In France, get a real taste of wine country at charming wine-themed hotels in the heart of the vines
Hotels in Burgundy, Langudoc and the Loire Valley make both seasoned oenophiles and casual wine lovers feel right at home.
You can almost taste the names: Saint-Emilion. Cotes-de-Nuit. Sancerre. Even if the closest you’ve come to the time-honored regions in France that these names represent is the label on the bottle at your local French bistro, now you can stay in the heart of these celebrated wine regions and enjoy these wonderful wines in their natural habitats. Luckily, if your travel budget–or your personality– do not make a stay in a French chateau ideal, there are a number of charming hotels in France that cater to the wine lover, both expert and novice.
Logis, the famous network of charming hotels in France, is rolling out the red carpet for wine lovers. Well-known already for their high standards of comfort and quality, with their unique “fireplace” ratings system, Logis hotels are now also classified by theme, so those with special interests can find the perfect hotel in France to indulge their passions. The hotels labelled Logis Bacchus, after the Roman god of wine, are specially equipped and situated to suit the taste of wine-loving travellers.
These charming hotels are all about wine, in both their locations in the heart of French wine country and in the environment they create within the hotel. Guests receive inside information and advice as regards the choice of local wines or tours of local wine cellars. The trained staff will organize a private wine tasting in one of the hotel’s rooms equipped for this purpose, giving advice right down to the proper glasses in which to enjoy each wine, and a chart of which vintages to enjoy with specific dishes on the regional menu. Your hoteliers, proud of their roots and their area, will take pleasure in introducing you to all the riches of their region and will be able to organize any and all visits or wine-tastings in the cellars, vineyards and chateaux of France’s wine regions. Whether a romantic wine-tasting weekend in France with a special someone, a long weekend of wine-tasting among friends or a longer stay centered around a more serious study of oenology, Logis will let you organize a perfect stay in any of its charming hotels with gourmet restaurants.
But which wine region of France to go to? France’s vineyards are so varied and each area has its own wine identity, as well as its unique historical heritage to explore outside its vineyards and cellars. A stay in a charming hotel in Languedoc for example, will enable you to discover this territory where the slopes accomodate both the vineyard and the olive-tree, and where the perfumes of wildflowers and grasses mix with the heady emanations of the wines of Corbières. These vineyards dotted with chateaux cover more than 300,000 hectares, yielding wines from old and noble vines, such as the AOC Blanquette de Limoux and the Muscat of Frontignan. A hotel that has earned the designation of Logis Bacchus is the perfect departure point from which to explore these fantastic vineyards, as well as the ideal place to enjoy their products after your adventure, along with a wonderful regional meal prepared by gourmet chefs. Or you might settle on Burgundy for your wine-tasting vacation. Burgundy is destination full of charm quite apart from its world-famous vineyards. A stay in a Logis Bacchus hotel in Burgundy, will prove ideal to not only to discover the vineyards of the territory, to visit the cellars and to taste Mâconnais, Cotes de Nuits and other renowned wines of the Burgundy region, but also to tour the beautiful landscapes and historical sites of the area.
But wine isn’t all you’ll discover at a Logis Bacchus hotel. Food shares the spotlight, and the restaurants of Logis not only attain a high level of gastronomy, but respect the regional culinary traditions, so your stay in a Logis Bacchus hotel will be one of discovery for all the senses. And the prices at these restaurants are kept reasonable, which will leave you with nothing but a pleasant taste in your mouth.
Some Logis Bacchus hotels even offer themed wine tours, such as “Secrets of the Sommelier” in the Loire; an excursion into Franche Compte with a tour around the town of Arbois, allowing the introduction to vintages such as Trousseau, Poulsard and Savagnin; and in Aquitaine where a Logis Bacchus hotel will accomodate you in homey and authentic surroundings as you sample the local Graves, Saint-émilion, Médoc and Haut-Médoc.
Like a good Burgundy and a wedge of Brie, or Sauternes with foie gras on toast, a Logis hotel is a perfect marriage for wine lovers: a charming hotel in France nestled in the heart of the vineyards, with a great local restaurant on the premises at which to enjoy all the good things the wine country of France has to offer. A wine vacation in France is easy to plan and easy to enjoy with a Logis Bacchus hotel as your home base.