Looking down from the chateau to the pavement restaurants and cafés
Chez Bruno - a small restaurant we often frequent that serves a simple but tasty lunch menu
View from the chateau
Magnificent wisteria in full flower on the way up to the chateau
View of the chateau from inside the grounds
Streets in the pedestrianized area
A quick update on the vines we planted earlier on in the Spring. The row at the back is Chenin Blanc, all of which have taken but you can see how the vine on the far left has only a small amount of growth compared with the vine far right which has exceeded it's support. This is amusing as planting this particular vine was near impossible due to a large lump of concrete underneath it. The vines in front in two lots of three are Cabernet Franc and are all doing well with less differential between them. As from this year's vintage we won't be seeing the term Vin de Pays on French wine labels any more.
A new system is being introduced to help current Vin de Pays producers to be more competitive with existing Appellations in the larger more well known areas. From the 2009 vintage we will now see the term IGP on the label - Indication Géographique Protegée.
In addition, wines blended from more than one region (currently bottled under Vin de Table) will become known as Vin de France. They will be able to add the grape variety and a vintage date on the label which is currently not permitted.
