Friday 17 May 2013

Gaillac AC. Red, white and rosé

Upon arriving to Cordes-sur-Ciel after a beautiful sunny drive from Toulouse enjoying of the spectacular landscapes, what I saw, I do not think it can be described with words. It was more like a mouth drop and eyes wide open thing (I would have loved to see my face). The place in the mountain top is only surrounded by the sky. The view is impressive, I tell you.

A picture would not do justice to the place. It just cannot capture the quintessence of the village that does not deceive you at all, once you start walking up its very inclined cobblestone streets. It is so beautiful and full of ateliers, little artisan shops, everything put together in such a tasteful way, that it was like being inside a dream.

The link to the video from the tourism office, so you have an idea of what I am talking about.

The drive between kilometres and kilometres of vineyards in the Midi-Pyrénées region with its splendorous colours brought out by the light it just reassured me, this is the style of living I want to go for. Really, cities are nice and fantastic refugee for individuals, but a life out in nature, is so much more appealing (remind me this in the middle of the winter with no heating and in the middle of the summer with no air conditioning).

Today I also learned that over 50 grape varieties can be found in the vineyards of the Midi-Pyrenees, and that Gaillac wines can be either blends or mono varietal, and that the two local grape varieties are: Braucol (black), it produces a wine high in colour, full bodied with characteristic aromas and flavours of ripe blackcurrant, raspberry and spicy red pepper. For the white, the Loin de l'oeil, wine with a very subtle, floral or citrus fruit aroma (grapefruit) flavour characteristics. 

After the stop and before deciding to stay to live forever in the heights of 'le Ciel', I drove down to Albi. Apart of being a city worth the visit, it is the home of the Toulouse Lautrec museum, and for a fan of his work like me, it was absolutely 'a must'. So I arrived to Albi around noon and looked for the tourism office, to my luck that everything (or almost everything) in France closes from 12:30 to 14:00, so as soon as I arrived they were leaving, and the museum next door, as well. So I took the opportunity to visit the cathedral of saint Cecile and once again was impressed by its magnificence.

Albi, Cathédrale Sainte-Cécile 

At 14:00 I was ready to give more pleasure to my eyes and visited the Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec museum. WOW! The permanent collection has a good amount of his paintings, sketches, drawings and posters. Yes, I do love his strength and style, so personal and so intense. 

Time to relax and go for a nice evening out in Toulouse.

Have a nice weekend and... Santé!

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