Walls in France: Vin!

When our friend, Brigitte, asked if Bucky and I would like to go wine-tasting in the Vaucluse with her one day, I answered in the affirmative immediately! She had given a similar wine tour to my parents when they visited Eygalieres in the fall of 2008, so I knew it was something we would want to do! We met Brigitte in Isle Sur La Sorgue and she took over driving from there. We headed first to Beaumes de Venise, and walked around the town a bit to see the sites. We then headed to a wine cellar (or cave) to start tasting. Brigitte is not a wine-drinker (although I learned she does like sweet wines!), so she looked on as the glasses were pulled out from behind the bar and the bottles were opened. We started with whites and rosés, then moved into reds, and ended this tasting with a muscat, a sweet wine that Beaumes de Venise is known for and is usually served as an aperitif. Neither Bucky nor I are really sophisticated wine tasters, so we usually just go with that we like at the time…which means we ended up buying a case of different reds and a couple of bottles of muscat. A great start!! We then headed to Vacqueras and stopped at a contemporary wine cellar. We were seated in front of a wide-screen TV that showed pictures of the vines and the surrounding countryside as we sipped the wares. Here, we focused on the rosés and ended up leaving with a case of the pretty pink treat! The lunch hour was quickly approaching and Brigitte had made reservations for us at La Table du Comtat in Seguret, a charming village with cobblestone streets and quaintness galore. The restaurant was perched above the town overlooking the vineyards below. The weather was lovely, but we opted to eat inside so that we wouldn’t get chilly during the meal. The dining room had huge windows that put the countryside on display so it was an ideal setting for a fabulous lunch...marinated salmon, an aubergine tart with warm goat cheese, a white fish with mussels and saffron sauce and a fabulous dessert of cake with the richest chocolate ice cream I have ever eaten…and wine, of course! After our meal, we walked through the small streets of Seguret and then decided to drive to Gigondas and find a private wine producer and try their wines. As Brigitte searched for the perfect place to stop, I watched as workers gathered in the vineyards and worked diligently on the vines. I am sure they were as happy as we were to have such beautiful spring weather. We stopped at Domaine du Pesquier which is the private home of the wine makers and includes a room for tasting and selling. We tried the three reds that were available and bought six bottles of the 2007 vintage. Brigitte took us back to our car and while Bucky moved all of our purchases to our trunk, I thanked our guide for a wonderful day, a fabulous lunch and great company with a bottle of muscat. Bucky and I then headed back to Eygalieres…I had to pick up Kathleen from school and Bucky had to put all of our wine in our own cave! We are looking forward to sharing it with our visitors! Cheers!