The Cotes du Roussillon Villages appellation sits in the amphitheatre-shaped topography of the region, which is open to the Mediterranean on one side and surrounded by three mountain ranges: the Corbières to the north, the Pyrenees to the west, and the Albères to the south. In geological terms, Roussillon endured enormous upheavals in the tertiary and quaternary periods, creating a complex variety of soils, subsoils and terroirs. The terroir ranges from the Quaternary Terraces with red pebbles resting on shallow soils, on a clay subsoil with low water reserves, Les Arènes- sandy, silty soils from the Tertiary era, and the ‘Terres Rouges’, shallow clay-limestone soils that are iron-rich and found at higher altitudes, combining cooler microclimates and a long ripening period. The Cordon de Royat trained vines are sustainably farmed, pesticides are not employed, trees and crops are replanted, biodiversity programs and wildlife conservation programmes are in place; the entire philosophy is to leave as little negative impact on the earth as possible.