Chateau Ricardelle produces an excellent range of Coteaux du Languedoc AC la Clape and Vins de Pays d’Oc wines and has some rather classy self-catering accomodation on the vineyard at la Clape between Narbonne (11 Aude, Languedoc-Roussillon) and the Mediterranean coast.
The wines of “la Clape” are some of the best in the Languedoc, despite often [...]
Deep in the heart of Corbières country of the Aude département (11 Languedoc-Roussillon) is the impressive Chateau de Donos. This is close to rugged countryisde, away from the mediterranean beaches and the autoroutes. The wine is predominantly red, rich and full-bodied as you might expect from the landscape – and increasingly becoming one of the most [...]
The limits of Cathar country in the Languedoc are ill-defined, but stretch south and east from Carcassonne (11 Aude, Languedoc-Roussillon) to include the impressive hilltop fortress such as Peyrepeteuse, Puilaurens and the ancient towns of Rennes-la-Chateau and Montsegur. The history has become somewhat muddied and over-hyped by recent best-seller books, but behind the commercialism there [...]
A recent discovery is the evocatively named Cathar Wines, which is a small independent specialist wine merchant focussing on the wines of the Languedoc and Roussillon. Not sure if there is a strict definition of “Cathar country” but generally it seems to be taken as the area south and east of Carcassonne, largely in the [...]
With the 2007 Rugby World Cup kicking off in early September, it is worth knowing when and where the matches are to be held – if only so that you can avoid the additional heavy traffic for several hours around the match time. Particularly susceptible to congestion will be the Paris Peripherique and the A1 [...]
Mazamet (81 Tarn, Midi-Pyrenees) to Plateau la Beille (09 Ariege, Midi-Pyrenees) heading to a mountain finish in the Pyrenees. But first they have to cross the Black Mountains (Montagne Noir) and down on to the fabulous medieval city of Carcassone. In so doing they pass near or through the vineyards of Minervois AC (see Chateau [...]
The medieval city of Carcassonne (11 Aude, Languedoc) is both the setting and backdrop of a fantatic light and firework show to celebrate Bastille Day.
The fortified medieval city of Carcassonne (11 Aude, Languedoc-Roussillon) is an impressive sight at any time, but at 10.30pm on Bastille Day (14 July) it becomes an even more awesome sight. [...]
The choice of budget airline routes from UK to France is impressive,
Motorway Service Area (aire) on the A61 Autoroute des 2 Mers between Toulouse and Castelnaudry with Ovalie Museum (Rugby) and Centre for the Canal du Midi.