Legend has it that Viognier is an ancient grape originating in Dalamatia (present-day Croatia) and was brought to the Rhone Valley during the Roman occupation. One legend states that the Roman emperor Probus brought the vine to the region in 281 AD; another has the grape packaged with Syrah on a cargo ship navigating the Rhône river, en route to Beaujolais when it was captured, near the site of present-day Condrieu, by a local group of outlaws.