Tour de France 2007 – Stage 18

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 Vinewhich tells the story of 3 major wine making families in the region at Clos Triguedena, Clos de Gamot and Clos la Coutale.

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.