Near Vacqueyras, in the Rhône Valley, Domaine La Fontaine du Clos, both a vine nursery and wine estate, offers a discovery tour in a Land Rover.
The world of wine nurseries
Did you know that Sarrians, near Vacqueyras, is where most of France’s vine nursery supply can be found?
This industry finds its roots in the 19th century in the phylloxera crisis. In the 1870s, this insect, originating in the United States, attacked first the vineyards of Provence and Languedoc, before spreading to France and later devastating almost all of Europe’s vineyards, sparing only the rare vines planted in sandy soil or American seedlings.
Since, in France and around the world, free-standing (ungrafted) vines have been mainly supplanted by American rootstocks, the only ones resistant to this insect, still present in the soil. It is on these that the traditional endemic grape varieties of each region are grafted.These are the rootstocks and the fifty or so European grape varieties that the Barnier family at Fontaine du Clos, winegrowers and nurserymen for 5 generations, grow on their hundred hectares.
Safari in a vintage land rover
To explore this important wine-growing site in a fun and unique way, Céline Barnier has devised a tour of the vineyards in a vintage land rover. We set off (up to 8 people can be taken at one time) with Maxime for nearly 2 hours exploring the vineyards: over here, the mother vines with rootstocks, there the mother vines with grafts bearing the grape varieties, and at each stage, clear explanations from our tour guide!
The tour ends in the heart of the vines, on a plot of AOC Vacqueyras land, with a tasting of the estate’s wines, accompanied by local specialities: cold meats from Sarrians, goats’ cheese from a neighbouring producer etc…
A great way to discover a little-known trade!
Other wine tourism activities
Fontaine du Clos organises grape harvesting days (€35/ pers.) and blending workshops for different grape varieties.
Visitor information
Location
Domaine Fontaine du Clos
735 Bd Du comté D’Orange
84260 SARRIANS
Languages spoken: French / English / Spanish
Duration: 2 hours
On set dates from April to October (see calendar) and on request for small groups
Groups upon reservation
From 2 to 4 persons: €45/ pers.
From 5 to 8 persons: €40/ pers.
Contact :
Maxime MANZI
m.manzi@fontaineduclos.com
T. +33 (0)4 90 65 59 39
©Serge Chapuis, Mathilde Gainnet, Valérie Gillet