- 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 « Montlouis-sur-Loire »— Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité (INAO) / Ministère de l'agriculture
East of Tours, Montlouis-sur-Loire covers a plateau between the Loire and the Cher, across three communes. Recognised in 1938, the appellation grows Chenin Blanc alone, for still wines and for sparkling and semi-sparkling ones. The still wines run from dry to sweet as the vintage allows; the sparkling wines come from a second fermentation in bottle or, for some, from a single fermentation with no sugar added. The plateau's tuffeau, quarried since Roman times, now houses the cellars.
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Montlouis-sur-Loire
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