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A trip to the Bordeaux region of France September 22, 2024

A few weeks ago, my wife Laura and I made a trip to the Bordeaux region in Aquitaine with family.

The port city of Bordeaux is a wonderfully vibrant place with an interesting history. The crescent-shaped harbour which dates from the medieval period is known as the Port de la Lune (the Port of the Moon) as it follows the curve of the River Garonne. In the eighteenth century, it was an important centre for the slave trade, and the busiest port in the world after London, supplying goods like cocoa, sugar, coffee and cotton all over Europe. In 2007, UNESCO listed the Port of the Moon and 1800 hectares of the surrounding urban area as a World Heritage Site.

The three main churches of Bordeaux (the basilica of St Severinus, the basilica of St Michael and the cathedral of St Andrew) were also given UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 1998, as part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France.

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Of course, the Bordeaux region of south west France is synonymous with winemaking. It was introduced to the area by the Romans in about the first century and has been continuous Bordeaux ever since. Wine has become one of my passions over the years, so I was particularly excited to visit a number of vineyards while we were there. Our first stop was Saint-Emilion. At the Chateau Croix de Labrie vineyard, owned by the extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic vignerons, Pierre and Axelle Courdurié, we tasted three wonderful wines.

Next, we visited Chateau Belair Monange, run by the Moueix family, and on a very different scale to the previous vineyard. We were warmly welcomed by Margot who treated us to two wines and showed us around, including the impressive new high tech building designed by Swiss architects, Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. Inspired by Romanesque architecture and built from the local limestone, it combines spaces for production and promotional activities. I particularly liked the concrete and timber cladding of the central gallery etched with a Dürer drawing and mirroring the artwork of the Grand Cru labels.

We spent the following day at the fascinating Cité du Vin, a cultural centre dedicated to the living heritage of wine back in the city of Bordeaux. We were able to explore all there was to know about the region, its history and its wines, with a few tastings thrown in! Afterwards, we enjoyed a delicious gastronomic French dinner at La Fine Bouche.

On the last day, we took an organised tour to two wineries in the Margaux area of Haut-Médoc. Chateau Prieure-Lichine was originally a Benedictine priory where the monks cultivated grapes to make wine for dinner and for mass. Chateau Siran has been owned by the same family since 1859. It boasts a nuclear bunker which houses the Château Siran wine library, a collection of more than 30,000 bottles of old Siran vintages dating back to 1912.

It was a fantastic trip. The countryside and the architecture were as enjoyable as the wine! We will definitely go back.

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