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Visiting one of France’s popular wine regions is always a
rewarding experience for a wine lover, not to be called a connoisseur.
Recently we toured the Bourdeaux Region for a period of six days.
Arriving at Merinac Airport, some twenty kilometers to the
west of the city of Bordeaux, we set off to the medieval town of Saint-Emilion,
to overnight in the charming Le Logis Des Remparts.
Medieval Saint-Emilon is one of the most romantic and
photogenic wine communities in the world. The whole of Saint-Emilion has
been declared a historic monument and the use of vehicles by non-residents
is banned in practically all streets.
In the evening, when all the numerous buses of day visitors
have left, the serene cobbled streets again become pedestrian zones with
street bistros and wine bars where the locals meet.
Over a glass of local Vin Rouge and a Jambon Du Pays, all
tension and worries are left at home. History is rooted deep in the daily
lives of the locals in these ancient Bastide towns.
The wines - exclusively red - are relatively smooth in taste
(Chateau Petit Gravet). Most of them are perfectly ready for drinking when
they are young, but have sufficient body to mature for years in the bottle.
We travelled through beautiful wine country and visited towns
like Bergerac, Eymet, Castillonnès to Touzac in the Lot River Valley.
Set peacefully beside the Lot in a grove of weeping willows,
the Hôtel La Source Bleue, has been in the family Bouyou for more than 600
years. We stayed in one of the rooms under the eaves in the 700 year-old
paper mill.
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Cahors, on route along the meandering river, is renowned
for the Pont Valentre, built in the 14th century as a
military crossing. This region also produce some excellent red wines
such as Chateau Vincens.
Rocamadour
became one of the most famous centers of pilgrimage. This unique site,
with its slender castle towering above the village, is one of the most
extra-ordinary historical places in France. This region is also well
known for its prehistoric sites for example Lascaux, Les Eyzie and
Lacave. |
Pont
Valentre Cahors |
Both the villages of Domme and La Roque Gageac
date back to the medieval times of Bastides. The small town of Bourdeilles
has everything - a narrow gothic bridge, a mill upstream, a huge chateau
overlooking it all and the small gem of the Hostellerie Les Griffons, a
comfortable Inn located on the banks of the River Dronne.
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Chateau
Pichon Longueville in Mèdoc |
We cross the Gironde by car-ferry at Blaye to Lamarque, and
spent our final two days in the real wine country of Médoc.
It was
the ultimate experience for any wine lover to have the opportunity to
visit wine estates to the stature of Chateau Mouton Rothschild,
Lafite Rothschild and Margaux. The famous labeled Bourdeaux blends of
Rothschild with label designs of the like of Picasso, Lautrec, Miro and
other renowned artists are famous for both the wine and label. It was a
wonderful experience to stay on a typical wine producing estate, Château
Pomys, near Saint Estephe, where our room overlooked the rows of
vineyards, ready to be hand picked for wine making. |
Most of the wines of the Bordeaux region are blends from
Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot. The Cab is harvested
later than Merlot, so has longer to ripen and can benefit from the warm
weather of September. The Merlot gives suppleness to its wine, where the Cab
lends more body. The Bordeaux blends are best drunk between 5 and 10 years.
The little town of Pauillac is regarded as the “capital” of
Mèdoc and is situated directly on the Gironde. Street Bistros and Brasseries
are popular eateries : Fruits De Mer, Moules De Bouchot (mussels), L’Huitres
(oysters) and Foie Gras (goose liver páte) together with Vins Du Medoc are
standard cuisine on all menus.
After a wonderful week full of experiences with our 87 year
old aunt (with the spirit and enthusiasm of a 40 year old!), we realised
that there is much more to Bordeaux than only wine! |
