Sauterne

Today we visited the village and area of Sauterne. Some suggest it is one of the quality areas for wine production in the Bordeaux region. 

The Château d’Yquem, a very picturesque château in the centre of the Sauterne region. 

After a  very quiet overnight, having been joined under the trees by two other vans, later this morning we were told that we had actually stopped in the wrong area. The moral of the story is that we were just being French. Gotta love the French!

An early morning walk along the canal took us past two lochs at the same time as a large group barge was passing through. Always interesting to see the lochs work and ponder the reasons for their being here in the first instance. The guests on the barge were some Australians and Americans. 

The barge passing through the loch. The lochs  in France are run by paid employees who zip up and down the canals to work all gates - as opposed to the English model where you usually manage the lochs yourself. 

Late morning we left for The Chateau d’Yquem near the village of Sauterne. 

The 15th century Chäteau d’Yquem. 

The Sauterne district is dotted with prestigious châteaux, the most famous of which is perhaps the Château d’Yquem. Rated premier cru supérieur, the Sauternes produced there, it is said, are some of the finest and most expensive wines in the world. 

The design of the reception area reflects the quality of the wine - Evan to the extent of a gold washroom and toilet. 

Dating from the 15th century, Yquem is also one of the oldest wine estates in the area. Its vineyards cover about 100ha (250 acres). The sémillon and sauvignon grapes are the primary grapes grown here. 

 

The Chateau also has a very fine French garden. Being hot and mid-summer many of the flowering plants were past their best, nevertheless, it was quite spectacular. 

The bees were very active in the masses of lavender. 

We later drove back to Castets-en-Dorthe for a late lunch and the rest of the day. 

Saw our first full field of flowering sunflowers today!

We found this note on SAUTERNES interesting:

The grapes used for Sauternes must have been infected by a form of the fungus, botrytis cinerea, known as noble rot. This causes them to shrivel and have a very high sugar content, which accounts for the sweetness of the wines. The Sauternes grape harvest is a long and painstaking process, in which every single grape is picked by hand. After fermentation, the wine matures in barrels for two years, before being bottled. Sauternes is served well chilled, but it is not only a dessert wine. It can also be enjoyed as an aperitif, or sipped with foie gras or Roquefort cheese.(From tourist info)