April 23: Rain, Rain, Go Away, Never Mind, We Still Can Play

Weather is predicted to be rainy for the next couple of days, so we need to plan activities to do between the rain drops. We needed groceries, so we went to Baumes-de-Venise for the market, then to the grocery store for basic supplies. We managed only to get sprinkled on at the market, but the rain let loose once home.

seafood vendor at the market at Beaumes-de-Venise

Best plan for a rainy day? Wine-tasting! There's an area called Tavel that makes ONLY rosé wines. But what wines! The color is a deep pink. And the region is TINY as you can see from the map below. (Tavel is the tiny deep pink spot.)

It is only in that township that this wine is made.  So off to the wine coop at Tavel, Les Vignerons de Tavel, which produces wine from the harvests of 50% of the Tavel growers.

no translation needed; Clark approves

Clark is eager to go in, but I made him pose first for a photo

The tasting room is modern and well-displayed. After checking out the displays we bellied up to the bar to taste. Our hostess recommended that we start with a white from Lirac (which we ended up buying). Lirac is a small area just above Tavel and partners with this coop to sell wines through them. (The green area just above Tavel)

Inside the tasting room

a pretty bottle of Tavel wine

Then we tasted 3 Tavel wines. (If your eyes glaze over when people talk wine, skip to tomorrow's post where we're exploring again.) These wines are all the same vinification of 50% Grenache noir (red grapes), the rest, depending on the wine, includes varying amounts of Clairette, Cinsault, Picpoul, & Bourboulenc (white grapes) and Morvedre, Carignan, Syrah (red grapes).

We also tasted a red Lirac wine and added a bottle to our order, 1 red, 2 whites and 3 rosés.

Outside, there are sample vineyards that show the types of soil that make the 3 versions of rosé. The first soil is sandy and produces a light, fruity wine.

The second consists of flat, grey limestone "lauzes" that cover the soil, trapping moisture needed during the dry months.

The third soil, fist-sized round ochre-colored rocks store the heat of the day and protect the roots from the cold at night as well as minimize moisture evaporation in the hot, dry summers. These grapes ripen completely on the vine and provide a richness and minerality not in the other two.

Anyway, the trip was fun, a learning experience, and look! the vines are not only setting leaves, they are setting grapes. We were surprised.

leaves and baby grapes

Home we went, a lovely drive through the vineyards, case of wine in hand. And now you know as much as we do about Tavel wines. If you ever get a chance to try one, we highly recommend it.

And for those who are counting, this ends our 3rd week of our travels in France. Clark has provided a photo of the 59 bottles we have enjoyed in our 21 days here. Our average per day is dropping a bit, but we do also have 2 BIBs (Bag in Box) going.