Between the town and Verdigny the soil consists of marl and gravel – "les caillottes" – producing fruity, well balanced wines.

The chalk hill outcrop was not only a distinctive landmark known in Roman times but it also fit the profile of terroir that was usually the first to be cultivated – it was near an important town and had easy access to a navigable river.

Sancerre's position as an administrative centre, and the large nearby cities of Orléans and Bourges (which was the capital of the powerful Duke of Berry) ensured healthy local markets for the Pinot Noir and Gamay wines traditional in the area.

In the late 1970s and 1980s, a wave of quality consciousness helped elevate the reputation of Sancerre as an elegant and food friendly white wine that became a popular feature on restaurant lists across the globe.

The distance from the Atlantic gives this region more of a continental climate than typical of the rest of the Loire with short, hot summers and long, cold winters that may extend the threat of frost damage into early spring.

[5] The most dominating geographical influence of Sancerre is the nearby Loire river which flows northward past the city before it curves westward at Orleans and makes its path to the ocean.

Heading closer to the city of Sancerre the soil picks up more gravel mixed with the limestone and tends to produce more light bodied wines with delicate aroma.

The third classification of soil is found around the city of Sancerre itself which includes many deposits of flint (also known as silex) that add distinctive mineral components.

In cooler vintages, the growers may need to take the additional measures of leaf plucking and de-budding in order to thin out the canopy and produce more concentrated grapes.

[8] Wine expert Tom Stevenson describes the classic profile of Sancerre blanc as bone dry, highly aromatic with intense flavors of peaches and gooseberries.

[5] Other wine experts such as Jancis Robinson and Hugh Johnson note that in recent years overproduction has introduced a lot of variable quality with some Sancerre blancs producing flavor profiles that are not that much different from generic Sauvignon de Touraine from the Middle Loire, though this varies depending on the producer and overall quality of the vintage.

Around the village of Bué in the western reaches of the AOC, the soils tend to have more clay and produce more full bodied and rounded wines.

The village of Chavignol, located to the northwest just outside Sancerre, has light soils that include a mix of limestone and gravel which produce more perfumed wines.

According to Master of wine Mary Ewing-Mulligan, Sancerre tends to be less herbaceous and grassy than Sauvignon blancs from New Zealand and the Alto-Adige and Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy.

When contrasted with New World examples from California, Washington, Chile and South Africa, Sancerre tends to exhibit more assertive mineral flavours.

[8] The AOC covers the communes of Bannay, Bué, Crézancy, Menetou-Râtel, Ménétréol, Montigny, Saint-Satur, Sainte-Gemme, Sancerre, Sury-en-Vaux, Thauvenay, Veaugues, Verdigny and Vinon.