The south-eastern part of France that we know as Provence has had a very long history of wine making. Even before the Romans brought commercial viticulture to the area, Greek settlers had established some vineyards near the coast, so the Provencals can reasonably claim a three millennium tradition. The climate in Provence is unusually warm for its latitude. An isobar of average summer temperatures runs through central Spain, curves northwards to take in the coastal regions of Provence, and then dips southwards again to cross central Italy. This warmth has ensured that vines can easily fruit and ripen.

You could argue that this very ease of growing is what has given Provence its caricature of lazy growers producing mediocre roses in quantities that could float a battle ship. Certainly it's true that historically a lot of poor wine was made here for a population that cared more about price than quality. But just as in other areas where production was geared to quantity rather than quality, things have changed. You can still find plain, insipid roses easily enough, but there's a growing group of dedicated wine-makers who are making wines in Provence that equal the wines of other regions.

This hasn't been easy. Because the vast majority of growers have their properties included in the ACs, they and the region as a whole has to abide by its rules. Internal politics in the INAO has meant that other regions have protected their interests by making it impossible for Provencale growers to have AC wines that include Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot (the Bordelaise like to control those) or Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (the Burgundians control those) or even Syrah, which the Rhone Valley producers protect as their own. This leaves the Provencals with the Cinsault and the Mourvedre to call their own, much harder grapes to make good wine from.

What surprised me in a week of tasting Provencal wines was how good some of them now are. There are serious growers who have opted out of the AC system so that they're free to grow the grapes they want and make the wines that they want, but these can only readily be found in specialist shops. Bandol, the archetypal Provencal red, is abundant in off-licenses and restaurants and ranges from the plain to the excellent. One really stood out from those I tasted, Domaine La Vivonne 2001, a really rich, luscious wine with a surprising 15% of alcohol.

Wine of the Week

If you haven't already made a point of getting something special for today, Valentine's Day, get thee off to an off-license now and woo the woman in your life with a bottle of bubbly. As a change from Champagne you could try a new sparkler from New Zealand, called 'Lindauer' from Montana. Dry, but not austere, it has a pleasing complexity of flavours that it make it good to drink either by itself or as an accompaniment to some equally celebratory luxury food, like foie gras or caviar.

Widely available, RRP €15.99