Lirac AOC

[1] In the mid-17th century the right-bank district of the Côte du Rhône had issued regulations to govern the quality of its wine and in 1737 the king ordered that casks of Lirac wine shipped from the nearby river port of Roquemaure should be branded with the letters CDR to introduce a system of protecting its origin.

The rules for its Côte du Rhône thus formed the very early basis of today's nationwide AOC system governed by the INAO.

[1] The name was changed to Côtes du Rhône when the left-bank wines were included in the appellation some hundred years later.

[3][full citation needed] In the 1930s, Count Henri de Régis, the owner of the Château de Ségriès in the heart of the village of Lirac improved the quality of his wines until in 1945 he obtained the highest distinction, a cru, of the Côtes du Rhône.

Lirac is the oldest wine in the Côtes du Rhône region and was the first to be produced in all three colours: red, rosé, and white.

In recent years, the planted vineyard area of Lirac has been increasing, and more high-quality wines are being produced.

The style of red Lirac often resembles a soft Côtes du Rhône-Villages, but the more ambitious wines are often similar to Châteauneuf-du-Pape.