Home
Provençe in a Nutshell
The Parish House Residence
The Parish Van Day Trips
Tour Meals, Food & Wine
Shopping
Food and Health
Restaurant Review
Travel Tips
Talk to Us: E-mail Inquiries
Parish Pen Pals (Coming!)
Booking Your Reservation

Our Tour "Themes"...

The Bike Tour
The Roman & Castle Tour
Art and Beach Tour
Camargue and Féria Tour
Le Lubéron Tour
The Wine Crush Tour
The Fall Colors Tour
The Marmiton Cooking Class
The Avignon Festival Tour
The Senior Tour of Provençe
American Student Tour of Provençe
Abbeys and Cathedrals of Provençe
The Dive Trip

Other...

Pictures of the Parish House
The Manse
The Cloisters
Doing Business in France
Products of Provençe
Places by Name
Links

The Wine Crush

A tour through the French countryside is not complete without a journey along one of the several wine routes ("Route de Vin") that crisscross the country. The wine routes are generally the most picturesque pockets of France . . . and the aroma of fresh-picked grapes wafting from the enchanting villages. Along the routes, the sign "Dégustation" means that you can pop in and sample wines at the vineyard.

The sign "Vente Directe" means that you can buy, but you can't taste. Most of the wine regions have a "Maison du Vin" providing information on the vineyards to visit. The Maison also sells wine from the various Chateaux in the area at wholesale prices. The vineyards are particularly beautiful during harvest time during September and October, extending to November in Avignon, who hosts its "Grande Fete du Vin" about November 20.

Northern Proven‡e is the home of the Côtes du Rhone appellation and encompasses the 125-mile region from Vienne to Avignon, and accounts for the Grand Cru of the Rhone, including Chateauneuf-du-Pape (300 vineyards alone), Gigondas, St. Peray, Comas, St. Joseph and Hermitage. Over 90% of the Rhone wines are red, though the area does produce some fine whites. The wines are classified into three broad categories: Cru Growths (the best), Côtes du Rhone Villages and Côtes du Rhone. Each quality level is strictly controlled and dependent on vineyard location, grape variety, and other criteria.

Nearby is the famous Muscat vineyards of Beaumes de Venise. To the West of Avignon, in the Gard, are the famous French Rosés, like Tavel. To the Southeast, towards Aix en Provençe are the less famous Côtes du Ventoux, and the Côtes du Lubéron. The assortment of liqueurs is no less interesting, with their sugary penchant to follow the traditions of Port, Armagnacs and Cognacs. Local favorites like Marc, and the rougher forms of Pastis reflect the regional penchant for highly scented eau-de-vies.

We visit the "fabriques", mixing our tour with the blends of the local "cooperatifs", who blend excellent versions of the Vacqueyras and Gigondas. We visit the local "caves" of particular brands, not the least of which is the Chateauneuf du Papes, just north of Avignon. And we visit the local (and numerous) fetes votives, and wine festivals. The timing of these events is tricky. If you are a Grand Connoisseur, this is not the tour for you. But if you like wine, and believe that a "Good" bottle of wine can be a $10 bottle, then this is the tour for you.

These "theme" tours are necessarily in September thru November, when the colors start to change, an added dimension which will leave you with an impression of Provençe totally different from any other period of the year. Almost always, we partner a "Senior" tour theme with this tour.

Call us for more information...

970.241.5034

For more information, please contact me at:

toursofprovence@aol.com

or call

970.241.5034