Recognized in 1962, the protected designation of origin AOC Alsace now represents over 70% of the production including 90% of white wines.  In 2011, 'AOC Alsace was supplemented with two geographical names: the Communales (villages) and the "Lieux-dits (localities)."

In 1935, a first decree put the French AOCs (Appellation d‘Origine Contrôlée) on the map. But negotiations with a certifying body, the INAO (Institut National des Appellations d‘Origine), were suspended due to the annexation of Alsace by Germany during the Second World War.

At the end of the war, the ruling of 1945, prepared by the Association of Alsace Winemakers (Association des Viticulteurs d‘Alsace), established the Alsace-based appellation. However, it was only in 1962 that the AOC appellation was officially instituted by a decree.

AOC Alsace is for wines made with grapes from parcels having precisely stipulated boundaries based on historical growing areas.

The Lieux Dits allow to distinguish quality production by highlighting the terroir-specific characteristics and applying production standards even more stringent that for the Communal appellations. Wines from these localities express several nuances: the profile of each varietal and that of each distinct terroir such as minerality.

Information by: Vins Alsace

An eventful geological past allowed for multitudes of magnificent and varied soils to appear. All the formations are present in Alsace from the Proterozoic eon to the Quaternary period.

150 million years ago, the sea rolled over what today corresponds to the Rhine Rift Valley. Many sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, limestone and marl came to settle atop the primitive platform (granite.  Around 50 million years ago, during the Tertiary period, the Rhineland mountain range collapsed, slowly at first and then violently, creating what is the present Rhine Plain.  These successive collapses contributed to intensely revamping and segregating all the geological layers.  Sea and river deposits as well as erosion then occurred adding to the complexity.

In the end, three morpho-structural units stood-out on the Alsace side of the rift valley: the Vosges mountains (granite and sandstone, sometimes shale), the sub-Vosges hills boasting incredible soil diversity and the Rhine alluvial plain (marl and alluvial).

Today, most of the winemaking villages are built on four or five different formations in a juxtaposition of oftentimes very restrained parcels, providing a mosaic of uniquely abundant and diverse soils.

Alsace geology is a like a mosaic, from granite to limestone along with clay, shale, and sandstone. Occupying a surface area of about 38301 acres, this large patchwork of terroirs is absolutely ideal for numerous grape varieties to happily flourish. The terroir imprint bestows extra character and soul to Alsace wines, which are both unique and complex.