Côtes de Toul

Côtes de Toul exists as white, red and rosé wine, the latter under the designation Vin Gris. Gamay-dominated Vin gris is the most common wine, supplemented primarily by Auxerrois blanc-based white wines and relatively light red wines from Pinot noir.[4]

While Lorraine as such is not thought of as a wine region today, the region has a viticultural history going back to Roman times, and winemaking became important during the 15th century due to the Dukes of Lorraine and the Bishops of Toul, with the mid-17th century claimed to have been a particularly successful period.[3] The region's wine industry remained substantial up until the 19th century. In similarity to many other northern French wine areas, such as those in Yonne, the combination of increased competition from Languedoc-Roussillon following the introduction of railroad transport, and the Phylloxera epidemic (followed by replanting with grape varieties unsuitable for quality wine production) contributed to the demise of the region's wine production. In the case of Lorraine, industrialisation, destruction during World War I and the delimitation of the nearby Champagne region also contributed. Before the delimitation, Lorraine grapes would go into Champagne.[4]

Around 1930, a handful of local growers embarked on a programme of replanting with grafted quality grape varieties, which laid the foundation for the VDQS designation awarded in 1951.[3] The coveted AOC designation followed on March 31, 1998.[1]