In the southern Rhône Valley and Provence, this is the landscape of small slopes and plateaus. This Provençal word applies to these windswept hilltops/slopes inhabited by scrub-brush and Provençal herb outcroppings. The smell of garrigue is often attributed to southern Rhône Valley wines. Suggesting more than the smell of herbes de Provence, it encompasses an earthy/herbal concoction of varying degrees of intensity.
Garrigue is a type of low, soft-leaved scrubland found around the Mediterranean Basin, generally near the seacoast. Garrigue, which is a French term, is the most common term for such shrublands, which are known as phrygana in Greece, tomillares in Spain, and batha in Israel. Aromatic shrubs such as lavender, rosemary, wild thyme and Artemisia are common garrigue plants.