Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
LES ALPILLES
This silvery chain of low, jagged mountains strung between the rivers Durance and Rhône
delineates a
très
chic side of Provence, notably around upmarket St-Rémy de Provence,
known for fine restaurants and summertime celebrity-spotting. The entire region is full of
gastronomic delights - AOP olive oil, vineyards, Michelin-starred restaurants and truffles.
History comes to life at magnificent ruined castles, remnants of medieval feuds, and at one
of Provence's best Roman sites, the ancient city of Glanum.
OLIVE OIL MILLS
The Alpilles' southern edge contains some of Provence's best-known
moulins d'huile
(oil mills), where four differ-
ent types of olives, freshly harvested from November to January, are pummelled and pressed into silken AOP
Vallée des Baux-de-Provence oil.
In Maussane-les-Alpilles, the cooperative
Moulin Jean-Marie Cornille
( 04 90 54 32 37;
www.moulin-
cornille.com
; rue Charloun Rieu; Mon-Sat)
deals directly to the public, though its 200,000L sell out by mid-
August. From June to September you can tour the mill at 11am on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
At Mouriès, 6km southeast of Maussane, pop in for tastes of exceptional oils milled at
Moulin Coopératif
(
04 90 47 53 86;
www.moulincoop.com
; Quartier Mas Neuf; closed Sun mornings)
. The village celebrates a
Fête des Olives Vertes
(Green Olive Festival) in mid-September, and the arrival of the year's new oil with the
Fête
des Huiles Nouvelles
in early December.
St-Rémy de Provence
POP 10,203
See-and-be-seen St-Rémy has an unfair share of gourmet shops and restaurants - in the
spirit of the town's most famous son, prophecy-maker Nostradamus, we predict you'll add
a notch to your belt. Come summer, when you may spot Princess Caroline of Monaco at
the Wednesday market, the jetset wanders the peripheral boulevard and congregates at
place de la République, leaving the quaint historic centre strangely quiet. Many businesses
close on Mondays; wintertime is dead.
