Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
away were pipes coming out of the dirt connected to a rusted cistern hanging ominously
overhead and a hole in the floor. I stepped back in horror.
'We'll have to go to the shopping centre,' I said, leading Sheila and Jeff away as fast as I
could.
I kicked myself for not making a prior visit. David drove us to the shopping centre where
we found normal toilets that functioned perfectly in a small cafe. Now we could begin the
visit.
David explained the process ofmaking the barrels from the drying ofthe woodto the final
toasting of the barrel, demonstrating at each point what the coopers - the barrel-makers -
were doing. Barrel-making is an ancient art still largely manual despite technical advances
and coopers must do two years of training to qualify. Tacked onto the wall behind the tra-
ditional equipment was a girlie calendar that would make anyone blush.
The first step was to assemble the carefully selected and pre-cut oak staves inside metal
hoops. Then the cooper wet the staves and placed the partially constructed barrel over a
small wood fire. This was critical: the amount of 'toasting' over the open fire has an import-
ant effect on the wine that will be aged in the barrel, so the vigneron chooses how much
'toast' depending on the style of wine they want.
Barrel selection is a fine art. Two identical barrels from the same forest and the same
barrel-maker can taste quite different. Some winegrowers even go so far as to specially se-
lect their oak tree in a specific forest. French oak from the central forests is highly sought
after and expensive as it grows slowly and thus has a finer grain, offering a more refined
flavour than a faster growing oak.
With the help of the heat and humidity the cooper then bent the staves using a winch to
obtain the shape of the barrel. The final metal hoops were put in place and the ends of the
staves were trimmed and cut to receive the barrel heads. The cooper completed the final
hooping with a large mallet, reinforcing the medieval sense of the place. The barrel was
then tested for impermeability and, if passed, would proceed to the sand-papering and fin-
ishing. It was an intense process requiring skill and strength.
Sheila and Jeff were charmed by seeing the whole procedure done by hand and appeared
unfazed by the porn on the walls. I felt the day could only improve.
We continued to a tour of Château Belair in St Émilion. From the courtyard in front of
the main house Lionel, our charming guide, pointed out many of the premier grand crus
classés of St Émilion including his neighbour Château Ausone where the Roman poet con-
sul Ausonius planted vines around AD 350.
Belair belonged to the English military commander during the period of the Hundred
Years War, a war that was the ultimate result of the second marriage of a lusty woman,
Eleanor, to an English king. Eleanor inherited the province of Aquitaine and ruled from
1137 to 1189. Soon after inheriting she married King Louis VII of France. She bore him
children, accompanied him on a Crusade to the Holy Land and took a lover in the after-
