Due to fatigue, I stayed in last night. Trouble sleeping the night before in Pamplona – from the street noise, travel day, plus not having a decent meal equates to I’m going to pass out tonight and save my energy for today July 12. Last night, all I had for dinner was a prepackaged typical American ham and cheese sandwich from a corner store.
I purchased a ticket for a 9 hour wine tour at the tourist office yesterday. I went to bed last night at 12 and got up this morning at 7. I had to be at the tourist office by 9:15 to meet with the tour group. I got ready and left my room at 7:30 to look for breakfast. After walking around for 30 min, I went back to my room with no luck of anything open. With only a 10 minute walk to the tourist office I left my room again at 8:30 in hopes to find something on my way. As I got closer to the tourist office, I saw a café in a square just opening with a few patrons already seated. It was located half a block away from the meeting point. I sat down and had a croissant and espresso.
I got to the tourist office at 9:20 with no expectations. The only information I had on the wine tour was: a minimum 2 hour hike in the hills, 2 vineyard tastings, and lunch.
I met with the group and kept to my self for a bit to absorb the environment in regards to listening to the people talk and how they spoke. I sat near the back of the bus. Shortly after boarding the bus, an elder woman introduced her self to a couple of gals in the back of the bus. They all spoke English and had spoke of where they were from. The elderly lady was from Philadelphia. The two younger gals said they were from California close to Napa. After hearing the gals speak I interrupted with, “where abouts?” They said Walnut Creek and I told them I was from Hercules. I kept to myself again and let the elder lady converse with the gals. One of them was taking a one year course in Madrid and was returning home at the end of the month to finish her collegiate course work.
During the one hour trip into the hills of Bordeaux, the people – including myself- slowly began to converse. Everyone in the rear end of the bus spoke English. I then started to speak to a Canadian couple who sat in front of me.
The tour officially began when we arrived in the outskirts of Bordeaux. It started in front of a chapel. The guide then took us to a vineyard a few meters away and started to speak of the horticulture of Vines. He was very informative and knowledgeable. This was due in part being a former vineyard worker and now a private producer of wine for his family and close friends. We trekked through the hills for about 2 hours till be finally approached our first winery. Everyone looked parched and hungry from the heat and walking. The first Winery was called Clos Jean. Our host in the Vineyard was the owner.
We went through 4 different wines starting with a Bordeaux Rose and finishing off with a Loupiac Reserve. Typical with any type of drinking event, after the 2nd bottle, everyone started to loosen up. Lunch followed up in an outdoor area. We had a phenomenal view of the country side. We were served pickled asparagus, cheese, bread, Pate, and Foie Gras. In addition to the delicious meat, the meal complimented the wine.
After the meal, we trekked to another winery which had an old Roman Bath House. After a brief tour of the excavated area, we were taken to a cellar where we were served 2 different Wines. Both were Loupiacs. With that vineyard being the last stop, we had an hour to spare before the tour bus arrived to take us back into town. Killing an hour in a winery? Easy! Some us pitched in money to purchase a couple bottles wine.
During the bus ride back into town the group I was with killing the hour with at the winery exchanged contact information. One of the couples then proposed for some of us to meet later in the evening for drinks at 8:30.
We got back into town at 6:30 and I headed straight to my room to wash up and look for dinner. I found a restaurant, sat in, and ordered a Tagliatore Bolognese. The pasta was fresh, but I wasn’t a big fan of the Bolognese Sauce. After dinner I met with the group at 8:30 in front of the tourist office: Jon, Rachel, Gregg, and Gregg’s lady(I don’t recall Gregg’s lady’s name). We headed to a square, found an outdoor seating area, and enjoyed 3 bottles of wine.
Time flew and midnight approached. The place we were at was shutting down. We all parted afterwards. I went straight to bed.
Although the wine tour was great, I was hoping to go through a Medoc Tour instead of Loupiac Tour. Apparently the Medoc tour was sold out. I had a great time in Bordeaux and wished I could have stayed for 2 more days; one more day to roam the streets and the other to attend a Medoc Wine Tour. Off to Paris in the morning.
