France - Haut Lirou Winery

Our next winery was, I think, the only dud in the two years I've been going on these trips. It was a really hot day and we had just finished an extremely long alfresco lunch sitting in direct sunlight, eating spicy chicken, piping hot and  right out of the oven. We were all overheated, cranky, sweaty, and tired, so I don't think the fact that this winery was a dud lies solely on the winery's shoulders. 

Peahen and peacock!

After a short ride on the luxuriously air conditioned bus, we arrived to the sight of several peacocks! Always a delight. The view of the vineyard was also beautiful, but it was still sweltering and there was no shade to be found. We were all happy to be escorted into the air conditioned wine making facility. Yay - cool air!! 

Haut Lirou vineyard

We toured the chilly wine making warehouse and learned all about Haut Lirou's winemaking philosophy. 

More barrels!

Fancy barrels

On our way out of the warehouse, we passed a storage area where bottled wines were continuing to age. 

Wine storage

When we made it into the tasting room, I watched as an employee turned OFF the air conditioner. Off?! 25 people just entered your small tasting room and you turn the air con off? 

As the room started heating up, the wine guy started pouring wine for the tasting. The labels on the bottle didn't match the posters on the wall or the pricing guide hand outs. We couldn't figure out which wines we were tasting, and as the room got hotter, I got more confused. My French is pretty nonexistent, but at most wineries I can pair the bottle's label to the marketing and figure out the grape(s) involved and cost of each bottle. Because their marketing paperwork didn't match each other or any of the labels on the bottles we tasted, I think I only purchased one bottle.   

Even more barrels!

That's not to say the wines were bad, on the contrary, they were very good. I was just cranky and hot and ready to dive into the cold pool back at the hotel. Sigh. 

Wine's we tasted:

  

SaveSave

France - Chateau L'Euzier

We visited Chateau L'Euzier in the Languedoc region. This winery has been managed by the same family for several generations. When the father passed away fairly young, his son and daughter returned to the family business and are now running the place. 

Wine vats

Wine barrels

The daughter had been working as a jeweler in Paris. When she came back to manage the winery, they re-named the wines to coincide with jewelry-making techniques. Her brother has also re-vitalized the business by bringing in new styles and winemaking skills. Needless to say, their wine is tasty! 

Wine tasting

Our tasting took place under the shade of some gorgeous old trees, accompanied by some yummy treats. The friendly family dog cruised around to get some scratchies from the animal lovers. It was a lovely way to spend a few hours!

Snacks

By the time we were done with this, the second winery of the tour, our guide/teacher knew we were on track to buy even more wine than last year's trip. More on that in later posts. 

Wines tasted:

  

France - Sightseeing in La Camargue

I had honestly never heard of La Camargue until I found out we were going to visit there whilst on our wine trip. It's a small area of natural beauty within the Languedoc region of France. When we visited, we stopped in the cities of Aigues-Mortes (translated into Dead Water) and Arles. 

I took pictures in both cities, but what I didn't capture was the nature preserves we drove through within La Camargue. There were thousands of wild flamingos, hundreds of wild, all-white horses, and (although we only saw a few), pure-bred Camargue cattle. 

The walled city of Aigues-Mortes

Our first stop was in Aigues-Mortes, formerly a seaside fortress, which is now situated a bit inland as the seas have changed. Outside the walled city are marshlands where famous Camargue salt is harvested. The 'modern' city was founded by Louis IX in 1240 when he took over a catholic priory because it sat on a rather advantageous location. 

Gated entrance to Aigues-Mortes

The small, cobbled streets were filled with a mix of tourist shops and shops for locals. It was already a rather hot day, so my friend and I hit up a hat shop and purchased some shade. We all looked quite cute for the rest of the trip (if I do say so myself). 

Tiny street in Aigues-Mortes 

We bought hats!

We walked down to the beach to put our toes in the mediterranean sea. It was lovely and all, but, damn, that sand was HOT! 

The sand was HOT

Before walking back to the bus we got a group shot of the four American gals on the wine trip.

Happy girls!

After driving through la Camargue and seeing lots of wildlife and beauty, we stopped in Arles for some late afternoon touring before dinner. I had not been aware that Arles had a still-standing, still in-use Roman amphitheater built in 90AD. WOW, was it amazing! I have never been to mainland Italy, so this was the first major Roman structure I have seen. 

Roman amphitheater in Arles

Arles Amphitheater

In the picture below you can see the new(ish) stadium-style seats that they've added to the amphitheater. Even though it is almost 2,000 years old, it is still used for concerts and the like throughout the year. 

Tunnels inside amphitheater

More views of the amphitheater and its seating. I wonder, are the wooden bench seats more comfortable that the old stone slabs? They both seem rather unpleasant!

Amphitheater seating

Panoramic view of Amphitheater

We walked the amphitheater's perimeter twice, once outside amongst the seats and once inside, below the seats.

Below grounds in amphitheater

Interior walkways

It gave me the chills walking around below. I kept thinking about the gladiators, slaves, animals, etc. who had probably spent their last hours here before battle scared out of their minds. 

Gladiatorial (or animal?) entrance to the arena

Can you even imagine, having to walk out of that doorway and into an arena where you had to fight to the death? Or wrestle a tiger? Gives me the willies just thinking about it. Maybe this amphitheater was used for happier things way back when… but I doubt it. 

I was MELTING

We went back outside for a few more photos. But, damn, it was hot. After living in England for five years, my poor body just can't take the heat!

Roman stonework at amphitheater

Several stories tall

After the amphitheater we walked through town in search of a garden made famous by Vincent Van Gogh. We walked and walked and walked in the heat, almost gave up, but then we found it! 

Arles church

Doors of the church of Saint-Trophime

The garden painted by Vincent Van Gogh is really not much more than a pretty courtyard.

Garden painted by Van Gogh

But it was pretty enough for me to take a selfie!

In garden painted by Van Gogh

And here's the famous Van Gogh painting in the garden it's depicting. You can see the white/yellow/blue terraces in the distance. The garden's grown in a bit since he painted the picture, though! 

One of Van Gogh's painting in location of painting

France - Welcome Dinner

My second wine trip to France was in the South of France, same location as my first annual wine trip to France. In fact, we even stayed at the same hotel! However, the first year was mostly spent touring wineries in the southwest (primarily Languedoc) whereas the second year was spent on the southeast (notably, Provence and Chateauneuf du pape).

View from my hotel room

After a long, hot day involving a plane, bus rides, and a shade-free lunch in the hot sun, when we arrived at the hotel everyone jumped straight into the pool. We all quickly cleaned up before heading to our welcome dinner. 

Welcome dinner

We had about 25 people in the group this year and we've all had the chance to gel as a group. The dinners and socializing are quite fun, albeit they can be long, drawn-out affairs. It's a good thing we all like each other! 

View from the dinner table that first night

There were a handful of new folks along for their first tour this year, and I felt like an old pro! This summer I'll be attending my third annual wine tour and will really be a seasoned pro by the end!

Some friends along on the wine trip

And just look at this view. It doesn't get much better than this, especially when there is terrific food, loads of good people, and copious amounts of wine! 

Full moon over the mediterranean sea