The vineyards of Provence

Antiquity - Mediterranean Origins of the Vineyard

Cultivated vines, like the olive tree, reached Provence with the founding of Massalia by Greek merchant sailors from Phocaea between 620 and 600 BCE.
The marriage of Euxénos, leader of the Greek settlers, to Petta, daughter of the king of the Ségobriges—the local Celto-Ligurian people—sealed the alliance between Greek and indigenous cultures and marked the founding act of the city.

Greek footholds: a structuring coastal network

Around Massalia, the Greeks established a coherent network of colonies, trading posts, and anchorages that formed the first territorial footholds of viticulture in Provence.
This network notably included Tauroeis (Six-Fours), Olbia (Hyères), Antipolis (Antibes), Nikaia (Nice), Agathé Tyché (Agde), as well as island sites such as Pointe de la Galère on Porquerolles, used as an anchorage and maritime relay.

These settlements facilitated the spread of Mediterranean agricultural practices—among them vine cultivation—through trade with local populations.

Roman territorial organization: cities, villae, and hinterland

From the 2nd century BCE onward, Roman conquest profoundly reshaped this organization. The Romans structured production around a dense network of cities, rural villae, and transportation routes.

Major urban centers such as Arelate (Arles), Aquae Sextiae (Aix-en-Provence), Forum Julii (Fréjus), Glanum (Saint-Rémy-de-Provence), and Vasio Vocontiorum (Vaison) organized trade, while large agricultural estates—the villae—ensured wine production.

Located on plains, in valleys, and on well-exposed foothills, these villae were connected by Roman roads and major river routes, enabling the expansion of vineyards into the hinterland.
This Roman model formed the landholding foundation upon which medieval and later monastic estates would build.

Middle Ages - Monastic Continuity and the Long-Term Economy

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, Provence entered a period of political instability. Viticulture, however, did not disappear. Monasteries became the custodians of agricultural and viticultural knowledge, in the wake of the Order of Saint Benedict and the rule of ora et labora.

From the 11th century onward, the Cistercian reform born at Cîteaux deepened this approach: careful reading of soils, mastery of water resources, and the rational siting of vineyards. In Provence, abbeys such as Le Thoronet, Sénanque, and Silvacane embody this structuring legacy.

Beyond vines and olive trees, Cistercian abbeys functioned as true rural economic hubs. The Abbey of Le Thoronet administered a diversified economy combining sheep and goat farming, the management of transhumant herds, cereal cultivation, forestry, water-powered mills, and sophisticated water control. It also exercised rights related to fishing and the supply of aquatic products—sometimes organized in flotillas—essential to monastic life and fasting periods. This diversification ensured self-sufficiency, economic stability, and the long-term preservation of monastic landholdings.

Cistercian Abbeys and the Templars: Two Complementary Models

During the 12th and 13th centuries, Cistercian abbeys and Templar commanderies coexisted. The former shaped terroirs and agricultural landscapes over the long term; the latter organized the management, storage, and circulation of production within extensive economic networks.

In the Var, this system is evident at several major sites. The Commandery of Peyrassol, founded by the Order of the Temple in the 13th century, became a leading agricultural and logistical center, combining viticulture, livestock farming, storage, and distribution of produce. Other Templar and Hospitaller establishments also structured the territory on a lasting basis, particularly around Montfort-sur-Argens and in the Argens Valley. Present-day estates such as Miraval are part of this continuity of land tenure inherited from medieval structures.

The suppression of the Order of the Temple in the early 14th century led to the transfer of its lands to the Order of the Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem, which ensured their exploitation and continuity for several centuries.

When the Templars fell, under Philippe le Bel in 1307, the Templar commanderies returned to the "Order of Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem", which would become the most powerful order of the Christian World. The estates were sold to large local families or remained in the Order which would later become the Order of Malta. During the revolution, these goods were confiscated and resold to notables who ensured the continuity of these large properties.

These estates became the prerogative of the great families and gave them a complementary title of nobility.

The 19th Century - The Emergence of New Vine Diseases

The 19th century marked a brutal rupture with the successive appearance of diseases and pests. Powdery mildew (oidium) emerged in the early 1850s, followed by black rot in the 1860s, and then downy mildew from the late 1870s onward.

However, it was the arrival of phylloxera, from the late 1860s, that led to the destruction of nearly the entire vineyard. Recovery came only at the turn of the 20th century, with the adoption of grafting onto resistant American rootstocks.

The 20th Century - Renewal and Provençal Identity

The reconstruction of the vineyard went hand in hand with the creation of the Appellations d'Origine Contrôlée. Technical advances in the 20th century—temperature control and pneumatic pressing—enabled the emergence of a modern Provençal rosé: precise, aromatic, and refined.

These techniques preserve the freshness of primary aromas, supported by balanced natural acidity, imparting tension, finesse, and a distinctive appeal.

Creation of the Appellations of Controlled Origin in Provence (The french system of appellations of Origin spearheaded the other appellation systems in the world).

The wine appellations of Provence:

• AOC Cassis in 1936 (200 hectares plantés)

• AOC Bandol 1941 (1560 ha)

• AOC Bellet 1941 (58 ha)

• AOC Palette 1948 (40 ha)

• AOC Côtes de Provence 1977 (20100 ha)

• AOC Coteaux d'Aix en Provence 1985 (4120 ha)

• AOC Coteaux Varois en Provence 1993 (2630 ha)

• AOC Baux de Provence 1995 (280 ha)

• AOC Coteaux de Pierrevert 1998 (450 ha)

In the 21st century, Provence rosé has established itself as a wine in its own right on the global stage. A wine of freshness, conviviality, and aromatic clarity, it aligns naturally with the consumption habits of new generations.

Through its versatility and balance, it engages effortlessly with contemporary cuisines around the world and embodies a modern vision of viticulture where tradition and international openness converge.