Northern Rhône 3D Wine Map

Côte-Rôtie, Hermitage, Cornas, Condrieu, and the granite appellations of the Northern Rhône in full 3D terrain.

The Northern Rhône is one of the most dramatic vineyard landscapes in France. From Vienne to Valence, a narrow corridor of steep granite hillsides lines the river for roughly 65 kilometers (40 miles), and nearly every important vineyard site faces it directly. This is where Syrah reaches its most refined, site-specific expression, and where slope, aspect, and altitude are visible, measurable features of the terrain. In 3D, the sheer pitch of Côte-Rôtie, the mass of the Hermitage hill, and the south-facing amphitheater of Cornas become immediately legible.

What You’ll Explore

This 3D Fast Map covers the appellations of the Northern Rhône valley, from Côte-Rôtie in the north through Saint-Péray in the south. Click any mapped appellation for detailed popup content covering grape varieties, classification details, and geographic specifics. Use the layer controls to toggle different appellation groupings on and off.

• Full 3D terrain of Northern Rhône appellations from Vienne to Valence
• Elevation profile tool for measuring vineyard altitude and slope gradients
• Daylight and shadow animation to visualize aspect and sun exposure
• Weather overlay to see how atmospheric conditions interact with terrain
• Detailed popup data for every mapped appellation

Key Regions in Focus

Côte-Rôtie

At the northern tip of the valley, Côte-Rôtie’s vineyards cling to slopes up to 60 degrees. The appellation divides historically into the Côte Brune (iron-rich mica schist, more structured wines) and Côte Blonde (gneiss-based soils, more aromatic Syrah), though most top cuvées blend from both. Southeast to south-facing exposure catches morning and midday sun, and up to 20% Viognier is permitted for aromatic lift. In 3D, the near-vertical pitch and narrow terraces carved into granite are immediately striking.

Hermitage

The hill of Hermitage is one of the most recognizable features in the Rhône: a south-facing granite mass rising above Tain-l’Hermitage on the left bank. Roughly 136 hectares (336 acres) span named lieux-dits including Les Bessards (pure granite at the western end, the most structured and tannic reds), Le Méal (fluvioglacial shingle and clay, producing warmer, rounder wines), and l’Ermite (thin granite at the summit near the chapel, yielding wines of finesse and mineral intensity). The eastern end of the hill shifts to clay-chalk, loess, and alluvial soils where Marsanne and Roussanne produce the whites. In 3D, the scale and south-facing exposure of the entire hill become clear.

Cornas and Saint-Joseph

Cornas occupies a natural south-facing amphitheater of decomposed granite, sheltered from northern winds by the surrounding hillsides. It is the warmest appellation in the Northern Rhône and produces 100% Syrah with no blending permitted. The best sites sit on steep granite at 150 to 350 meters (490 to 1,150 feet). Saint-Joseph, by contrast, stretches nearly 50 kilometers (31 miles) along the right bank with a wide quality range: the finest vineyards occupy steep granite behind Tournon and Mauves, while the 1969 expansion to 26 communes added flatter, less compelling sites further from the original core. The elevation profiles in this map help distinguish original hillside parcels from later additions.