Vin de Savoie is an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée

Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée

Appellation d’origine contrôlée , which translates as "controlled designation of origin", is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products, all under the auspices of the government bureau Institut National...

(AOC) for red and white wines

Wine

Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

 in the Savoy wine

Savoy wine

Savoy or, in French, Savoie is a wine region situated in the Savoy region in eastern France, and is sometimes referred to as the country of the Allobroges.The Savoy landscape is distinctly alpine...

 region of France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, which is located in the foothills of the Alps

Alps

The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....

. The region is divided roughly into three distinct parts: the glacially sculpted terrain along the South shore of Lake Geneva

Lake Geneva

Lake Geneva or Lake Léman is a lake in Switzerland and France. It is one of the largest lakes in Western Europe. 59.53 % of it comes under the jurisdiction of Switzerland , and 40.47 % under France...

, the hilly country near the northern end of Lac de Bourget, and the area bordering the Massif de Bauges South of Chambéry.

The wines are mostly white, made from grape varieties Chasselas

Chasselas

Chasselas or Chasselas Blanc is a wine grape variety grown in Switzerland, France, Germany, Portugal, Baja Norte, Mexico, Hungary and New Zealand.Theories of its origin vary. Pierre Galet believes it is a native Swiss variety....

, Jacquère

Jacquère

Jacquère is a variety of white grape found primarily in the Savoy wine region of France. It is a high-yielding vine variety which is used to produce lightly scented, rather neutral dry white wine, such as Vin de Savoie. Jacquère is the grape used in Apremont wines and is the usual wine paired with...

, Altesse

Altesse

Altesse or Roussette is a white French wine grape variety found primarily in the Savoy wine region of France. It yields small harvests and ripens late but is resistant to grey rot. Wines made from Altesse have exotic aromas, often together with citrus and herbs, and have good acidity...

 (also known as Roussette), Chardonnay

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...

 and Roussanne

Roussanne

Roussanne is a white wine grape grown originally in the Rhône wine region in France, where it is often blended with Marsanne. It is the only other white variety, besides Marsanne, allowed in the northern Rhône appellations of Crozes-Hermitage AOC, Hermitage AOC and Saint-Joseph AOC...

 grapes, although there are also some (relatively light) reds made from Mondeuse, Gamay Noir and occasionally Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir

Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...

, and rosé

Rosé

A rosé is a type of wine that has some of the color typical of a red wine, but only enough to turn it pink. The pink color can range from a pale orange to a vivid near-purple, depending on the grapes and wine making techniques.- Production techniques :There are three major ways to produce rosé...

s made from Gamay

Gamay

Gamay is a purple-colored grape variety used to make red wines, most notably grown in Beaujolais and in the Loire Valley around Tours. Its full name is Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc. It is a very old cultivar, mentioned as long ago as the 15th century...

, and some sparkling wine

Sparkling wine

Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it making it fizzy. The carbon dioxide may result from natural fermentation, either in a bottle, as with the méthode champenoise, in a large tank designed to withstand the pressures involved , or as a result of carbon dioxide...

s.

Dénominations

Sixteen dénominations géographiques are authorized within the appellation:

• Abymes or Les Abymes (white wines);
• Apremont  (white wines);
• Arbin (rouges);
• Ayze  (sparkling white wines);
• Chautagne  (white and red wines);
• Chignin  (white and red wines);
• Chignin-Bergeron (white wines);
• Crépy (white wines);
• Cruet  (white wines);
• Jongieux  (white and red wines);
• Marignan (white wines);
• Marin  (white wines);
• Montmélian  (white wines);
• Ripaille  (white wines);
• Saint-jean-de-la-porte  (red wines);
• Saint-jeoire-prieuré (white wines).