Wine 101: Rhone Part I: Les Allobroges and the Origin of Syrah
The wines of the Rhône Valley may not be quite as famous as those from Burgundy, Bordeaux, and Champagne, but they’re just as good. And an upside to their more under-the-radar nature is a lower entry price, and thus, a wider swath of wines to explore. But before you embark on your tasting journey, it’s important to get the lowdown on how this region came to be.
Today’s story brings us back to the Gauls. The Gauls didn’t all come to this region at once, and the later group arrived to the east of Lyon. They became known as les Allobroges — or “those from another country” — and in the first century B.C., les Allobroges began drinking wines from southern Spain before they got into winemaking themselves. Shortly thereafter, the Romans conquered these Gauls, and poets like Pliny got to traveling around and writing fondly about the wines of les Allobroges. Syrah wasn’t even mentioned until the late 18th century, but it was during the first few centuries A.D. that historians believe crossbreeding planted the seeds for what would eventually become this coveted grape.
On this jam-packed episode of “Wine 101,” Keith rolls back the clock to antiquity as we dive into the beginning of our Rhône series. Tune in for more.
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“Wine 101” was produced, recorded, and edited by yours truly, Keith Beavers, at the VinePair headquarters in New York City. I want to give a big old shout-out to co-founders Adam Teeter and Josh Malin for creating VinePair. Big shout-out to Danielle Grinberg, the art director of VinePair, for creating the most awesome logo for this podcast. Also, Darby Cicci for the theme song. And I want to thank the entire VinePair staff for helping me learn something new every day. See you next week.
*Image retrieved from Richard Semik via stock.adobe.com
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