Bandol

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Accessory grape varieties

Varieties of interest

Terroir

• The geographical area is delimited across eight communes of the Var department, at the heart of an amphitheatre closed to the north and open to the Mediterranean Sea via the Gulf of Bandol.
• This topography shields the vineyard from the Mistral, a cold wind from the north that dominates in Provence, while also creating hillside and piedmont sites.
• Average sunshine reaches 3000 hours with annual rainfall of 650 millimetres, a figure Wikipedia places between 650 and 665 mm, with October the wettest month at 93.9 mm.
• Openness to the Mediterranean tempers the summer sun's intensity and maintains slight nocturnal humidity, creating optimal ripening conditions, notably for Mourvèdre and Clairette.
• The most characteristic soils are shallow, whitish, low in organic matter, sometimes rich in siliceous elements, always highly stony and well drained, ensuring optimal water circulation.
• Farmers built countless dry-stone walls to hold back the soil and clear the land of stones, creating the "restanques" characteristic of the hillside and piedmont landscape.

• Bandol wines were traditionally shipped by boats anchored offshore in the roadstead, loading barrels branded with a red-hot iron letter "B".
• Bandol wines were recognized as an appellation d'origine contrôlée as early as 11 November 1941.
• The Mourvèdre variety dominates the traditional grape varieties, seconded by Grenache and Cinsaut for red and rosé wines, and by Clairette, Bourboulenc and Ugni blanc for white wines.

• Red wines begin their development for about 18 months in wood, most often in foudre, and must contain a minimum of 50% Mourvèdre, a variety that gives them power, structure, tannins and long ageing potential.
• Rosé wines, with their pale dog-rose colour, contain at least 20% Mourvèdre, which gives them a more tannic structure than other Provençal rosés and allows for longer ageing.

• The conjunction of a Mediterranean climate with maritime influence, a cirque-shaped topography open to the sea that shields against northerly winds and temperatures, and clay-limestone soil with high stone content gives Mourvèdre, a late-ripening black grape variety, its preferred ecological niche, allowing it to reach ideal ripeness that guarantees the wines' originality and balance.
• Combining mastery of production, optimal ripening conditions and the historical demands of transport suitability, Bandol red wines possess a structure enabling long ageing in wood and thus show a strong capacity for cellaring.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF) — approved 11 août 2026, JORF 15 août 2026
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — CIVP