Vouvray (wine) Loire Valley. The cold, steady temperature of these cellars served ideal for the advancement of sparkling wines made according to the traditional "méthode champenoise" that became popular in the 18th and 19th century. In 1936 Vouvray was created as an "Appellation d'origine contrôlée" (AOC). The boundaries of the AOC were defined around the village of Vouvray and seven nearby villages. Included among these villages were Chançay, Nouzilly, Vernou-sur-Brenne and Rochecorbon. Located along the right bank of the Loire river east of the city of Tours, the Vouvray region is situated on top a plateau that is dissected by small streams
Tuffeau stone Tuffeau stone Tuffeau stone — in French, simply tuffeau or tufeau — is a local limestone of the Loire Valley of France. It is characterized as a chalky or sandy, fine-grained limestone, white to yellowish-cream in appearance, and micaceous (containing some white flakes of mica, or muscovite). The soft stone is extracted from numerous quarries and has made a major mark on the architectural landscape of the Loire and its tributaries — especially the valley's world-famous chateaux. Tuffeau dates to the Mesozoic era (Upper Cretaceous Turonian stage). The Loire Valley formed the floor of a vast sea 90 million years