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Côtes-de-duras wines are red and white wines from the French department of Lot-et-Garonne, and geographically their vineyards are an extension of the Bordeaux wine-growing area.

Renaissance
Duras wines have been famous since the time of the French monarch, François 1st. After the Edict of Nantes had been revoked and local French Protestants had moved to the Low Countries, wine exports to ports around the North Sea suddenly expanded.

Later this area became part of the "haut pays bordelais" or upper Bordeaux wine-growing area, and its exports were handled by merchants based in the Chartrons district of the city of Bordeaux. This was a golden age, which ended when use of the Bordeaux appellation was restricted to wines from the Gironde region.

Contemporary Period
This appellation was granted on the 16th February, 1937.

Geographical location
This wine-growing area is situated in the north-west of Lot-et-Garonne where it borders the Gironde and Dordogne departments.

Geology
Wine from this appellation grows on tertiary fluvio-lacustrine sediments that occur in three different forms:
 * Calcaire de Castillon (Castillon calcereous), which is white, chalky and contains cracks of varying depths.
 * Molasses de l'Agenais (Agenais Molasses), which is layers of clay or clay-sand mix alternating with beds of gravel.
 * Calcaire blanc de l'Agenais (Agenais white calcereous).

Climate
The Côtes de Duras oceanic climate is identical to that of the Bordeaux wine-growing area, except that it experiences slightly more extreme temperatures because of its distance from the ocean.

Wine-growing area
This terroir (soil, climate and wine-growing expertise of a particular vineyard) lies on the right bank of the Dropt and is divided into two by the Dourdèze valley.

Profile
This wine-growing area is spread across 15 communes: Auriac-sur-Dropt, Baleyssagues, Duras, Esclottes, Loubes-Bernac, Moustier, Pardaillan, Saint-Astier, Sainte-Colombe-de-Duras, Saint-Jean-de-Duras, Saint-Sernin, La Sauvetat-du-Dropt, Savignac-de-Duras, Soumensac and Villeneuve-de-Duras.

Grape varieties grown

 * White wines: Sauvignon, Sémillon, Muscadelle, Mauzac, Rouchelein or Chenin and Ondenc. Ugni Blanc is a supplementary grape variety that may not exceed 25% of the total used.
 * Red wines: Cabernet-sauvignon, Cabernet franc, Merlot and Cot.

Wine-making and maturing

 * Dry white wines: restricted to 60 hectolitres/hectare, these wines are characterized by their Sauvignon-like nose and vigorous, aristocratic flavours. They are produced at low temperatures and sometimes undergo pre-fermentation maceration or are matured on the lees.
 * Medium-sweet white wines: restricted to 50 hectolitres/hectare, these wines have an aroma of candied fruit. Some batches are made into dessert wines using the sweetest grapes from the crop that have been harvested at regular intervals.
 * Rosé wines: restricted to 55 hectolitres/hectare, these wines are pleasantly fresh and fruity. They are made from juice that has been bled from red wine vats.
 * Red wines: restricted to 55 hectolitres/hectare, they are usually supple and fruity, but some batches, in particular those that have been aged in oak casks, can be more robust. The are produced by a long maceration process.

Organizational structures
According to 2005 data provided by the INAO (Institut National des Appellations d'Origine, the French Institute responsible for regulating wines with official appellation), 121,948 hectolitres were produced from 2,038 hectares, and production was spread across 86 private cellars and 3 cooperative cellars and wine-merchants.

Internal Link

 * Wine-growing Area of the South-West

External Link

 * Official site of the Côtes-de-duras

Category:French_wine_AOCs

Côtes de Duras Côtes de Duras