My Life in Languedoc #1 - A Memoir in Chapters.

This is a story of how a love of wine gave me a new life in the Other South of France.

It was April 1st 2009 when I left England and drove south to the rental cottage I’d found when I’d stuck a pin in a map of Languedoc. I was heading to France with a dream of starting a wine tour business. Two days later I entered the Minervois, a district just north of Carcassonne and stretching eastwards from there. I was driving my beloved Audi cabriolet Fifi, who was ten years old at that time. It was a sunny day but breezy and too cold to put the roof down. She and I had done a lot of exploring together but this was the most exciting adventure yet.

As I bowled along the narrow lanes in search of what would be my home for the next six months, I felt my heart fill with joy at the prospect of living surrounded by vineyards in the depths of rural France. OK, so I couldn’t speak French and knew only one person living here, but I wasn’t going to let little things like that get in the way of my dream. After all I knew about wine, I’d been teaching the subject for quite a while and was confident in my knowledge. What I didn’t expect was that this experience would expand my understanding of wine at least a thousand fold.

The warming weather had encouraged the vines to wake from winter dormancy and their branches were sporting tiny sprigs of new leaves reminding me of green ribbons tied into bows. At that time of year the colour of the earth beneath them was a rich burnt umber, moist from spring rain and growing by the side of the dry-stone walls were wild almond trees dotted with pink and white blossom. I didn’t know it then but when the heat of the summer arrived the land would be parched and the grass yellow but the vines would remain lush, their juice-filled grapes hanging heavily beneath the foliage. I would leave this place in October and in later years I came to realise I was departing just as the landscape was about to change colour, slipping into its autumn attire of bright scarlet, dazzling gold and rich orange.

As soon as I’d settled into my cottage, I began to explore taking Fifi out on daily runs, getting to know the area. I loved driving the quiet lanes, roof down breathing in the perfume of the garrigue; a dense thicket of aromatic shrubs. Not only was it beautifully scented but in springtime it flowers, and my senses were assailed with the intoxicating scent of lavender, rosemary, thyme and sage. Garrigue was new to me and was a lovely surprise especially as I loved to hike. I spent a lot of time that first season walking the limestone hills, passing holm oaks and juniper trees and brushing past bright yellow broom and cistus sporting their papery pink and white flowers.

I hadn’t been prepared for the beauty of this place or its incredible hidden history, it’s near deserted villages and some lively ones too. At the heart of the Minervois is Minerve, a village that became my favourite place of all. I loved spending time strolling the narrow ruelles (village streets) or following gravelly limestone trails above the deep gorges that had sliced a natural fortification around this tiny settlement. The village is built on a limestone rock between the gorges so it’s almost an island between the two rivers, the Brian and the Cesses. They meet at the foot of the village to flow southwards by one name, La Cesses.

Less than a hundred people live in this village and in that early spring when I first stumbled upon it, it was a tranquil place to spend a little time. Later, when August arrived it would buzz with tourists but never became crowded. Now sixteen years after finding it I still think of it as somehow belonging to me but I’m happy to share it..!

You’ll find it on a limestone plateau called Le Petit Causse where it withstands a very Mediterranean climate which means cold winters and extremely hot, dry summers. The white limestone is barely covered by the shallow soils and it’s hard to believe that the south facing vines clinging to the hillsides can survive without irrigation. But deep below the surface, the limestone has been hollowed by rivers, streams or just rainwater and the vines will send their roots several meters in search of a drink. Along the way they pick up the minerals in the soil which are reflected in the flavours of the wine.

Although it’s the red wines that garner the most praise, personally I love the white wines from this part of the Minervois. That might be because I don’t have a very commercial palate and prefer bone dry, mineral and complex wines that aren’t too fruity although you can find those here too.

I soon became besotted with this part of Languedoc and wanted to show off my newfound love to as many people as possible. So the first tour I designed was called Minerve & the Minervois Wine Tour. Of course for a wine tour I needed to find wineries to take my clients to and had a deeply enjoyable time seeking out producers that not only made great wines but were happy to welcome me and my tour groups. I’d explored and memorised routes through the stunning scenery and prettiest villages. I’d rooted out some excellent country restaurants that served traditional and well-made dishes. Finally because I wanted my customers to be immersed in everything the Minervois had to offer, I’d also found olive oil producers and cheese makers happy to receive groups.

By the beginning of May the tour was ready and I headed off to the tourist office to deposit flyers but I suspected they alone would not bring me the business I needed to make a go of this new life.

By necessity my tours would need to be for English speaking people (my French just wasn’t fit for the purpose of taking French clients out for the day..!) I needed a strategy to attract anglophones and struck on the idea of approaching English speaking B&B owners to ask if they’d promote my tours to their guests. It worked well and along with a newly built website and some excellent reviews from happy clients my business began to roll. It was slow at first but with enough impetus to convince me to return the following year to continue to explore more of this magical place.