[1] The name Cornas is Celtic for "burnt earth", and the first written sources mention wine in the region as early as 885.

[1] The vineyards are just north of Valence, in a fairly small area of steep slopes facing east-southeast, south of Tain l'Hermitage.

In the northern part, especially near "Les Chaillot", the soil contains chalk but is mostly sandy and rocky, with characteristic reddish-brown dirt.

[4] The sunny sector of "Quartier de Reynard" which has vines at 300 metres (980 ft) has a granite soil.

Cornas used to produce wines which required long ageing, but a new more fruit forward style has emerged under the impulse of winemaker Jean-Luc Colombo.