The Bordeaux Winetrail Itinerary

No Sleep 'til St Emilion!

Today we follow the Dordogne, first passing through the appellation of Montravel. Most wine-drinkers would be hard placed to locate Montravel, but actually it's a fascinating appellation.

A single estate can produce wines under five separate "Appellation d'Origin Contrôllée", and at le Puy Servain we meet one of the finest winemakers in the region; the list of prizes runs to several books - literally - and he's been featured more than once in Decanter magazine. Wine tasting at Puy Servain can be a marathon - we'll have to pace ourselves!

Passing the 'monument of shame' (the Monument Talbot, where the English Admiral Talbot finally lost The Hundred Years War in 1453) we cycle through Castillon to arrive in St Emilion.

We have the chance to visit Château Belair, one of St Emilion's top wine estates, for a wine tasting and a tour of their amazing underground caverns, and this evening we eat at the restaurant of Francis Goulée.

Of our seven cycling tours, this is perhaps the finest gourmet food of all, and in fact St Emilion, with its medieval cobbles, centuries-old wine traditions and ancient monolithic church, is just unforgettable. I remember well my first visit, and I never tire of seeing it again.