Lucky me! My friend Jean-François Bertin, who runs the beautiful B&B “Bastide Saint Claude” invited me to accompany him to a wine tasting course to the aptly named wine cellar “Vignerons de Caractère” in Vacqueras.
I do not know who was the creative genius behind this reinvention of just another dusty old wine cellar into a gleaming high tech place, but since it was revamped about two years ago this must be one of the most interesting, stylish and creative wine cooperatives of the Côtes du Rhône wine growing area.
So there we were, listening to the explanations of our delightful, knowledgable and enthusiastic guide Valérie, learning to use our eyes, nose and palate to evaluate different wines: checking the color, sniffing perfumes, tasting aromas and guessing the vintage. Did you know that wine can have an aroma of fruits and berries, flowers, animals, truffels, tobacco, fresh butter, even beer? One thing is certain - as far as wines are concerned I still have a lot to learn! I am already booked for the next course which “Vignerons de Caractère” will be doing every Friday from June until the end of September: a two hour walking tour at sunset through the vineyards when a wine grower will explain the secrets of his craft.
Barbara, I've been there and was also pleasantly surprised! How lucky you are to go on sunset walking tours in the vineyards. Sounds idyllic!
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