JC in France May - June 2018 | Day 4
An early start for a meeting and tasting at another agent/broker in the Bordeaux township. I had a little bit of time after that for a quick look at the city center and before catching up with a small bunch of Kiwis who will spend few days with me tasting and experiencing the vineyards of Bordeaux. The town is buzzing! They have done so much for the last few years to renovate/upgrade this wonderful city. There is so much to do and see that Bordeaux has become one of the most attractive towns in France for tourism. The forecast is for thunderstorm early afternoon.
While I was having lunch/meeting (this is what they do in France! And in that order too!) with a wonderful young lady who's a wine guide (check out our wine tours on www.epicurean-journeys.com) a hail storm came down on Bordeaux and its surrounding like a tonne of bricks! The experience was incredible and quite scary. It lasted about 10 minutes but it was extremely powerful and a lot of people (as well as the gutters around town) got caught in the frenzy.
I managed to pick up our clients without too much problem and in fact the sun came out as we headed South towards the Chateau which will become our home for nearly a week.
On our way we stopped to have a tasting and visit at Chateau Grand Verdus in the top end of the Appellation of Entre deux Mers. This is a family Estate for many generations with 130 hectares of beautiful and generous land (about 100 hectares are planted in grapes) and a Chateau dating back to the 16th century. We tried the full range – the wines are clean, fruity, balanced and with enough personality to make you feel that you are onto something very good. Their top wines (Cuvee Reserve) is more than just that – a must try. Dinner was in a local restaurant in the village of St Germain du Puch called 'L'Atmosphere' - A very busy place for such a village and offering good hearty and local dishes. - JC
Wine tasting at Chateau Carbonneau
JC and Julien Noel