Vendange tardive is a designation that means that the grapes are harvested later than the normal harvest – that is actually the literal translation of the word. It is perhaps not something that one often thinks about but it can actually only be used for wines from the Alsace in northern France and Jurançon on the border to Spain. The exclusive late harvest club has now a new member: From the 2012 vintage AOC Gaillac is also allowed to use the Vendanges Tardives designation.
Gaillac is a wine district in the south of France with some 2500 hectares of vineyards. They make both red wine, dry white, sweet white, and rosé wines. But presumably it is only the sweet whites that can be labelled VT.
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