We were hoping to find a tour of the Bandol & Cassis wine regions which are along the Mediterranean coast just east of Marseille. The Cassis AOC is famous for its white wine which is quite a departure from the popular Provence rose’s, hence our interest. Bandol is a small AOC which gets a huge amount of yearly sun and is noted for the world-class reds, mostly derivatives of the Monteverde grape popular in this region of France.
Through the Aix tourist bureau, we were able to set up an all-day tour from the city which included a visit to the ‘Notre Dame Basilica’ in Marseille, time in the village of Cassis, and tastings at a winery in Cassis and one in Bandol. Our driver is a nice, young French gal who grew up in the Marseilles area, so she is very familiar with the region.
The drive into Marseille is interesting as neither Mary or I realized the size of the city – it’s France’s 2nd largest city! Massive. The historic city center looks very cool as we drive up to the basilica and the church itself is gorgeous. It overlooks the entire city and coast and is just incredible with it’s siting. Signs warning of pickpockets somewhat dull the experience. The ‘mistral’ winds have started and it’s amazing how strong they are up where we are in the basilica.
Our first winery stop north of Cassis is nice, but disappointing as the offerings are limited. The winery was founded in 1523 (yes, that’s 1523) and has remained in the same family. Noted for their whites, there is only one for tasting. Bummer. Neat place though.
Next up is the town of Cassis for lunch and wander. Mary and I were here a few weeks ago and it is still a lovely spot. Our lunch was (as always, it seems) way too much, but quite nice. Our last stop for the tour is a winery in Bandol, noted for its red offerings. Good stuff and the tour of their facilities was very nice.
Back to Aix and a visit to Le Novo completes the day.
D.
We really wanted to visit the wine areas of Cassis (white) and Bandol (red), both highly unusual in this area of France where the predominant wine is Rose (very good as well). Although we have a car, we choose instead to book a full day trip that includes the ‘Notre Dame Basilica’ in Marseille so Dick can enjoy the wine tasting and both of us can enjoy the drive.
We met our driver Emmanuelle at the tourist office in Aix. We are joined by Lillian and Rick from San Francisco and head to Marseille and the Basilica. The winds have picked up since yesterday and they are quite fierce when we get to the church. The church is on the highest point of the city over the water, we are literally getting blown away with wind gusts in the high 30 mph. The Basilica itself is amazing, one of the largest in France, built in the Byzantine style, so lots of gold gilt, decorative art, marble, etc. The Germans occupied the port of Marseille during WW II, and there are still bullet holes marring the outside of the church from when the Allies (Americans) liberated Marseille in 1944. After our visit, we are joined by Wade and Diane from Charleston, SC.
Next, we go to a small family winery in Cassis, it is very small and very old. Unfortunately, they have only one wine to taste that is their own, but we are offered two reds, one from the Godfathers’ winery and another from the Grandfathers.
We have several hours to explore the town of Cassis. As Dick and I had been here several weeks ago, we choose to spend our time having lunch in the harbor. It’s a nice lunch, but way too much food. Later we take a small walk and dip our toes into the Mediterranean Sea, a first for both of us.
We finished the tour with a larger winery in Bandol which specializes in reds. It’s a nice tour and we pick up a few purchases for the rest of the week.
We’re back in Aix by 5:30, and head for home. Later we stop for a nightcap at our neighborhood gathering place. Good fun.
M.
