Chambre d’hôte in Monbazillac
One of the joys of wine walking is the possibility of staying in a “chambre d’hôte”, a French version of a “bed ‘n’ breakfast”. They are often located in charming, rustic locations, as was my chambre d’hôte, “Clair de Vigne”, in Monbazillac.
It is run by Claire Bersier, as her retirement dream project. Claire travelled the world with her husband’s job as an astrophysicist — from the US to Chile, and Australia to the UK. After an international life, her dream was a retreat to “la France profonde”.
Clair de Vigne really is a dream location, a beautiful old house, decorated with an artistic charm, located right in the middle of the vineyards of Monbazillac. Claire is an amateur sculptor.
As Claire explained to me, the vines for the delicious sweet Monbazillac wine are mainly up on the coteaux (hill slopes) beyond the chambre d’hôte. The vineyards surrounding the house produce mainly a red wine, with the appellation “Bergerac”.
I arrived at Clair de Vigne by taking a TGV fast train from Paris to Bordeaux, a local TER from Bordeaux to Bergerac, and then a taxi. The taxi made it to Clair de Vigne using his GPS. Via a dirt road, we arrived at a little house, with no visible sign to me, at least.
I entered the house, and there was Claire working away on her computer. She gave me a very warm welcome.
I asked her about walking to the Monbazillac Chateau, and she pointed to a chateau perched on top of the hillside. So off I went for a somewhat strenuous walk.
That evening Claire shared with me a snack for dinner. There were no restaurants within walking distance.
The following morning was one of the great joys of staying in a chambre d’hote. I shared breakfast with Claire, a couple from Belgium and a young lady from North Wales. Exchanging travel stories is always fun. It is also a good source of new ideas for future travel.
En bref, un grand merci à Claire!