- 09:00 AM : Pick up at your accommodation in Tours or surrounding area
- 10:00 AM : Commented tasting session at 1st winery in Chinon Appellation
- 12:30 PM : Free time for lunch in the town of Chinon
- 02:00 PM : Commented tasting session at 2dn winery in Bourgueil Appellation
- 03:20 PM : Commented tasting session at a 3rd winery in Bourgeuil appellation
- 05:00 PM : Drop off at your accommodation in Tours
In the morning, we will come and pick you up at your Hotel or Accommodation in Tours. Meet your English speaking driver / guide who is an expert in the local wines, especially the Chinon and Bourgueil wine appellations. Once you have met your guide, he/she will go over the program and itinerary of the day with you. Then, board your comfortable, premium A/C vehicle and begin to make your way to the Loire Valley Wine Regions.
Wine tasting in the Chinon Wine Region
After a short drive, reach the Chinon wine producing region. Chinon red wines are mainly made with Cabernet Franc or Cabernet Sauvignon varietals while the white wines are made with Chenin Blanc. The roughly 200 producers of the area account for about 12 million bottles of wine per year. When grown in the light, sandy-gravel soils along the banks of the Vienne, Chinon is rounded on the palate, supple and easy to drink. When grown in the denser soil of the limestone slopes, the wine gains a fuller body, is more robust and develops a much longer ageing potential.
Upon arrival, we will take you to one of our carefully selected wineries of the region. Here, you will have the opportunity to taste a large range of local wines. All our wine tours include a commented tasting of the wines as well as an explanation of the appellation and the terroir linked to the wine region.
Free time for lunch in Chinon
Once your morning visit is over, it will be time to head to the town of Chinon. After a small walking tour with your guide, take some time to appreciate this charming small town and enjoy some free time for personal discovery and lunch (at own expense). Don't hesitate to ask your guide for recommendations and suggestions for great lunch opportunities.
Bourgueil / Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil Wine Region
After lunch, it will be time to head towards the Bourgueil / Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil Wine Region of the Loire Valley. Wines have been produced in the area since the 10th century but became celebrated as an outstanding wine since the 17th century. The soils that make up the Bourgueil vineyards are on one hand composed of sand and gravel or "graviers" as they are locally known and on the other hand of clay and fine limestone known as "Tuffeau". This tuffeau was also used to build houses and castles in the region and the quarries of those days are now used to preserve the wines.
Bourgueil / Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil wines are red wines made with a majority of Cabernet France type varietal. Where the vines are planted on a sandy and gravel type soil, the wines obtained are fruity, delicate and light and can be drank in their early years. Where the vines are planted on the clay and limestone soils, Bourgueil / Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil wines tend to be more complex with higher amount of tannins. These wines can age with certain exceptional vintages having a great ageing potential.
Wine tasting sessions in 2 Wineries
This afternoon, we will have you visit and wine taste in 2 local wineries of the Bourgueil / Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil appellation. After a short introduction about the history of the winery and depending on the winery visited, we will take you to the vineyard to see what is going on with the vines at the moment of your visit. For some wineries, it will be possible to visit the technical installations and/or the ageing cellars. You will then participate in a commented tasting session of the wines produced on site. Even though a majority of red wine is produced here, some wineries also include tastings of Rosé, White and Sparkling wines.
Return to Tours
After your tasting session of the afternoon in the Bourgueil wine region, it will be time to make your way back to Tours where we will drop you off. That will be the end of our services.
