{"id":2782,"date":"2024-09-10T19:17:53","date_gmt":"2024-09-10T19:17:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=2782"},"modified":"2024-09-10T19:17:53","modified_gmt":"2024-09-10T19:17:53","slug":"castles-on-the-loire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/?p=2782","title":{"rendered":"Castles on the Loire"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There are some mighty rivers in this world that have had historical importance.  There\u2019s the Mississippi, the Nile and closer to home, the Hudson and the St. Lawrence.  In France, there is a river that is long but not mighty, the Loire, with history all along its route.  It rolls along quietly with very limited navigability.  But from the late Middle Ages into the Renaissance, France was ruled from various spots along the Loire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of the castles where the kings and nobles lived in those days are still there, open for public visits.  And oh, by the way, they make wine in the Loire valley, mostly light white wines such as Vouvray, Muscadet and Sancerre.  There are some reds, the best known of which is Chinon.  But about those castles\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are nearly 50 of them and it seems that you see a ch\u00e2teau (French for castle<\/em>) every time you turn a corner. They are hard to miss as you travel around the Touraine region.  (The region is centered on the city of Tours, hence the name.)  We haven\u2019t visited them all but have seen quite a few.  These are our favorites.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Blois Castle, with Francois I\u2019s staircase.  Photo courtesy of France This Way.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n