Tour de France 2007 - Stage 18
| July 27, 2007 |
From Cahors (46 Lot, Midi-Pyrenees) across the Dordogne (24 Dordogne, Aquitaine) and on to Angouleme (15 Charente, Poitou-Charentes) through the heart of South West and into Cognac country.
Cahors is probably one of my favourite towns, greatly improved now that the A20 autoroute bypasses the town. In a loop of the rather meandering Lot river with its iconic fortified medieval bridge (Pont Valentré, celebrating its 700 anniversary this year) the town is an ideal size to retain its character - and of course it is at the heart of one of my favourite wine areas. The red 
Cahors wine is made predominantly from Malbec (or Cot or Auxerrois as it is known locally) - and is a robust rich red ideal to accompany the rich duck and goose recipes of the region.Good wines from Clos Triguedina, Chateau de Cedre, Chateau Eugenie, Chateau les Hauts d’Aglan and others.
If you are really interested in the wines of Cahors and the culture of wine-making in rural South West France, then I can recommend Michael Sanders’ book Families of the Vine
For more info on the Tour de France 2007 see www.letour.fr or UK Eurosport where there are some good interactive maps of the route.
At last the mountains are now behind the riders (literally), and whislt this is not exactly a flat stage, there are now opoortunities for any of the surviving sprinters to show their stuff as the tour runs from Pau (64 Pyrenees-Atlantiques, Aquitaine) to Castelsarrasin (82 Tarn-et-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees) on the Canal du Midi.
Wine from Cahors the first thing I tend to associate with the Lot département in South West France (Midi-Pyrenees), but is has so much more to offer and discover. For example there are numerous interesting gardens - and whilst they may lack the grandeur of gardens further north, they are arguably more interesting and diverse. For example:-
As its name suggest 
Since the 1970s the Bergerac Appellation has been revitalised and has now established an identity, character and style of its own. As elsewhere this has been led by the emergence of a younger generation of winemakers such as Guy, and to some extent also by the arrival of foreigners (Hugh Ryman from the UK and various flying winemakers from the southern hemisphere). There are a number of British-owned and run vineyards in the area.
Self-Catering Cottages and Bed & Breakfast Accommodation in a listed 17th Century domaine in Gascony - 35 acres, lakes, pool and Spa
Chateau d’Aydie and the Laplace family are widely regarded as one of the foremost quality producers of Madiran. Frédéric Laplace was recognised as one of the pioneer winemakers - first to bottle Madiran wines and to sell them under his own name when the appellation was created in 1948 - when there was just 50 hectares of vineyard under production, compared to the 1650 hectares which now produce Madiran wines.
” Andrew Jefford says of Chateau d’Aydie “Everything is impeccably clean, minutely organised, deeply considered, exhaustively refined…. a range of model Madirans”
“, which extolls the health-giving benefits of the Madiran wines from South West France.
The top cuvée is the Chateau d’Aydie - made from 100% Tannat grapes - a “grand vin” - greater power and energy with considerable fruit character (blackberries and blackcurrants), with hints of mushroom and tobacco. Aged in new oak for 12 months. (The 2001 vintage was recommended in the Guide Hachette des Vins 2003. “..intense and complex nose…fruit, menthol and woodsmoke..well balanced flavours mingled with vanilla and toast.“)
Armagnac is a brandy from Gascony with similarities to Cognac which is made 100 miles to the north in the Charentes.
Englishwoman Patricia Atkinson at Close d’Yvigne has established a name for herself as a writer and a successful winemaker in the Bergerac (24 Dordogne, Aquitaine) - see 
and 
. However in addition she also has 2 rather grand gites (villas) in the midst of the vines at Gageac et Rouillac (
Cotes du Marmandais, 47 Lot-et-Garonne, Aquitaine 
stocked up on wines from this co-op.
Domaine Berthomieu is a small domaine (26 hectares) in the village of Viella, in the north of the Madiran appellation. The domaine has been in the family since 1850 and Didier Barré is the 6th generation to own and run the domaine. Didier is a real enthusiast, passionate about his wines and respectful of the traditional character of the wine. We are proud to feature his wines which offer tremendous character and style, some of the best in the appellation.
In this mosaic of very different terroirs, the Gaillac vineyard is situated 50 km east of Toulouse, in the direction of Albi, in the Tarn departement. The vineyard stretches over both sides of the Tarn and to the north up to the medieval town of Cordes. An ancient vineyard it hosts some very individual grape varieties such as Mauzac, Braucol and l’En de Lel. Whilst many acceptable wines are produced here, we recommend a winemaker who concentrates on combining the traditional grape varieties with modern techniques, resulting in wines which encompass the specific characteristics of Gaillac and remain very drinkable.
The epic story of the Côtes de Saint-Mont vineyards began in the fourth century BC, when the first plants were imported by the Greeks. It is thus one of the oldest vineyards in France. Then one witnessed an important development from 1050 with the founding of the Saint-Mont Abbey by Benedictine monks. The monks were particularly interested by an area already colonised by the vine. The ‘crus’ developed and these ‘fine wines from Gascony’ were exported to the United Kingdom as early as the 14th century. Today the appellation Côtes de Saint-Mont stretches over 49 villages in the Gers. Wines are considered as ‘discovery wines’ or ‘terroir wines’ and are experiencing a promising revival. As far back as the 11th Century
the arrival of Benedictine monks (from the Abbey de Marcillac in Burgundy) helped to improve the wines of the area, and being on one of the roads to Santiago de Compostella they quickly acquired a reputation
Gascony map
In the heart of Gascony (Gascogne) the landscape is of gently rolling hills with good soil and exposure to the sun. The climate is gentle and ideal for maturing grapes in late season.
PRODUCTEURS PLAIMONT. We generally prefer to work with smaller individual domaines, but the Plaimont co-operative is streets ahead of other co-ops - producing excellent and distinctive wines of consistent quality at keen prices. It has had the benefit of good management and leadership, which has ensured that, unlike many co-operatives, it does not work at the comfort level of the weakest members. Instead it has been visionary and innovative, and most importantly places the highest emphasis on wine quality. At the moment this is the only co-operative with which we work.
Floc de Gascogne are all produced in this region 
