Gaillac AOC

[1] The region makes claims to be among the earliest viticultural centres of ancient Gaul, though possibly after those of Languedoc around Narbonne, with wine production established in early 1st century.

[2] Roman merchants transported wine to Bordeaux and Northern Europe down the Tarn, and vineyards soon followed in the valley.

The town of Gaillac grew up around the Benedictine monastery of Saint Michael, in the Tenth Century.

[3] In 1387, the Counts of Toulouse granted Gaillac the right to put a rooster on the barrel in recognition of their wine, and le coq gaillacois continues in use as the town's emblem.

The town's fortunes declined through several centuries, and only started to recover in the years after the Great War.