Author: lgsjr

The town of Carcassonne sits among several different winemaking regions, with Minervoix to the northeast; Corbières to the southeast;  and Gaillac to the west.  If you are on a wine tasting trip in the Southwest of France, you should definitely save time for a stop in Carcassonne.  In fact, the town is a worthwhile destination, no matter what brings you to the French Southwest.

The Cité of Carcassonne. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

The lower town is no different than many others in France, but the massive rock to the north is a wonder.  It is a classic medieval fortress city essentially undisturbed since the late 13th century.  Well, that’s not exactly true.  In fact, by the mid-19^th century the town had fallen into such disrepair that the French were prepared to tear it all down.  The hero of this tale is Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, an architect and antiquarian who made it his life’s work to restore structures that had suffered over the centuries.  He led the project to restore Carcassonne to its previous glory and although his vision was as much romantic as historical, the restored town is not only a monument to French history but also to the memory of Viollet-le-Duc.

While there had been a town along the Aude river since Roman times, Carcassonne achieved a prominent place in history during a crusade against believers in a proto-Protestant religion known as Catharism, considered heretical by the Popes of the 12^th and 13^th century.  The fortifications that can be seen today, called La Cité, were first erected to keep the papal armies out.  The local nobleman who ruled the city decided to give it up without a fight and when all the wars were over, Carcassonne had become a part of kingdom of France.

The entrance to the Château Comtal.

As a visitor, you can walk around the stone streets and along the ramparts.  It doesn’t require much imagination to see the invaders below, holding Carcassonne in siege.   In fact, anyone who has ever dreamed of knights in shining armor and their damsels in flowing robes will feel a bit of romantic memory wash over them while inside the walls.  The Château Comtal, or the Count’s Castle, is one of the sights not to miss.  Here you will get a feeling for how the people of the time actually lived.  Also, the Basilica of Saints Nazarius and Celsus, built before the age of the Cathars, is a testimonial to the glory of the Middle Ages.

A café in one of Carcassonne’s squares.

Of course, Carcassonne is a tourist destination so there is the usual array of stores selling t-shirts and other souvenirs, but that shouldn’t keep you away.  This town is a piece of history that has been lovingly restored, and the 21^st century gets along quite well with the 13^th.  Have lunch at an outdoor café, drinking the local wines and eating the contemporary fare and pretend that you are gathered with townsfolk to fete the Viscount and his court.  You and your inner child will be glad you did.

The Beaujolais region of France (actually the southern end of Burgundy) makes wines that generate a lot of differing opinions. Some think they are little more than plonk; others, including us, say that there are many excellent Beaujolais, well worth drinking and some worth cellaring.  These points of view arise because there is so much geographic variety in this sector.

If the wine is simple a Beaujolais, it can come from anywhere in the region and is likely made from less than the best Gamay grapes.  A Village  is better made, generally from grapes from the southern end of Beaujolais.  But the wines known as crus are the top of the list.  They come from ten specific communes or villages in the northern end of the region.  They are Brouilly, Côte de Brouily, Régnié, Chiroubles, Fleurie, Moulin-à-Vent, Chenas, Julienas, St. Amour and Morgon.

There is a range of style and quality among the crus.  Some are thin and acid; some are flowery (they don’t call it Fleurie for nothing), some are deep and rich.  And then the last mentioned of these crus, Morgon, has six different sub-sectors, called climats, each of which has distinct characteristics.  The most powerful and best known is the Côte de Py, in the middle of Morgon.

So wine tasting Beaujolais is a much more complicated matter than just driving into a section of France and visiting wineries.  So let’s just focus on Morgon.  Because it’s our favorite, that’s why.

The Cooperative in Villié-Morgon

Assuming you’re coming from the south, from Lyon, drive north on the A6, which is a relatively wide road.  It’s about a 45-minute drive.  Turn left when you see signs for Villié-Morgon, the only town in the region.  It’s a nice enough little town but not one for which you ought to plan a special trip.  But it does contain the Cooperative of Morgon and that is worth a stop.  There you’ll learn more detail about everything contained in the first three paragraphs of this article.  You’ll see exhibits explaining the history and culture of Morgon and can sample tastings from the various climats.  It is fair to say that, as with most cooperatives in France, you won’t be offered the best wines of the AOC, but you will get an introduction to the differences within it.

Because it is centrally located, Villié-Morgon touches on four of the six climats.  So staying within hailing distance of the town you can visit quite a few high-quality wineries without travelling very far.  But understand that this is not California, where the wineries have elaborate tasting rooms.  You well may find that even some of the better labels come from small vineyards and you will have a chance to taste in the front room of a farmhouse.  Also, if you are there in the vendanges, harvest-time, they may be too busy to offer you a taste at all.

Harvesting the Gamay grapes that will soon be Beaujolais.  Note how low they keep the vines in this region.

Villié-Morgon has a few cafés and bistros, but nothing of any note.  If you’d like to have a truly memorable French country meal, we recommend you drive through the Côte de Py following the main (only) road until you come across signs for Le Restaurant Morgon (http://www.restaurantlemorgon.fr/) .  It won’t set you back much; you can avail yourself of their wonderful cellar full of Beaujolais of a quality you may never have known of; and the food is fabulous.  Leave room and some wine for the cheese course.

This is another in Power Tasting’s occasional series on great wine bars of the world.  Previous locations have included the Bounty Hunter in Napa and W.I.N.O. in New Orleans.

Generally, when Power Tasting recommends a wine bar, it is not primarily a restaurant with a bar in the front.  We make an exception for the Antica Bottega del Vino in Verona, Italy for a couple of reasons.  First of all is the name; it means the Old Wine Shop, so you know right from the beginning that wine is king here.  For another, the wine bar draws its own patronage distinct from that of the restaurant.  And finally, because the wine selection is so good.

The wine bar at Antica Bottega del Vino.  Photo courtesy of blog.boggi.com.

A few issues ago, we presented our impressions of the town of Verona.  It’s a charming little city with roots back to Roman times (and a great, still active arena) and is best known as being the home of Romeo and Juliet.  It’s also the jumping-off point for wine tasters visiting Valpolicella.  So you would expect that a Veronese wine bar would feature Amarone and other wines of the region.  And indeed, you can get some good Amarones and Ripassos.  But what makes Antica Bottega del Vino so special is that their list, written on a chalk board over the bar, includes wines from all the great wine making regions of Italy.  You can choose a Barolo, a Brunello, Nero d’Avola, Marche and so on and on and on.

Of course, there are many bars where you can find a long list of fine wines.  But in most cases, wine bars buy recent production and don’t have either the facilities or the finances to age their wines.  Antica Bottega del Vino is the grand exception.  Mostly, you’ll find wines with ten years or more on them, well-cellared and well-poured.  These folks appreciate wine and their customers have come to appreciate their knowledge and care.

And those customers are a part of the attraction as well.  Get to the bar a little before five, earlier than when most people leave work and before the diners arrive.  If you get there much later, you’ll have some difficulty getting a table in the bar, because the place fills up with Veronese, stopping by to sip, to nibble, to chat and be seen doing all the above before going home to spouses and bambini.  Unless you happen to speak Italian, you won’t understand the conversation but you’ll be wrapped up in an atmosphere that only a bar that first opened in 1890 can give you.  And if someone notices that you’re showing real enjoyment of the wines you order, he or she will want to know who you are, where you come from, what you do, why you’re in Verona and what you’re having for dinner.

We’ve never dined at Antica Bottega del Vino, but we have noshed.  The bar features many cicchetti (snacks), such as finger sandwiches, a meatball, a piece of cheese.  Just little things to go along with your wine.

And one last thing: it’s not very expensive.  For what you’d pay for a glass of plonk in New York, you could have a noble wine aged perfectly.  It’s almost enough to make a special trip to Verona.