my feet don't want to go to sleep

After a wildly successful Oktoberfest with my family, I took my hungover body onto the train to the south of France. There are many ways to get around Europe but I will always prioritize the train. It is centrally located, beautiful, and is way more peaceful than fighting with a gate agent about your liquids or the size of your bag. 10 hours later with either a cold or COVID, I met Patty and Heather in Bordeaux.

The main attraction here is red wine, obviously. There are so many to try and I truly do believe you can’t go wrong. You can take a private van, rent a car, or go on motorcycle. Considering we want to drink we left the rental car we had for Arcachon in the garage and opted for the private van and the motorcycle.

Day 1

In the morning, we wandered along the river Garonne and enjoyed the art and vintage shops in Fabrique Pola. After some jet lag miscommunication we were locked out of our airbnb. Thankfully I thrifted a skirt and scarf that I made into a top. We ate a crepe on the street and then hopped onto the motorcycles with our cute guides. They whisked us from the highway to the back roads lined with rows and rows of grapes sitting in the hills enjoying the late fall sun.

We parked the bikes, removed our helmets, and followed our guide around Saint-Emilion which could of been the inspiration for Beauty and the Beast. The views were stunning with the rolling vineyards, the cobble stone streets, and narrow alleys all made it picturesque. Back on the bikes, we got our first taste at Château Franc Mayne. With an 100 year old tree sitting on top of the caves that hold the endless barrels of wine aging, we sipped and savored.

Day 2

H hired a private driver for us and made reservations at some wineries and lunch at a special place in a small village. Our smartly dressed driver took us all through the Haute Medoc region. Our first reservation was accidentally for the next day and the American woman running the reservations dismissed us without letting us even purchase a bottle. Our driver saved the time and took us to two gorgeous locations where we began our château experience feeling like Cinderella herself.

Lunch at Café Lavinal under the trees on the patio set the scene for the day. A couple of bottles later, we were off to our first tour. We visited Château Pichon Baron a classic estate run by an insurance company. They could afford to keep up the french standards. We tasted grapes of each variety and then tasted the wine. From there we went to a more modern location. It is run by sisters and had a funky tasting room with local handmade products. We bought a bottle from everywhere we could.

That afternoon we walked around the pedestrian streets. Make sure you eat dunes blanches and caneles de Bordeaux.

Day 3

Technically we had 3 nights & 3 days as we arrived late the day before our first tour. And we didn’t use this day in Bordeaux as we packed the car and drove down to Arcachon. More to come on that seaside town.

Links & Locations here!

Tours

Side car

Restaurants

La Toque Cuivrée – wine & cheese

Café Lavinal – upscale lunch in Haute Medoc

Places

FABRIQUE POLA – art & vintage & playground

Garonne river – the park side paths are worth a stroll

Saint-Émilion – quintessential village

Wineries

Château Franc Mayne – 100 year old tree & wine caves

Château Lamothe Bergeron – Cinderella story

Château Pichon Baron – Disney princess continued

Château Angludet – wrong reservation day, denied

Château du Taillan – women owned