Private Wine Tasting at a Renowned Sancerre Winery скачать в хорошем качестве

Private Wine Tasting at a Renowned Sancerre Winery

Perched high on a hill overlooking its famous, eponymous, wine growing region, Sancerre was first founded by the Romans. It is thought its name comes from the phrase “San Caesar”, meaning Caesar’s Temple. During the Religious Wars of the 16th century, Sancerre was a protestant stronghold and was able to fight off many Catholic attempts to besiege it and during the French Revolution, the town was a Royalist stronghold. Sancerre was the local command centre for the French Resistance throughout the Second World War and, although the Germans occupied the area, the resistance were able to continue their work. Wines of Sancerre Sancerre is the most recognizable appellation for French Sauvignon Blanc in the Loire Valley. The region’s rolling limestone hills and semi-continental climate deliver richly textured Sauvignon Blanc wines with ripe gooseberry aromas, bracing acidity, and flinty-smoke flavours. The soils vary quite a bit with three distinct soil types, all found atop a base of Kimmeridgian Limestone, the same as Chablis, parts of Champagne, and the white cliffs of Dover. Terre Blanche is a mix of clay, Kimmeridgian limestone and oyster shells, creating wines that are fruity, ageable and angular with high acidity. Caillotes features small pebbles of Oxfordian limestone and yields wines with delicate perfume and less structure than Terre Blanche. Silex, or flint, lends a smoky, gunflint quality to the grapes. Sancerre is on the eastern edge of the Loire Valley. Here, grapes are planted in all three soil types and, when blended together, create the benchmark for Sauvignon Blanc – racy, refreshing wines with zippy citrus, lemongrass and gooseberry and a chalky minerality. Often overshadowed, the red wines of Sancerre are elegant expressions of Pinot Noir – fresh and easy drinking with bright, high-acid cherry and plum aromas. Sancerre was one of the first regions granted an AOP (Appellation d’Origine Protégée), in 1936, and over the years its area has expanded fourfold - most recently in 1998. Further south, on the right bank of the river, are the vineyards of Pouilly-Fumé. Sauvingon Blanc is the only sanctioned grape and the region owes its name to the “smoky” attributes wines have from being grown on silex (flint) soils. These wines are often blended with the fruitier and lighter Sauvignon Blanc, which is grown on Caillote soil (sandy, pebbly soil), as well as deeper and creamier Sauvignon Blanc planted on clay (Terre Blanche). What is hotel barging? Despite the growing popularity of cruising, especially on large river vessels, hotel barging is still a little known niche concept. Most hotel barges started life as cargo vessels but have since been painstakingly converted to offer luxury boutique accommodation for small groups of up to 20 passengers. This is cruising, but in a very different style to ships plying the big rivers or oceans. The pace is slow, with a 6 day cruise covering maybe just 50 miles along a rural canal. Passengers can walk or bike the towpaths as their floating hotel glides gently along. Guests enjoy an intimate atmosphere, high levels of personal service and immersion into the culture, history and gastronomy of regions of Europe such as Burgundy, the Midi, or the Italian Veneto. Every day there is an excursion, perhaps to a chateau, a vineyard for a wine tasting, or some other ‘off the beaten track’ location. About half of European Waterways’ bookings are for whole boat charters, ideal for families. Otherwise, clients book a cabin to join other like-minded people. A ‘slow boat’ European Waterways barge cruise offers the ultimate in experiential travel. A truly unique experience! European Waterways offer luxury hotel barge cruises on the beautiful canals and rivers of Europe, such as through Burgundy, the Midi, Alsace, the Po Valley, Holland and the Scottish Highlands. The exclusive collection of hotel barges accommodate up to 20 passengers who may charter a whole barge with family or friends, or join a small group of like-minded travellers on an individual cabin basis. Each barge is fully crewed with a Captain, chef, hostesses, deck-hand and tour guide. The 6-night cruises include gourmet meals, fine wines, open bar, excursions and the use of facilities such as bicycles and spa pools. http://www.europeanwaterways.com/