Saint-Émilion 'Portes Ouvertes' – a day to remember…

Anthony Mackle - Blog

Upping sticks and moving my family to France mid-pandemic probably wasn’t the best time to relocate. Having endured two French lockdowns, restaurant closures and travel bans resulting in no family or friend visits, has certainly had its challenges for our first year residing in France. However, we finally feel that we are coming out of the other side. When the restaurants re-opened back in May, life returned to the cobbled streets of the towns and villages of the Gironde – the people filled terraces and 'apero' sunsets reminded us of what French life is all about - and what a life it is!

This weekend we were delighted to attend our first ‘Portes Ouvertes’ event in Saint-Émilion. For those unfamiliar, it’s basically a time when many of the chateaux from across the appellation open their cellar doors to the public. On offer at most of the chateaux are free wine tastings (dégustation), with some offering food and even activities to entertain the little ones.

Photo: Saint-Émilion Tousime site

With a two and a five-year-old in tow, my wife and I set off on what must be described as a dream Father’s Day - a day of wine chateaux visits! We did our research on the Saint-Émilion tourism sites to find out which chateaux would be best suited for young families. First off we visited Château Bearnatou – a family run chateau in Saint Etienne de Lisse, very peaceful and discreet in its appearance. The car park was packed, thankfully we secured a table in their wonderful garden. Wines were being served by the bottle or the glass, or you could choose a dégustation to sample from the 4 or 5 on offer there. All red, some from their lighter, fruitier, summer’s day wine – priced at only €10 per bottle up to their Grand Cru priced nearer to €40 per bottle. They had grape juice for the kids, served in proper wine glasses which they absolutely loved and a delicious pizza van.

Next stop was chateau de l’ane – also bustling with visitors on tours of the chai, eating from the food trucks or stroking the resident donkey. Which of course was where we spent most of our time thanks to the children. Another great red with some decent prices for a Saint Emilion wine.

Final stop was the delightful Château Mauvinon. Slightly out of Saint-Émilion, in a small village called Saint Sulpice de Faleyrens. Family run, the owner (Brigitte) was a charming ‘mami’, who had the family supporting her to host the day. Tables of clients enjoyed an aperitif as the sun set and the grandkids played in the garden. They made us feel completely at ease. There were activities for the kids - fruit bowls, colouring and enough to distract them so that my wife and I could turn our attention for a moment to … the wine! A superb bold, powerful red, packed with flavour and dark fruits. Utterly splendid with a 2016 at a reasonable price €22 – a couple of which we brought home of course! They even made cocktail at sunset using their rosé wine and pink tonic…an utter delight to end the day.

Anthony Mackle

It was a fantastic event with a real buzz around the region and amongst the chateaux of Saint-Émilion. Not to mention a rare opportunity to visit places we would not normally have been to. A thoroughly recommended day trip for any wine lovers out there.

Anthony Mackle is 'Agent Commercial' and a luxury residential specialist for the region of Saint-Émilion and neighbouring areas. If you're interested in learning more about relocating to France or you are buying or selling in South West France, please get in touch.

anthony@maxwellbaynes.com

info@maxwellbaynes.com