Living like a local: Why is French wine so desirable?

Queensland couple Neil McLean and Gai Reid journeyed to Europe to enjoy some authentic travel, ‘living like locals’. The result? They spent 300 days pet- and house-sitting their way across four countries, spending less than it would cost them to live at home. Plus they started a new business, Village to Villa – and even made a TV series about it!

Episode 13

https://youtube.com/watch?v=WyxPfI8ROXM

One of the many great items Gai and I got to tick off our bucket list while house-sitting in France was getting to know more about French wine. Why it is so desirable and revered around the world?

Not only did we get to discover a lot about French wine, we also got to drink lots too! (And when I say “we” I really mean me – I drank most of Gai’s share, too!)

During our three months travelling around France, we had what could be termed a high exposure to a large range of wine styles. This came via visiting famous wineries (in Bordeaux, for example), going to many restaurants, buying it at the supermarket (the favoured method for the majority), visiting boutique outlets and being exposed to the local ‘goon’ (homemade stuff sold in 50 litre bladders).

Unlike Australia, where wines are classified and sold as a particular style, and the large wine merchants display them in groups – i.e. white, red, blends etc – the French sell and categorise by region.

To visitors like us, this could a little confusing. Why? Not knowing the regions intimately, there are reds, whites and blends all in the same grouping that come from a specific region. And because of the denseness of some glass bottles, at times it was hard to tell if the wine was white or red! To us non-French-speaking visitors, the labels didn’t help much either!

Tasting is an art form in France. The whole routine of holding the glass high and looking through it, swirling the wine in the glass and taking a long pensive sniff like you know what you’re doing, is a common practice in France.

The wine industry is France is pivotal to the country’s economy, being the second-biggest export behind Aerospace and just in front of cosmetics and perfume.

The industry generates billions of Euros and employs tens of thousands of people. It is also the pride of the nation that has an attitude that ‘we’ produce the best wine in the world.

While we were living at the magnificent Château du Mauran in the southwest corner of France, near the Spanish border, our generous friends Margaret and Cor hosted a large wine tasting. Bathed in gorgeous French sunshine, the Chateau provided the perfect backdrop for a lively afternoon of fun, delicious French cuisine and outstanding wines. They also raised an impressive amount for a local charity.

Read more: Living like a local: A wannabe pet- and house-sitter’s guide to getting started

We spoke to the wine producers who, in answer to the question of what makes French wines so special, spoke of the ‘terroir’ factor. Terroir is the composition of the earth, and is just one of many factors that determine whether growing conditions are ideal. It’s all very technical, and there are plenty of classes and courses and weekends that specialise in learning more about wines. Me, I just like tasting and getting to know various styles of wine.

While we were at the Château, another very special place in France was an hour’s drive away.

Lourdes is a town of about 15,000 people at the base of the Pyrenees Mountains. On the edge of town is a religious complex. Thousands of people converge on it daily in the hope of a miracle healing.

It’s one of the most visited and significant religious shrines in the world – a Catholic pilgrimage site featuring the Grotto of the Apparitions where, in the mid 1800s, a peasant girl name Bernadette is said to have witnessed the appearance of the Virgin Mary.

People come from all over the world to visit the shrine and to bathe in and drink the holy water that flows from a spring. Dozens of officially recognised ‘miracles’ have occurred there.

As a visitor, it is hard not to be swept up in the amazing and austere atmosphere of the place. However, there was one aspect that both Gai and I found amusing. It’s the commerciality of it all. Not only are there more hotels and accommodation outlets here than anywhere else in France (besides Paris), there is also a thriving souvenir industry.

On the road leading out to the complex, the streetscape is reminiscent of an Asian market. Shops spill out onto the pavement with cheapish trinkets in large displays. A prolific number of water containers labelled “Lourdes” in various fonts and logos adorn the pavement. Interspersed with large classy retail stores dedicated to religious items, it all seemed quite surreal.

Read more: Living like a local: Top tips for pet- and house-sitting

Lourdes is a very unusual place and, even if you’re not religiously inclined, is an incredibly engaging attraction to visit.

Episode 14 of Neil and Gai’s ‘Living like locals’ housesitting blog will be published on Travel at 60 next week – to read episode 12, click here.