Grolleau Noir (France)

Grolleau a red wine grape that growns in the Loire Valley of France.

It is the main grape in Rosé d'Anjou.

In the Loire Valley, Grolleau is a permitted grape in the AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) for Rosé Anjou, Touraine AOC and Saumur AOC.

The grape is only permitted in the rosé wines, not in the red wines, of these regions.

Grolleau is also permitted the the sparkling wines of Cremant de Loire AOC, Anjou AOC and Saumur AOC.

Wine Region Loire

Different regions are subject to different climate influences:

Lower Loire (Muscadet and Pays Nantais) has a cool maritime climate with high rainfall.
Middle Loire (Anjou-Saumur and Touraine) has a cold climate with a mix of oceanic and continental influence.
Central Loire (Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé) has a cold continental climate with cold winters and warm summers.

The terroir in the Loire Valley is incredibly varied due to its geographic spread:

Lower Loire is known for its granite and schist soils, which give the wines (Muscadet) a distinctive mineral character.
Middle Loire has limestone, clay and sand soils. The Saumur and Touraine soils can be good for both white and red wines.
Central Loire has limestone and silex (flint) soils which give the Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé wines their signature smoky and mineral flavors.

Rosé Wine