Cotes du Rhone Villages Visan is an appellation for the red, white and rose wines from the parish of Visan in the southern half of the Rhône valley in France. The village is located in the north of the area covered by the Côtes du Rhône Villages appellation, about 15 miles (23km) north of the town of Orange.

As with many of its neighbours, it is best known for red wines which mainly combine the grape varieties Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. These count for over 90 percent of production, with the remainder split between rosé wines from the same grape varieties and white wines from Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Marsanne, Roussanne, Bourboulenc and Viognier.

Made part of the Côtes du Rhône Villages in the late 1960s, the wines tend to show a step up in quality from those of the generic Côtes du Rhône appellation. In addition, Visan is one of about 20 particularly favoured locations that are allowed to add their names to the label, placing them one step below location-specific crus such as Gigondas or Vacqueyras in the appellation hierarchy.

The village forms part of the ancient papal enclave formed in the 14th century when Pope Clement V moved his headquarters to Avignon, or more specifically, Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It is the southern neighbour of Valréas, and shares many of its topographical characteristics.The production surface area totals 414 hectares (1023 acres). Visan's vineyards are mostly sited on rocky soils with a high concentration of limestone. The whole eastern side of the southern Rhône valley is rich in limestone outcrops formed by glacial movement. In the lower, slightly flatter areas to the west of the village are heavier, red clay-based soils – particularly in the areas around the Aigues and Lez rivers, which straddle the parish. The excellent drainage qualities of these soils mean that the vines are forced to grow deep root systems in order to search for water and nutriments.

Being in the north of the region, the climate here is towards the cooler end of the Mediterranean type and among the coolest in the southern Rhône valley.

The area still enjoys long, warm summers, meaning that Mourvèdre and Grenache Noir grow well despite their need for a hot, dry climate to fully ripen. At the same time, Syrah prefers the slightly cooler climate here, as it is more susceptible to heat damage. White grapes also benefit from the slightly cooler conditions here.

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