I had visited Chateau Feely a few years ago as a study abroad student, and to this day, it is still…read moreone of my favorite memories from France! A friend and I were visiting Bordeaux for a weekend trip looking for wine tasting tours and were so happy to find this one off the web. We had signed up for The Essential Wine Tour adventure and Caroline was quick to respond to emails. Unfortunately, on the day of, the French train workers went on a strike, so we missed our original one-hour train from Bordeaux to Gardonne. A quick call to Caroline and no problem! She was able to adjust the tour when we came later and even helped come to meet us at the train station given the train fiasco. The wine tasting experience felt like I was in a National Geographic documentary examining vineyards! She pointed out everything from history of the nearby communities and walked us up and down the vineyard with an ambiance of a true expert and lover of wines as we felt more like friends than tourists. Her wine class and lunch were delicious and we even had an opportunity to meet her children; again, it felt like we were family and friends and it was a pleasure to be in her home. It was here that I feel in love with dessert wine! Originally, we had looked at the big Bordeaux-based companies that have tour buses, but glad to avoid the typical tourist route. The personal experience at Chateau Feely was the way to go. Highly recommended!

If staying at a winery in France is not on your bucket list, it should be! Chateau Feely is an…read moreorganic, biodynamic winery located in Southwest France. Honestly, I will never forget the absolutely wonderful three days/nights we spent here. Our host, Caro Feely, greeted us outside as soon as we drove up. We immediately were made to feel as if we had arrived at the home of a friend instead of the guest house where we stayed for the next three days. She also led our tour of the vineyard and winetasting lunch that next day. She is knowledgeable and passionate about their wines and organic/biodynamic wine making. It truly was an educational and fun experience. We opted for the half day wine tour with 'Revelation' Lunch for 50 Euro per person. Our small group of 6 began at 10:00 learning about the grapes, growing, the land/area, wine making all while strolling through the property. Towards noon, we were back to the lovely tasting room for our lunch. Caro opened a few wines, explained each one and then left us with tasting notes to explore and taste as she prepared our lunch. Lunch was a great mixture of pate, duck prosciutto, smoked trout, salads and different cheeses plus delicious, hearty breads and even chocolate to pair with all of the wines. She explained which wines paired best with the different foods, but also encouraged us to experiment with our tastings to see what appealed most to our individual palates. This was a great ending to our tour. The wines were delicious. It isn't often I like each one, but I did here. My favorites were the Sincerite, a dry sauvignon blanc and Grace, their barrel aged red wine. Sincerite is 100% sauvignon blanc, crisp and citrusy. Grace is 60% cabernet sauvignon and 40% merlot aged for 24 months in oak. The result is a rich red blend with dark fruits and depth. Delicious! Last, but not least, the accommodations. What a treat it was to stay on premises. Our wine cottage was comfortable with the most amazing views of beautiful scenery. Stress just melted away as we stared at the landscape sipping delicious wines we had purchased at Chateau Feely. There was a small kitchen and even a grill out on the patio if we wanted to stay in and cook for ourselves. There were a number of restaurants that Caro kindly recommended, one even within walking distance and more than one that were awarded a Michelin star. Needless to say we did not go without. I would absolutely visit this lovely winery again. What an unforgettable experience this was! Many thanks to Caro Feely for her wonderful and welcoming hospitality!

VITROLLE On then to the Vitrolle, site of the vineyard of…read moreVin de Pays de Perigord near Limeuil. Unfortunately, it won't be open 'til the afternoon. Fortunately, our host at the gite has already introduced us to this red wine made from a blend of several grapes, as is usual here, including merlot. Our host, by the way, has strong opinions on wine labelling and is not at all impressed with those who buy by the grape variety alone. Some wines here are made with up to nine grapes. How are you going to get all those onto the label? If you are to put anything like that on the label then it should be the maker as he has the most influence.

Vinoma is a huge wine conglomerate that makes wines all over France. Some of the styles produced:…read more Bordeaux Bordeaux Supérieur Côtes de Castillon Côtes de Castillon Côtes de Bourg Côtes de Francs Sainte-Foy Bordeaux Montagne Saint Emilion Saint Emilion Grand Cru Lalande de Pomerol Pomerol Médoc Cru Bourgeois Médoc Cru Bourgeois Haut Médoc Cru Bourgeois Listrac-Médoc Cru Bourgeois Saint Julien Cru Bourgeois Graves I particularly like the Sauternes from Chateau Grand Piquey. A solid dessert wine that is in the middle of the Sauternes scale. Good honeyed richness but young enough for a little acid, going well with stone fruit desserts.

Run by the remarkable Patricia Atkinson, an English woman who moved to France knowing nothing about…read morewine and not even speaking French! Due to her circumstances she needed to learn pretty quickly and gradually turned a run down vineyard into one of Bergerac's best producers. She makes 5 wines or did at the time of writing. 2 whites, 2 reds and a dessert wine. All are good - very good in fact - but the sweet wine 'Saussignac' is absolutely remarkable; like liquid crystalised nectarines it barges to one side many of the quality wines of the Sauternes region on Bordeaux. In the last 10 years or so Patricia has expanded her vineyard area and is doing very well. You can get her wines in a few places in the UK (Justerini and Brookes is the only outlet for the Saussignac) but if you are staying in Gageac you can knock on the door and buy some there directly from Patricia herself. If she's not got much on she'll show you the vines and winery and even put on a small tasting. She also runs some holiday homes which are absolutely beautiful. The fact that she is an exceptionally nice woman certainly helps - her enthusiasm and knowledge are fantastic and her success story is very refreshing.

I was first offered their Ch. Galiuchey 2006 over dinner with a relative of the producers and found…read moreit to be incredible. Blackcurrants and other berries came to mind but its smooth and velvety 'texture' was its most impressive quality. Soon after I set out to see the producer and bought a case of 2012 which I took back to England. After allowing to settle I have offered this to friends on several occasions and everyone gave it 'un très bon note'. I have just return from France after buying a further 4 cases, almost the last of the 2012. Highly recommended.