Vouvray (wine) blanc grape, known locally as "Pineau de la Loire", is believed to have originated in the Anjou wine region sometime in the 9th century and from there eventually migrated to Vouvray. In the 16th and 17th century, Dutch merchants oversaw the plantings of many vineyards in the area to be used for wine trade with markets in London, Paris and Rotterdam. Grapes from all over Touraine were brought together in a mass blending labeled simply as "Vouvray". Wine cellars were built in the region from caves created from the excavation of tuffeau rocks used to build the Châteaux of the
Loire Valley chansonniers Loire Valley chansonniers The Loire Valley chansonniers are a related group of songbooks copied in the Loire Valley region of central France c. 1465-c. 1475 and produced in the context of the French royal court. They consist of five chansonniers: Copenhagen, Dijon, Nivelle, Laborde and Wolfenbüttel. The songbooks, smaller than a modern paperback, personalized and lavishly decorated, are the earliest surviving examples of a new genre which offered a combination of words, music, and illuminations. The chansonniers of the late 15th century were objects of leisure, offering artistic, musical and textual aspects to form a multidimensional reading experience. Prior to