Sometimes we save for a special occasion. We’d saved up for a while, and in June, we were able to travel to France , and tour the beautiful village of Saint-Emilion, nestled in wine country, 35 km from Bordeaux. The primary grape varieties grown in this region are Cabernet Franc, and … Merlot. Uh oh. Being a Pinot Noir fan (and the movie ‘Sideways’ didn’t help) HubbyDoug had sworn that he’d never drink any *#@$ Merlot. But he did. And he liked it. More on that in a bit.

But first, some fun facts about Saint-Emilion.

• Named after the reclusive Benedictine monk who relocated there in the 8th Century and lived in a cave.

• Known for performing miracles, Emilion amassed many followers and made the town a great religious center

• Home to one of the great subterranean monolithic churches in the world, Saint-Emilion Monolithic Church was carved into a rocky hillside to honour that along with 200 kms of underground galleries

• Built on limestone, Saint-Emilion still has edicts in place that only small trucks can enter/ exit due to the vast number of underground tunnels.

• Romans planted vineyards in what became Saint-Emilion as early as the 2nd century
• One of the main red wine areas of Bordeaux

• Wine profile: Varietals: Merlot, Cab Franc, some Cab Sauv
• Soil: limestone, sand, clay

Click the video below to join me in Saint-Emilion!

With a population just over of 2,000, Saint-Emilion seems almost preserved in time. It’s weird to see cars (and if you do, they’re extremely small). But a more quaint town you be hard pressed to find. It’s such a beautiful place. Navigating some of the streets, however, you’d better have goat-like stability, especially in the rain. And to sample wine and other treats, you needed to plan your route. To get to the town center, you had to walk down a cobblestone avenue that had a railing running the entire length. While it was helpful, you really needed a human chain to get everyone there safely. Running shoes were not helpful ~ you needed mountain climbers’ spikes, and good hip flexibility. You wanna wear dressy heels on this wine tour? Leave them on the bus, this isn’t that kind of party.

Visiting the monolithic church is a little like your own private DaVinci Code. You can only get inside by booking through the tourism office. If you just show up, you won’t get in. Only designated tour guides have a key. Once you enter the church and catacombs with your guide, the heavy wooden door is locked behind you. No one enters. No one leaves. That was a feature that made some of our tour mates a little antsy. But it was such a cool place, and the tour was really interesting that the time went by very quickly.

My friend Shelly and I soon went on to explore the rest of the town. HubbyDoug explored some wine. He chose two: 2016 Chateau Martet Reserve de Famille (the Merlot!) and a 2016 Les Hautes de la Gaffelière. Knowing that we would probably never be back (although I can always hope maybe one day…) we bought a couple of bottles to ship home.

The next stop on our journey was Chateau Franc Mayne. Located only about a kilometer from the little village, it’s guarded by a beautiful stone cross that overlooks seven hectares of lush vines. It is a Grande Cru Classe (exceptional) winery and they take great pride in working to be sustainable and environmentally conscious.

After visiting the vats ( concrete, steel and oak) and vineyard, we made our way to the underground galleries where most of the barrels were kept. Much like the underground networks under Saint-Emilion, these galleries seemed to stretch on to infinity.

It was wonderful to save for a summer adventure away from home. I feel so grateful to have had an opportunity to explore a new wine region, and to experience such a beautiful place with so much history.

Sante! 💋🍷

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