Cotes de Toul is an appellation for wines produced in the region of Lorraine in north-east France. The vineyards of the appellation are centered on the village of Toul on the western banks of the Moselle river, before it runs north to form the heart of Germany's famed Mosel wine region. Delicate, lightly-pink vin gris made from the Gamay grape variety is the most important wine style that falls under the Cotes de Toul appellation.
The permitted vineyard area covers eight villages within the administrative department of Meurthe-et-Moselle, some 60 miles (100km) south of France's border with Germany. Although the Mosel river (which rises in the Vosges mountains of Alsace before flowing past Toul) is one of Europe's most famous wine rivers, Cotes de Toul wines can be described as obscure at best: they are rarely seen outside of Lorraine. (© All rights reserved, Wine-Searcher.)
The vineyards which make Cotes de Toul wine today are the remnants of a once-flourishing wine industry that covered large swathes of both Alsace and Lorraine. The area was not only known for its Riesling; it also produced a significant quantity of base wines for use in the sparkling wines of Champagne. However, the ravages of phylloxera in the 1860s, followed by years of inefficient vineyard management and unrelenting industrialization, left the region's viticultural heritage almost forgotten. Occupation of the area by German forces during the First World War also had a significant effect on viticulture in Lorraine, followed by the trenches of the Allies as they repelled the invasion. The final blow came in 1919 (only a few months after the war had ended), when a law was passed restricting use of the name champagne to wines made from grapes grown in the region of Champagne. The once-reliable market for wines from Lorraine no longer existed, so there was little incentive to replant what was left of the region's vineyards.
The vineyards that now surround the village of Toul are some of France's most northerly, and the south- and east-facing aspect of the hills ensures that the vines are exposed to sufficient sunlight for ripening and are sheltered from cold north-westerly winds, moderating the effects of the continental climate. Most of these slopes benefit from marl soils with a high proportion of limestone. These soils retain enough water to keep the vine hydrated, although high permeability of the soils and the natural slope of the vineyards ensure that excess water drains easily away, limiting vigor and increasing the concentration of sugars and acids in the grapes.
Cotes de Toul vin gris is predominantly Gamay, although the appellation laws require that the blend contains at least 10% Pinot Noir, and Auxerrois, Aubin Blanc and Pinot Meunier are also permitted to comprise up to 15% of the wine. Varietal Pinot Noir makes up the Cotes de Toul rouge, while Auxerrois and Aubin Blanc are permitted in the appellation's white wines.
