See the Wine Being Made

At Loire Valley Time Travel we visit wineries all year round. We choose small producers who really care about the quality of their product and we work with them to create a great visitor experience. Because we know them well, we can be sure of a welcome even during really busy times like the harvest. Clients Debbie and Bret, from Miami, Florida, were fascinated to encounter a winery in full harvest processing mode with us. They said they had been to lots of wineries but had never been to one where you were allowed to get up close to the real work of winemaking.

In the photo they are talking to Charles from the winery about how the grapes are pressed. The big trailer is full of grapes ready to be sorted and lifted up into the pneumatic press behind. The vineyard needs to do this as quickly as possible to maintain the purity of the juice, so it was all hands on deck the day we visited. Later on in the visit we tasted the delicious juice from grapes that were harvested and crushed the day before and would made into sparkling wine. A real seasonal treat!

If you are interested in behind the scenes at a winery, email us and we will design a tour that includes some of our favourite wineries and winemakers.

Relax and Enjoy

We thought this was such a lovely photo of Sara and PJ, who live in Nashville, that we wanted to share it on the blog. They both have high pressure responsible jobs, but really enjoyed relaxing with us in the Loire Valley.

Would you like to stay in a charming and comfortable chateau hotel and be picked up in the morning for a day or two of being chauffeured through the picturesque and historic Loire countryside? We will take you visiting chateaux both famous and little known, with a winery to round off the day in the evening. Email us if this sounds like your sort of break.

French Potagers

The French potager style of garden is famous all over the world. In many of the big chateaux gardens it is not a humble vegetable garden at all, but an intricate piece of living design that just happens to be created out of edible plants.

The potager at La Chatonniere.

The really famous one is at Villandry, and it is a master class in horticulture and garden design. Nearby is La Chatonniere, created by Ahmed Azéroual after he left Villandry 20 years ago. Here the resources are not so great, and the gardening style somewhat more relaxed. Nevertheless, the potager at La Chatonniere is gorgeous. The planting is simpler, with fewer varieties of bedding being used, but the effect is magnificent all the same. It also makes you realise that you could achieve the look in your own home garden.

If you want to garner ideas for your own garden, email us and we will take you to the sorts of places that inspire us.