Vouvray (wine) often the last in France to be completed, potentially lasting until November. When sweet and botrytized wine are being produced, the harvest is often very labor-intensive, involving successive "tries" or passages through the vineyards with harvesters hand-picking only the ripest berries. Vouvray produces more than a million cases of wine a year. The traditional style of winemaking in Vouvray is a minimalist approach, often using neutral fermentation vessel such as stainless steel and not submitting the wine to malolactic fermentation. While some winemakers are experimenting with oak, very few wines are made with new oak. Vouvrays are usually bottled early
Loire (department) Loire (department) Loire (; ; ) is a department in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes occupying the River Loire's upper reaches. Loire was created in 1793 when the Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two, about 3½ years after it was created. This was a response to counter-revolutionary activities in Lyon which, by population, was the country's second largest city. By splitting Rhône-et-Loire the government sought to protect the French Revolution from the potential power and influence of counter revolutionary activity in the Lyon region. The departmental capitals throughout its history are as follows: Loire is part of the current administrative region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and