The Right Bank: St. Emilion & Libourne
St. Emilion provides a great leg workout!
The name "Saint Émilion" was always intriguing to me. It rolls off the tongue, sounding very demure. I was deceived when we arrived there. Not much of the town was visible, it was hidden in the hillsides. The flowers along the sidewalk from the bus park caught my eye first, pale pink that seemed to float in the morning dew. I think they were a harbinger of what was to come. We found a sleepy town, as it was relatively early when we arrived. Only a few folks were on the streets and many shops were closed. By the time we left the grotto and church it had definitely come alive!
St. Émilion is situated on steep hills. It is not large, only about 2000 people live there, but it is important in the Bordeaux region and home to many of the best wines of the area. Grapes were first grown there by the Romans in the 2nd century. In the 8th century, a monk named Émilion hid and prayed in a grotto carved into the stone of the hillside. Monks who followed him began the first commercial wine production of the Bordeaux region.
By the 12th century a large church had been carved into the hillside. Today it is known as the Monolithic Church and can be visited. The only evidence of it above ground is a large bell tower, prominent among the tiled roof houses.
The wines of St. Émilion gained prominence early on. The first wines to be exported out of Bordeaux emanated from St. Émilion in the 14th century. It is the largest appellation in Bordeaux with 5565 hectares (13,751 acres) in vineyards belonging to 800 growers and producers. It was the first wine region to designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Chef Jerome Oillic
Walking from the entrance of the Monolithic Church up into the town was a cobblestoned climb...great leg workout! The street was lined with quaint wine shops as well as macron patisseries and other local goods. Several outdoor cafes looked very inviting, but I was saving myself for a cooking class with a French chef later on that morning. St. Émilion was the demure French village that would not let itself be ignored, just like that delicate flower along the sidewalk.
Cooking class creations.
Jerome Oillic @Urban Chef, was our chef at Chateau Ambe Tour Pourret. He was very good and very fun and made the group I was with, 12 people or so, do all the work. No problem. The appetizer featured shrimp so I was called upon to show my fellow travelers how to de-head, shell and devein fresh shrimp. I guess my time on the gulf Coast has been well spent! We also made veal roulades, a vegetable salad and dessert, all served with a fine red Bordeaux from the Chateau. It was a really lovely time in a modern chateau, beautifully furnished and available for overnight stays. All this was situated in the middle of a vineyard!
Potmarron squash for sale.
Our next stop was the town of Libourne, famous for it's market and also as a wine business center in the region, second only to Bordeaux city. It's larger than St. Émilion, about 23,000 people and so not quite as quaint or as old. It was founded in 1270 by an Englishman, Roger de Leybourne.
The market lived up to it's reputation! Being as I love tocook, it was like a fairyland of goodness to me. My only regret was that I did not have a kitchen to go to, so I couldn't buy any of the fresh produce, chickens, mussels and clams, seafood, bread or cheese that was presented to me. Maybe next time an Airbnb is in order! The characters there made for great people watching too. Two men having an argument, each stationed on their own 2nd floor balcony above the street, an older gentleman in overalls who displayed a wickedly pleasant gummy grin, many children in strollers pushed by moms trying to shop. It seemed like a slice of real French village life.
The real stuff...my downfall!
The next day we headed to Cognac for a taste of the extravagant life.
