Wine Tasting, Vineyards, in France

Paris Wine Bars : Les Pipos

We just visited a well located wine bar, Les Pipos in the 5 th arrondissement . It is close to the Pantheon and to Rue des Ecoles & Boulevard Saint Germain , and it is also close to Rue Mouffetard . Closest subway stations are Maubert Mutualite and also Cardinal Lemoine . Exact location is rue de l'Ecole Polytechnique and rue de la Montagne Sainte Genevieve . Phone is 01 43 54 11 40 . It is one of the old guard wine bars : Authentic, simple and very warmful and relaxed, with a selection of quality wines . A place you feel welcome to come in , and enjoy a glass of wine . The Montagne Sainte Genevieve neighbourhood is where Paris of the roman invasion and occupation (named Lutecia then) expanded from the original Ile de la Cite and Ile Saint Louis city limits . Montagne means hill : You indeed walk up when you come from rue des Ecoles . When you arrive at the wine bar at the corner ( right hand ) you are on a sort of square , with several attractive cafes and restaurants . The bar is an old looking parisian bar , probably like many bars and bistros looked like 60 years ago . Wood , mosaic floor , period furniture . The building itself is "classé monument historique", wich means it has some historic importance and will be preserved; any restoration having to respect strict rules . Staff and manager are friendly . We decided to sit at a table inside, near the window open on rue de l'Ecole Polytechnique. From there you view the counter, the wood panelling, the wine list boards, listen to the jokes and also look at the street outside, wich is a quiet one . We devised about what to drink . I took a red Cotes du Rhone villages Cairanne 2001 Domaine Catherine le Goeuil "cuvee marie rouviere" . 4,3 Euro a glass . B. chose a white : Menetou Salon 2003 Domaine de Chatenoy (by P. Clement) . 4,6 Euro a glass . I don't know if their other wines are that good or if we had chance in our choice , but we are both delighted with our wine . The Cairanne is a superb wine, round, rich . We are shown the bottle . It says "organically grown grapes" . 14° . I will look about where to find this wine in Paris . Later in the evening, I will browse the web and find out that this cuvee and year from Domaine Catherine Le Goeuil is made mostly from old vine Grenache, plus a little of Syrah and Mourvedre . 40 years old vines with low yields resulting in this concentrated wine , I read .

Paris Wine Bars : Le Baron Rouge

Some pictures and the wine prices were re-actualized in april 2007Le Baron Rouge at rush hour This is an ordinary weekday at Le Baron Rouge, a wine bar located in the 12th arrondissement close to the famous street market "marche d'Aligre" . This was yesterday, thursday. We arrived at about 6.30 pm. There were just a few people when we walked into the bar. By the time we left, at maybe 7.45 pm, there was so many more people, inside and outside (That's when the picture was shot) First, how to get there : It is close to the Bastille. We came on motorcycle but subway is convenient, it is close to the Ledru-Rollin metro station on line N°8. When you reach the street level, watch for a park at short distance on Rue du Faubourg Saint Antoine. Go there and turn right, walk along the park and at the end of the park take left on rue Théophile Roussel, it will be few meters on the right.
The best thing to do is come in the morning and spend a couple of hours at the Marché d'Aligre 50 meters further : There are actually several markets going on there : the street market with its joyful vegetable and fruit stalls, the Marché Beauvau, a covered market with specialized shops selling charcuterie and other fine foods, and the flea market on the opposite side of the Place d'Aligre. You can easily spend a full morning just strolling in the area, and end up at Le Baron Rouge like many locals who go there either after shopping at the markets, or for the work pause. It is thus very lively between noon and 2pm and the patrons are mostly wine-loving locals who appreciate the cheerful and friendly ambiance of the bar
But it may be also interesting to drop there at the end of the day, from 6 pm when the "habitués" living or working in the area begin to flock to the bar for an "apero" to celebrate the end of the work-day . The area is a densely-populated, middle-class neighborhood and I envy these patrons that just walk a few seconds or minutes from work or home to have a drink and enjoy the good time here.
We went to the zinc bar ( I love the granular surface of the metal at this bar) and after a while_needs time to choose_ we had our glasses of wine . B. took a glass of Vouvray demi-sec Daniel Mabille 1998 (3 Euro) . I took a Fronsac Chateau Puy Saint Vincent 1999 (3,2 Euro)

Domaine de Peigros (Pierrefeu)

Pierrefeu We visited Domaine de Peigros after Mireille Mann called the owner from the Tasting House in Pierrefeu . I first discovered this Domaine while tasting a bottle at this very Maison des Vins de Pierrefeu a year ago . At that time I took a case of their 1999 red . The Domaine is a short distance north of the village of Pierrefeu (map) . Jean charles Dartus receives us in front of the Domaine's house , in the shadow of plane trees that hide the house from the sun . The Domaine's vineyards are all around us . We sit and he begins to explain about the wine . J.C. Dartus came from the north of France to make wine here . He was previously in the wine field . He settled in Pierrefeu in 1987 . First wine came out in 1988 . The Domaine has about 10 hectares of vineyards . Grape varieties are vinified separately here . Blending can be symbolic in the region, with just a few liters of a grape variety added to a vat of another one . No chemical fertilizers . Hand harvest . Pruning . Harvest on intact grapes . The vineyard is all around the house , very close (and 10 hectares is not big surface) and there are no transportation delays & losses. No spoiled grapes as it happens when vineyard plots are scattered a few kilometers away . Soil around here is clay, with also schists and volcanic stones .

Jean Charles Dartus brings the first bottle :

Chaberts: An Englishwoman in Provence

The english people are known to buy property and settle in Provence in increasing numbers these years . Anglophones there even have their newspaper, like the Riviera-reporter. One of them has been living here for more than 25 years, and most unusual, she has been making wine , in the Coteaux Varois appellation . Betty Ann Cundall, in her Chateau des Chaberts, has been quietly working on her wine , winning medals and awards for years throughout France for her whites, reds and roses . 12 medals in 2004 already, including two stars (**) in the Hachette wine guide for her rose wine . Chateau des Chaberts is located in inner Var , not far from Brignoles , near a village named Gareoult (map). If you want to visit, the Domaine is on the road from Gareoult to La Roquebrussanne (D 64 ) , There is a sign on the right , take then a small road (about 1 km) and you are there . Ph: 33 (0)4 94 04 92 05 This inner Var region is a mix of hills ranging from 600 m to 1000 m altitude (mostly forest and "garrigue") , and plateaus (altitude about 400 m) . This is as provencal as it can be , with beautiful villages with many fountains , cicadas , and rosemary , thyme, fennel, juniper growing in the wild in the hills . The altitude brings cooler nights . Also , it is less crowded and overbuilt here than on the coast . Most of the hills and mountains in Var , like the ones Chateau des Chaberts is backed to, is provencal wilderness as you have always dreamed of . Her Estate is a nice traditional provencal house with cellar and winemaking facility in an adjacent building . The vineyards are all around . The Domaine is curled on a valley on the first slopes of the Loube mountain range, a sort of de facto natural park off limits to development and constructions , and home to wild boars and other provencal wild life .Betty opens the gates to her vineyards

Maison des Vins in Les Arcs (Cotes de Provence)

The Cotes de Provence Maison des Vins in Les Arcs is the place you can taste for free among the many Cotes de Provence wines , and also help yourself among the hundreds of bottles stacked in the adjacent cellar for any purchase ( same price as you would pay at the estates) . This wine-tasting and store facility is open year around 7 days a week (except that in winter, it is closed on sundays). Phone is : 04 94 99 50 20 . Les Arcs (see this map : Les Arcs is in the center, left of La Motte) is a typical provencal village in inner Provence in the Var departement , between Brignoles and Frejus, on a hill a short distance from the Nationale 7 highway . The "Maison des Vins des Cotes de Provence" is located right on the N 7 highway(at a distance from the village), you can't miss it , it is on the left when you come from the west .The circular tasting bar The air-con cooled building with parking lot and landscaping in front, also has a gastronomic restaurant upstairs . This is a Wine House where you can taste for free among wines from 230 wine producers and 20 wine cooperatives . The selection is changed weekly . When we stopped there , there were 4 whites , 6 roses and 6 reds on the tasting list . The tasting room is adjacent to the cellar-store and is very functional . They also sell potteries, books , honey, tapenades and other fine provencal products, as well as wine accessories . The adjacent room, organised like a cellar, contains hundreds of bottles of the Domaines & Chateaus of the region, and visitors help themselves with wicker baskets . 7 persons work in the building . 3 or 4 sommeliers are in the tasting room to serve the visitors . The wine in the cellar is divided in 5 sub-regions : Collines du haut pays (highland hills) ,
Sainte Victoire,
Bassin du Beausset,
Bordure maritime (sea border) ,
Vallee interieure,

Maison des Vins in Pierrefeu

Another free tasting "Wine House" , this one for Pierrefeu wines . Pierrefeu is a nice provencal village north east of Toulon , about 20 km from the mediterranean sea . Pierrefeu (map) is one of the 5 Cotes de Provence wine sub-appellations ( the others are : Frejus , La Londe les Maures , Montagne Sainte Victoire , and Sainte Baume ) wich should in the coming years get their separate label . So , Pierrefeu-Cotes de Provence wine producers have a front window with this Maison des Vins , conveniently situated on Pierrefeu main street , facing the central parking lot from wich you can enjoy the panoramic view over the Maures mountain range . Here you can taste Pierrefeu wines for free, and buy the bottles (if you want to) at the producer's price . This is a bargain . Phone is : 04 94 28 11 89 . Mireille Mann, who operates the Maison is a warmful young woman from Alsace who settled with her husband in the region . Both are from alsatian families deeply rooted in the wine world . When I first came here last year , I asked if she was From Alsace by chance . I had recognized the intonation peculiar to this part of France . She was surprised that I noticed it . I lived in Alsace several years and it is still my home "quelque part" as we say in France .Mireille Mann (left) Mireille Mann has answers for the many questions we have and knows about the different wine cultures of the Domaines, and also about the grape varieties , the geological influences on the wines . She tells us about the climate last year and in 2002, and of its impact on the wines . 2002 was rainy in the Pierrefeu area . Some of the grapes were rotten . Good wines were nonetheless produced this year . And last year , in 2003 , big forest fires on the other side of the Maures mountain range pushed many wild boars on this side of the mountains , and in the Pierrefeu vineyards . Even without forest fires , wild boars do a lot of damages in Provence vineyards . They usually descend nightly from the mountains and eat as much as they can . Vegetation in the mountain is very dry and the vineyards are easy food in contrast . It is common to see electrical fences along vineyards close to the first slopes of the mountains . So in 2003 , such damages were increased indirectly by the fires . There are 3 ways to vinify here : __ Direct pressing . Minimum colour given to the wine . Clear colours . This is a white wine vinification except it is also applied to red wine grapes . __ Bleeding . Grapes in the vats . Then maceration time between 4 hours and a day . Then , open and let the first juice out . The rest goes for the reds . __ Skin maceration ( thermoregulated ) Here the harvest begins early september . Reds are often done last . 2003 was a superb year for perfectly matured and healthy grapes here . Now tasting time . Our host looks for a wine to begin with and respect an tasting order . Here there are no rotating tasting list , so you can basically taste any wine the Maison has in its selection .

Chateau Ste Roseline (Cotes de Provence)

Sainte Roseline. The vineyards in the background The Chateau Sainte Roseline is a Cotes de Provence winery which is located close to Les Arcs, a small town in inner Var (Departement), in Provence, near the Nationale 7 highway . To reach it, you need to take the small D 91 road eastward from Les Arcs , and you can actually spot Sainte Roseline on the map (a few centimeters on the right of Les Arcs). A visit to the Chateau Sainte Roseline has a double interest : The estate is a big, well-knowned Cotes de Provence wine producer whose wines are appreciated and exported , and it is also a historic site : It was formerly, before the French Revoltution, an Abbey, the Abbaye de la Celle-Roubaud. Right near the winery is the chapel: This roman chapel which was built in the 12th century is of major interest . It holds unique religious Art [see on left , angel and grapes, and the lower pic] , and the body of Sainte Roseline, conserved for centuries under a glass case [see picture at the bottom]. Pilgrims come from all over France and Europe to pay tribute to her spiritual work. It is also home to a mural work by Chagall.
Sainte Roseline was of a high birth , born january 27th 1263 the oldest daughter of Arnaud de Villeneuve and Sybille de Sabran in the Chateau of Les Arcs. She devoted all her life to help the poor. She died january 17th 1329 at the age of 66 and was buried in plain ground. Her body was exhumed five years later and happened to be perfectly conserved with her eyes open and with a clear, generous expression. This was deemed amiracle and with all her life devoted to help the poor, she was declared a saint. Her body was subsequently exposed to the faith of the pilgrims, who came from afar to pray near her remains. You can see clearly her face, hands, and bare feet on the picture.
This is a well organized estate, and visitors can have a tour in french & english at the same time , which begins with the chapel and follows with the wine production facilities and the cellars, ending with the sampling of several wines the tasting room and wine shop. The visit with tasting costs 4 Euro altogether. The Foudres (big casks) roomThe chapel can be accessed for free though , if you want to skip the rest of the program .
We follow our guide with a dozen tourists from France and northern Europe . In the chapel first . Beautiful religious art . Also a mosaic by Marc Chagall (1975), which is there due to the help of the Maeght family to restore this chapel . Pilgrims come continuously to the chapel , but the major pilgrimage takes place on january 17th (Sainte Roseline day in the calendar) . Now the wine production facilities : The Chateau is one of the 18 "crus classes" of the Provence wine regions and appellations , in wich about 700 Domaines & Chateaux are listed .Our guide shows us the harvest room where air-con trucks bring the grapes that are then processed vertically to 2 lower levels . This room being basically of practical use only at harvest time , it is now rented for weddings , seminars , concerts (up to 500 people)... We now go to the lower levels . The Chateau invested heavily in state of the art technology , and quite everything around has been bought in the last 10 years . The vineyards surface has jumped from 50 hectares a few years ago to 110 hectares today, also partly resulting from higher vine concentration per hectare . In the lower levels under the harvest room , many different sizes of stainless steel vats with different functions . The picture upper right shows vats holding 3 separate containers vertically each . On one of them , respective volumes were marked as 170 , 105 , 100 hectoliters .

Domaine de Trevallon (Provence)

Domaine de Trevallon

The Domaine de Trevallon is located near Saint Remy de Provence , exactly near a village named Saint Etienne de Grès , not far from Les Baux de Provence. . It is one of the first estates (the first ?) to have made its way with quality wines totally free from the Appellation system, with making wines labelled as "vin de pays", wines which were nonetheless highly appreciated and priced accordingly in the wine world.


Eloi Durrbach began planting new vineyards in 1973 . The first wines from these vineyards came out in 1977. The cool underground cellar was built in 1985. [ See on the left the nice road from Saint Etienne du Gres to the Domaine de Trevallon ]
The Domaine' wines were labelled in the VDQS "Coteaux d'Aix en Provence" till 1985. Then the allowed percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend was lowered. Problem . The Domaine de Trevallon, which had a bigger share of Cabernet Sauvignon in its wine received exemptions from the rules for a while, but one day this exemption stopped and the Domaine was offered the choice to abide to the rules or be downgraded to "Vin de Pays des Bouches du Rhone". This is what happened.
All this was not very logic as there was no particular historic tradition in this region for particular blends. In many places around here, Cabernet Sauvignon had been planted (but most estates chose to stay inside the "rules") . There was indeed a large share of Cabernet Sauvignon before the Phylloxera devastated the vineyards at the end of the 19th century. Even Pinot and Gewurtzstraminer could be commonly seen in the region. This was then a very free era in term of viticulture .
The father of Eloi Durrbach, René Durrbach, a painter and sculptor, bought the Domaine in 1955. He is by the way the author of the labels that you can see on the Trevallon's bottles.

Eloi Durrbach in the foudres cellar

Eloi Durrbach shows us the cellar . Very cool place. It can be so hot outside. Some of the wines there are 30-35 years old . Customers often come to buy bottles from around 1990.
About how he works : No destemming, no yeast adding. Makes austere wines when young. Yield never been over 25 hectoliters/hectare. No clones. Very short pruning, thus no need to take off grapes later (no green harvest). No chemical fertilizers. All this work, plus other careful attentions, resulted in a quality that soon brought the success and fame to Trevallon wines, and the handicap of being out of the AOC system did'nt hinder it.

Chateau de Pibarnon (Bandol)

We didnt plan to visit the Chateau de Pibarnon . We just wanted to see the terraced vineyards that we had a glimpse of at the Maison des Vins de Bandol on a pic shot by Pascal Perier . So we took the winding and narrow roads accross the Bandol and La Cadiere hills . Very scenic , slow drive as 2 vehicules hardly pass . Steep terrain . This is a difficult road , partly poorly paved road , partly dirt road and we did it , the road stopped right at Pibarnon, with the semi-circular vineyards amphitheater visible on the next hill on the right . Once there we looked at the terraced vineyards in a cooling breeze that made this hot august day very bearable . I wondered if this breeze from the mediterranean sea has a role in the special Bandol wines . After resting a while looking at the view , we decided that after such a painful journey we deserved a visit and announced ourselves ... A young man named Clement Bellande opened the door and made a presentation of the Chateau and its wines . He is working presently at Pibarnon but has already a good wine experience , plus wine related studies , and plans one day to make wine himself in the Cotes du Ventoux region . Remember his name . The Domaine was created in 1974 . The Chateau itself is exposed southward . The terraced vineyards on an amphitheater on the other side of the valley are mostly northward . On clay-limestone soil . Brings a slow maturation . Harvest can begin mid-october with such an orientation . The Chateau has about 50 hectares . 27 years ago it was only about 3 hectares . The "amphitheater" holds about 10 to 12 hectares .

Maison des Vins in Bandol

The "Maison des Vins du Syndicat des Domaines du Bandol" as it is officially named , is one of the 2 Maisons des Vins in Bandol where visitors can taste Bandol wines for free .(The other , named "caveau des vins de Bandol" is 50 meters away and regroups also producers of the appellation ) Bandol was in the past a modest fisherman village along the mediterranean sea, like Saint Tropez. It is now the well known name and flagship of some of the finest wines of Provence. It is located a few kilometers east of Toulon.
The Maison des Vins sits 22 Allée Vivien in Bandol (phone: 04 94 29 45 03), right in front of the cute port where strollers look at the small boats and the yatchs. It is actually just in front of a carousel. The tastin house is not big, but large enough to let you taste free of charge the Bandol wines of the selection : 27 Chateaux and Domaines, which in total makes several dozens of wines, with the whites, reds and rosés.... The place is air-conditioned, which can be refreshing in region where summers are usually very hot.
Like in the other Maisons des Vins in France, the wines of the selection change regularly so that you can drop there again and not taste the same wines.
Pascal Perier who manages the Maison des Vins de Bandol does a very good job. He has tons of informations about the wines and the different Domaines, the style of the vintners, the soils, the local grape varieties. He spends additional time year around in the vineyards , taking pictures and notes that you can read in his website : maisondesvins-bandol.com. Also, you can browse among many pictures as well as maps. To see his pictures, click on each picture in the banner. His extensive knowledge on the Bandol wines & estates is very helpful for the visitors. Spending time here and tasting the wines of the day will help you decide which winery to visit thereafter. He personnally met each of them and has a seen how they work in their respective vineyards and on the vinification side.