The appellation is located in the Loire wine region in a semicircle to the east and south-east around the city of Nantes in the Pays Nantais area on the Atlantic coast. The former VDQS area was classified as AOP in 2012. The name is derived from the main grape variety Gros Plant, a synonym used here for the variety Folle Blanche, which was introduced from the Charente in the 14th century. The wine made from it was particularly popular with the Dutch and was used in part for distillation. From the mid-1880s onwards, the Folle Blanche was almost wiped out by the phylloxera catastrophe and replaced by Melon de Bourgogne and hybrid vines. It was only after the establishment of the appellation and the EU ban on hybrids that the variety was reactivated.
The vineyards cover 2,300 hectares of vineyards on stony soils mixed with igneous rock on sunny slopes in a total of 94 communes in the three departments of Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire and Vendée. A large part of the area overlaps with the Muscadet appellation. The Atlantic climate is characterised by the nearby sea. The white wines are made from the Gros Plant variety (Folle Blanche). The designation Gros Plant du Pay Nantais sur lie may be used if the wines are stored on the fine yeast after fermentation at least until 1 March of the year following the harvest. Bottling usually takes place immediately after racking, but no later than 30 November of the year following the harvest. Well-known producers include Domaine de Beauregard, Château de Briacé, Domaine de la Cognardière, Château de Fromenteau, Château de la Preuille and Clos Saint-Vincent des Rongères.
