Charentais is an IGP title for red, white and rosé wines that come from a large area on the west coast of France, north of the famous Bordeaux wine region. The area, which officially encompasses the Charente and Charente-Maritime departments, is most famous for being a part of the sizeable Cognac AOC area, and the IGP title is reserved for the table wines that are made here.
The official catchment area of Charentais stretches from the Gironde estuary in the southwest to the foothills of the Massif Central in the east. It is traversed by the Charente river as it makes its way to the Atlantic. Two islands off the coast, Ile de Re and Ile d’Oleron, are included in the Charentais IGP area and are geographical indicators in their own right – wines coming from these islands may say so on the label. This is also true of Saint-Sornin, on the coast, and the Charente and Charente-Maritime departments.
© Wikimedia/Gilbert Bochenek
The sheer size of the IGP’s official area makes it difficult to generalize about terroir. Broadly speaking, the climate here is influenced by the presence of the Atlantic, which moderates temperatures throughout the year, leading to milder winters and cooler summers. High sunshine hours and moderate rainfall make for a good environment for viticulture, although there is some variation moving inland.
Soil types are varied across the whole of the Charentais region, but most vineyards are planted on calcareous clay soils with a high proportion of limestone. These limestone soils retain water effectively, hydrating the vines throughout the growing season. Towards the coast (and on the islands) the soils have higher proportions of sand and provide better drainage, leading to a more concentrated style of wine.
Brandy has been made from grapes in this area for hundreds of years, but economic downturn in the 1970s saw producers diversify into other styles of wine as production of Cognac slowed. The Charentais IGP classification was put in place in 1981, and since then a significant amount of wine – predominantly white – has been produced under the denomination.
A large range of grape varieties are permitted in Charentais IGP wines, but the Cognac grape varieties Ugni Blanc and Colombard feature heavily. Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are also used heavily in the white wines, and the majority of red wines are made from the Bordeaux staples Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, as well as some Gamay and Pinot Noir.
The Charentais IGP was known as Vin de Pays Charentais until 2009, when French wine authorities began to phase out the Vin de Pays denomination. This has been replaced across the board with Indication Géographique Protégée, a category intended to improve the image of regional French wines as well as bring French wine labels in line with those of the European Union.
