Saint-Rémy-sur-Durolle, Auvergne
This early december took place the 18th edition of the famed (if small) wine fair Les 10 Vins Cochons, a natural-wine, direct-sale event centered on the wines of Auvergne and Massif Central. The organizers had in mind from the start to make these wines better known for the locals who don't have the opportunity to know them, that's why the
organizers kept selecting
along the years venues located deep in the heart of this vibrant mountainous region which as you know is dotted with so many exctinct volcanoes. That's why also the bottle prices were pretty friendly, that is, either the same price than at the wine farm or even cheaper from what I was told by a few winemakers. The remoteness of the chosen location tends to make this wine fair indeed very local with few Parisians or foreigners attending because of the complicated issue of commuting by public transport (first reach Clermont Ferrand by train, then a secondary town (here Thiers), then the final stretch who-knows-how (taxi, acquaintance...) to reach the given village.
So in short, practically I gave up, but there was an unexpected turnaround when Aaron tipped about the impending event (which anyway had passed under my radar) and offered me to get there together and possibly visit a vigneron the day before. Doing crazy things collectively seemed wiser than venturing there alone, especially when not aware at all about where we'd sleep (and the region was under the snow), so I said OK, just that I was busy the day before. So here I am taking the train to Clermond Ferrand where I'd meet a few folks including Aaron (blog & Substack newsletter) and Hannah Fuellenkemper (blog or Instagram), and find myself in good company in the back of a Saab with Dutch license plates heading to the white mountains, exactly to the reservoir of the village of Saint-Rémy-sur-Durolle (pictures on both side)... I love this job
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