Vouvray (mousseux, pétillant)

Two levels of sparkle

AOC Vouvray covers still wines and two kinds of wine with bubbles. Mousseux is fully sparkling. Pétillant is lightly sparkling: it has less carbon dioxide and is closed with a different stopper.¹ Both are made exclusively by second fermentation in the bottle, that is, by the traditional method.¹ Tank methods are not allowed.

Grape

Chenin is the principal variety. Orbois is an accessory variety limited to 5% of plantings, and a wine may not be made from Orbois alone.¹

Ageing and release

Source for the table: the June 2026 draft.¹ In practice the release rule means that a wine from the 2026 harvest cannot be sold before 1 January 2028. The 12 months from tirage are longer than the 9 months on lees required for Crémant de Loire.^1,2

About the source

AOC Vouvray was first recognised by decree on 8 December 1936.¹ The figures on this page come from the draft amendment of the cahier des charges examined on 18 June 2026 for the national opposition procedure. Until it is adopted, details may still change. Production volumes for the sparkling wines were not found on an official page.

The nearby appellation Montlouis-sur-Loire, also makes Chenin sparkling wine. A comparison table of Loire sparkling wines is on the Touraine page.