Chateau Lamothe du Prince Noir

We have enjoyed our stay at Chateau Lamothe du Prince Noir over the past four nights.  We have talked with the owner, Carla, several times and learned more about the property.  Carla was born and raised in Mozambique.  She purchased the castle seven years ago, from a pair of elderly spinster women, who had owned it for decades.  The estate had grown wine grapes and sold off sections over the years for nearby development.  The remaining estate is quite private and very historic.  Carla had the castle rewired and new plumbing installed.  Much of the castle structure is still original and is an ongoing maintenance project.

The moat is Greco Roman, well over 2000 years old.  The round turreted end of the castle was built in the 11th century and the square end of the castle was built in the 14th century.  Prince Noir had several estates in France, with this one used as a hunting lodge.

We have enjoyed breakfast on the terrace, light dinners on the front lawn, time in the pool, and strolls around the property.  We’ve had a wonderful and memorable visit.

Saint-Emilion

We celebrated St. Emilion’s 20th anniversary UNESCO designation at the village’s weekend fete.  Saint-Emilion’s history goes back to prehistoric times, with churches and ruins stretching along steep, narrow streets.  The Romans planted vineyards in the area as early as the 2nd century.  The town was named after the monk, Emilion (died 767), who settled in a heritage carved into the rock in the 8th century.  The monks who followed him started up the commercial wine production in the area.  Today, Saint-Emilion is one of the principal red wine areas of Bordeaux.

We walked all about Saint-Emilion, enjoying art, beautiful churches, a cloister, talking with a wine distributor that knew someone we knew, and taking a subterranean tour of Saint-Emilion's caves, the catacombs, Trinity Chapel, and the Monolith Church of Saint-Emilion - dug out of rock from the 9th to the 13th centuries and the largest underground church in Europe.  We had lunch and a glacé, and walked about more, enjoying the views across Saint-Emilion’s vast vineyards.  It was an amazing day, under cloudy skies until about 3, when the sun popped out and the high temperature was 83.  Perfect!

Wine Estate Tour

We happen to be in the Bordeaux for the St. Emilion 20th anniversary UNESCO designation celebration.  Wine chateaux of the St. Emilion jurisdiction are open this weekend to visitors.  We drove through vineyards for much of the day, stopping for wine tastings at three.  The first was Chateau Grand Corbin Manuel, where the owner gave us a tour of the winery and led us through several wine tastings.  It was a terrific start to our day!

We drove through beautiful vineyards, past extraordinary chateaux!  We stopped at the church in Lussac, with its frescoed ceiling and walls.  We had lunch at Le Clos Mirande, with a beautiful view of more vineyards below the restaurant.  Our next stop was at Chateau La Grande Clotte, owned by a young couple, Julie and Mathieu.  We were their first guests of the day.  They had set up a fun game of guessing various aromas and identifying three different wines.  They served three different wines from their vineyard and charmed us along the way.  We left wishing them well!

Our last stop of the day was at Chateau de Barbe Blanche.  Laurent, the Director of Vineyard Commerce for the Chateau, gave us a tour of the storage cave, the vineyards, and the winery, before our tasting.  We enjoyed every moment!

More Bordeaux

Candles in Cathedrale St-André 

Cafe at Place du Palais

In a bateau on the Garonne River

Pam and Kenith by the Fountain of the Three Graces in Place de la Bourse

Place De La Bourse - Royal Square

Cathedral Saint-André 

Grosse Cloche - 13th century gate into city 

On the Miroir d’eau on the Garonne waterfront, largest water mirror in the world

Fountain Statuary at the Monument aux Girondins

Bordeaux

By 9:30 this morning, we were on our way to Bordeaux.  Pam drove, parked the car, and we took the tram just a few miles across the bridge and into the city.  We walked through the Porte de Bourgogne, ten to Place Maynard, to see Basilique St. Michel and Tower Pey St. Michel.  We shopped at Marche des Capucins, with its fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, fish, flowers, and more.  We bought fresh cherries and nuts.

We got back on the tram at Place de la Victoire, and got off at Esplanade des Quinconces, with its Monument Aux Girondines, a tribute to the inhabitants of the area that lost the French Revolution.  We stopped at the information center to pick up a walking tour map, then set off on our own self guided UNESCO Heritage Tour.

Place de la Victoire 

Monument Aux Girondins

Grand Theatre