Saint-Emilion
Saint-Emilion is the gem of the Bordeaux region, both for the small town itself and the wines that are produced in the region.
The town is located about an hours drive from the city of Bordeaux, close to the town of Libourne.
The vineyards that surround the village expand outward for kilometers on end, which makes for a scenic drive once you get off the highway and begin to approach the city.
We were there at the tail end of autumn when the grape leaves were changing color and starting to fall from the vines. To be honest, if we were there any later in the year I don't think that there would have been any leaves left at all.
Luckily though, not all of the leaves had fallen so the landscape in some areas still shown golden in the morning sunlight.
Deep shades of orange, yellow and red make the fall season a particularly nice time to visit any vineyard.
We arrived fairly early, around 10:00am. At that point the town felt like it was just starting to wake up. It rapidly got more and more busy by the minute though. It's a pretty big tourist destination for the Bordeaux region.
We stopped for a coffee in the main plaza Square before heading out to explore.
In 1998, eight villages and the surrounding vineyards that make up the district of Saint-Emilion were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The area was declared a "cultural landscape" and was recognized as having exceptional character and universal importance, something you can see when walking through it narrow cobblestone streets.
Something that many people do not know is that Macarons were originally invented in Saint-Emilion by nuns back in the 17th century. These Macarons known as Véritables Macarons de Saint Emilion, which means “the real macarons of Saint Emilion,” are quite different than the brightly colored sandwhiches that you see in Paris, made famous by Laudurée.
Saint-Emilion's are small simple almond wafers made with sugar, egg whites and almond flour. They are a specialty of the town next to wine and taste strongly of almond flavor. They are delicious and only a small fraction of the price of Ladurée macarons.
We bought a box of 12 for 6.00 euros which is just a little over the price of two Ladurée cookies. They're not as fancy but certainly more bang for your buck.
We wondered the streets for a while checking out the old buildings and admiring the architecture of the town.
I think I took about a dozen pictures of the tower in the photo below.
It didn't matter where we were standing, it always seemed to be in view.
There it is again. I think I covered all of it's angles.
And here is another one.
The town is full of wine shops and caves and we originally figured it would be an awesome village to do some wine tasting. The shops did do tastings, but to be honest, they were so fancy that we were too intimidated to go into any of them with the dog.
Instead we bought a glass of wine and went to drink it in the backyard of a 14th century Abbey.
This place was neat in that they were selling pic-nic lunches consisting of wine, breads, cheeses, jams and charcuterie. You could choose what you wanted and they packed it up for you in a pic-nic basket to go outside with.
We generally don't eat lunch on our trips because we do a big breakfast in the morning that often ties us over until supper in the evening. We often snack along the way though. Chips and wine! It's a good combination.
It could have been the setting and the moment but this glass of wine was actually one of the best wines that I've tried in France, excluding the time that we ate a two star Michelin restaurant. I actually ended up finding the bottle in the main wine boutique in town. Its a different year and I don't know if it's the Chateau's generic wine or their superior or if they even have distinctions like that, but I'm hoping it's as good as when I had it at the Abbey.
How much do people generally spend on wine per bottle? Is anyone brave enough to tell me? For me anything over 12 euros is either a gift for someone else or reserved for special occasions. This bottle was 27€ so it will be saved for something special.
While walking the streets we stumbled upon this narrow alleyway by chance and found ourselves in a really neat spot.
It was another old Abbey courtyard and was probably the most beautiful spot in the village aside from the surrounding vineyards.
The walls were painted with a really intricate and colorful mural depicting what I imagine are scenes from the Bible.
From there we made our way around the periphery of the city towards the grapevines.
There were a lot of viewpoints along the way of the town and the surrounding area.
A dirt path eventually turned into a paved road...
...both of which were right next to the vines.
We saw these parsimmons growing in a random tree along the way. I've never seen them any place other than a grocery store or market.
The last thing that we did that day was stop in at the family run Coutet winery located just outside the town of Saint-Emilion.
We basicslly chose it randomly from online reviews right before getting into our car to head out. Despite us showing up unannounced they were super accommodating. They allowed us to join a tour that started shortly after our arrival and they didn't even charge us the fee because it was in French and we only speak and understand a little of the language.
We showed our appreciation by buying a case of their Rouge Clair (which is apparently NOT a Rosé) and a bottle of their Grand Cru, which was really excellent.
At that point we had enough wine to cover my wife's birthday, Christmas, my birthday...etc so we said goodbye to the vineyards and headed back to our hotel in Bordeaux.
Wow, I am still hung on the fact that you ate in a 2 star Michelin restaurant!!
Tell me more!!!
Macarons make me very angry, it's weird to explain, yes I said angry not hungry, like I've just been scammed or something haha 😄
Well I guess you covered the whole country now, so I won't need to travel around anymore, good man! Lovely post as usual, well written too!
We were invited to the Maison Rostang restaurant in Paris through my wife's work. It was one of those lucky experiences that doesn't happen often/ever.
Hahaha yeah man totes. They're fricking expensive 😆
They are good though
If I know that something is going to be expensive I tell my wife to buy it and to not tell me the price. Then I wait outside the store. Then I desperately try to guess the price when she returns, hoping that it was lower than I expected it to be. It never is though.
Hahaha
Hahaha that's hilarious, I can recognize myself in this too!
Damn, La Maison Rostang! You ain't joking! I am curious, I never did a Michelin restaurant before, how good was it? Do you remember what you ate?
That's probably the only time I would take pictures of my food! Between 100 and 300 bucks per person, I would take a whole bunch of pics (and probably write a post about it, to get some ROI hahaha)
I'm not the type of person that thinks that spending more money automatically equates to better quality or better experience. And to be honest, in general I don't think that food experiences are so memorable that they justify spending obscene prices. That being said, this was a unique experience. But we didn't pay the bill either 🤣. It was a work thing.
I had the fois gras, sweet breads for the first time which to be honest was amazing I will remember that for a while and their cigar dessert. Its only been a few months so ask me in 5 years if I remember them though 😂
I would have liked to take photos but I always feel awkward taking pictures in restaurants, especially with other people. One person at the table took some but they never ended up sharing them with us lol.
A co-worker of my wife said that his hobby is to eat at Michelin star restaurants (lol some hobby haha). He told us that the quality of food doesn't change much between a 1, 2 or 3 star restaurant, but that the service is markedly better as you go up the stars. I thought that was a helpful tip. I'd personally stick to a 1 star if we ever go ourselves.
THanks for finely detailed experience, I was there with you haha 😄
Wow it's a fun hobby to chase the stars, I wonder how lean this person is!
So the Macarons were invented by nuns. Who would have thought? And no pink, neon green and splashing red? This is interesting! How did they taste , the original ones?
Apparently so. Thats according to an online article I read, but I can't confirm it for certain. I didn't do an extensive search on the topic or anything. I basically just took the first account I read and went with it. Good enough for me! Lol 😆
They were good. They had a really strong almond taste. Basically, it was a chewy almond cookie. Lol
Almonds are the main ingredient of macarons and they indeed are chewy a little. I like the flavor but they are very sweet, I can't have more than two. Maybe 3. Maybe all if I really try🤣🤣
Yeah they are sweet for sure. But something kind of funny - In Canada (where I'm from) and North America in general, they put a lot more sugar in just about everything, so things are much sweeter there. So to N. American standards macarons aren't really that sweet of a dessert. Lol
It's all relative I guess haha
If it is too sugary I can't have too many, it ruins the experience for me. But I have read several studies about sugar being more addictive than cocaine. Literally. It just switches on the brain part connected to reward. This explains why we can always have more sugar, even if we think that we can't. Scary . This is why I control my sugar intake because I am aware of the brain's weak spots🤣
Yeah sugar is definitely addictive. I try to avoid it entirely in the morning and day because it makes your blood sugar levels more volatile, a spike followed by a quick drop. It basically makes me hungry all day and want to snack when I have anything sweet in the morning.
I start the day with dark chocolate and tea later in the morning. The first thing I do when I wake up is drink lots of water. From a glass bottle. That's it, it makes my entire day lol. I drink lots of water throughout the day it is super important for me
So funny. I was reading your post and taking my virtual trip to Saint-Emilion with you on a little break from work. I was also eating some chips and when I got to the part where you guys where eating chips in those adorable abbey courtyards I thought that was so fun. Great place.
Wine and plain chips is a great combo. You probably can't drink wine at work though 😆
Nope, it was chips and some good, clear water.
That's probably for the best at work lol
I was told Saint-Emilion produces some of the best red wine, sounds like you picked up some nice wine. The macarons looks nice and are really good value, did it have a different texture from the ones from Ladurée as it looks quite thin. I really like the ones from Ladurée, someone gifted me a big box that had like 40 pieces some years ago, it was so divine indulging myself for 2 days 😋
The texture was different - soft and chewy and more...grainy..? opposed to...airy and chewy? I don't know how to describe textures really. But they are different. Both styles are great but for different reasons. Ladurée are amazing but they're so expensive we only buy them once in a while for ourselves or as gifts. But we have to convert everything to Canadian dollars so I think everything is expensive in Europe 😆. 40 Ladurée macarons is a nice gift.
It was certainly a very nice gift, I wasn't greed though, I did share two with my hubby!!!
If we buy treats or snacks my wife and I have to divide them up prior.
"Okay so it's agreed, these ones are yours and these ones are mine. We can each eat our own however fast or slow we want but if we touch the other persons treats, it's shame and eternal damnation for the rest of our lives."
Looks at partner.
Partner nods head. "Yep. Agreed"
Shake hands.
Both turn and run away to a corner of the house like smeagol with the ring of power
And that is pretty much a true story.
It goes like this in our house hold
One for me, one for you, one for me
One for me, one for you, one for me
One for me, one for you, one for me
One for me, one for you, one for me
All sorted!!
It's the key to a happy marriage 😂
Hahaha good one lol
Looks like a fantastic place. And the mural is lovely 😇
Yeah the mural was really cool. It was the type of painting you could look at for a while and continue to see new details.
Cette région est tellement belle ! A visiter et revisiter !
je suis d'accord!
I guess this simple creation inspired the current version. I have tried this macaron somewhere too, but can't remember where. It was called something else though, not a macaron. Same ingredients and the look.
It's a very simple cookie so it doesn't surprise me at all that it would be made in other places in the country and other countries all together. I'm sure back then, when these things were invented, many people experienced certain foods in their travels, and then when they went back home they claimed them as their own creation. Who would know back then? Travel was limited and communication as well. That could be why there are so many similar recipes in all of the countries, especially ones that border each other.
What I would do for one of those old bottles! Amazing. I love Boudreaux. Recently had a 2005, and I wish I would of waited another 10 years before opening. CHEERS!
Yeah I wonder what those old bottles would be like. The winery doesn't sell them but saves them for family members and special occasions. A part of me wonders if they are even still good lol
Oh yes they defiantly are. But of course it does depend on the vintage, and quality of grapes, then a individuals preferred taste. I have found some old wines to be a little funky, but the fact that your drinking on something so old, that adds to the experience.
But lets say the Bordeaux is a stellar year, and top quality grapes, I have heard after 20 years, a great it is heavenly! The special white wine they make there also has great ageabiltiy.
Yeah. That's what I assume any bottle over 20 years old would be like to be honest. But the idea of it is really cool. Its like being apart of history in a way.
I know that wines that can be aged will eventually "peak," i.e. hit a point where the flavors and aromas are at their peak goodness. After that the wine starts to degrade and lose flavor and aroma and take on degradation flavors (mustiness, funky-ness, become acidic...etc). The cork obviously plays a role in that a it's the cork that allows the wine to age. But eventually the cork will degrade and start letting bacteria into the wine. I read that most wine will begin to degrade after about 18-20 years. But like you said, that will surly depend on the quality of the wine, cork and how its stored.
I know that people will buy old bottles as an investment though, which I find super interesting. To me it seems that once that process starts (once someone purchases a bottle for a really high dollar figure) the bottle will likely never actually be drank. It is now an investment bottle. One person buys it at a ridiculous price holds it a few years then sells it for an even higher price and so on. It's like fine art sales in a way. So I kind of wonder if really old bottles actually taste awful but no one would ever know because they would never be opened 🤔
That is true. And I agree about how interesting it is about wine as an investment. I was watching a youtube video the other day, and the guy was telling a story about some dinner he went to in Burgundy, and upon arrival he was given a glass of 1909 Chardonnay! He said you couldn't even tell it was a white wine anymore, and it wasn't the greatest, but it was still drinking after over a hundred years! I could see someone paying $$ for that experience.
😂 that's funny. Neat experience though.
Wonderful
!LUV
Thanks!
I have add the destination on my trip list.When ı was reading your post,ı said'' Saint-Emilion is good destination to trip with bycyle.The roads, the city, the gardens are like a movie scene.The views lovely.thank everythings
Yeah I could see it being a good place to bike. Biking in vineyards is always nice and the roads aren't too busy, or at least they didn't seem to be when we went.
Then I must try the almond waffles when I'm there:) dei environment with the vineyards looks really great!
Yeah you should definitely try the cookies if you go :)
One of the regions of France I want to see. It's really beautiful.
The region is definitely worth a visit.
Really amazed by these beautiful photos, the colors and the places are really sensational, I love your post!
Thanks I'm glad you liked it.
Thanks for taking me along on this journey. So beautiful surroundings.
Loved the murals.
Yeah the murals were pretty cool.
Glad you liked the post, thanks for commenting
You are welcome 🙏
I love all art, and here there were so many details. I could watch the mural for hours in real life…
Wow! What a great post, like all the others of yours! I really love the beautiful landscape of a vineyard! You have really amazing travel posts! I scroll down to your blog and its a wonder what you have here!
greetings from Romania :)
Have a good day tmr!
This is the location that your vineyard post was reminding me of lol. They both had the same fall colors.
Greetings from France :)
Are you living there? Just out of curiosity, no need to answer if you don't want too. But if you do, I'm already jealous for you two, in the good way lol!
greetings from Romania as well :)
Yeah my wife and I have been living in France for two years now on an Expat for her work. We have one more year here and then we go back to Canada, where we are from. So we are trying to see as much of the country as possible while we are able to. Canada is far from Europe and its not easy to get here very often obviously so we really have to make the most of our short time. We haven't been anywhere close to Romania yet. Maybe one day - who knows? Lol
Ohhh Canada! Now I understand!:) Which part of Canada you from? Also my husband is a Canadian but we currently live in Romania.
I'm happy about that too, I mean living in Europe, with all these travel destinations.
Thank you for your reply, appreciate it. :)
That's awesome!
We are from the province of Ontario, in a city outside Toronto.
Yeah I definitely agree 👍
haha,my husband was also born in the region of Ontario, in a city near Toronto.
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