Tag Archives: Languedoc-Rousillon

A Trail for the Senses

 

Local cuisine develops best from local produce. Local wine best complements local cuisine. In this part of southern France, lying in the leeward side of the Pyrenees Mountains, the warm, sunny and dry climate is such that herbs grow wild, and grapes grow well. Both are flavorful and intense. Taking advantage of the natural conditions, the local tourism office developed a short, educational, circuit trail focusing mostly on the local vegetation, set in patches between the vines, through and around the village of Cucugnan.

Corbieres-Queribus AOC

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Wine Notes: Corbieres Queribus

 

What I Learned

The Appellation d’Origine Controlee (AOC) Corbieres, is a relatively large area between Perpignan and Narbonne, west almost to Carcassonne. It is in the southwestern region of France known as Languedoc-Rousillon. Corbieres is large enough to merit division into eleven separate terroirs, or areas, one of which is Queribus. (Queribus is the name of a famous Cathar castle, in southern (Hautes) Corbieres, overlooking the towns within the terroir.) The appellation Corbieres-Queribus contains the following towns: Cucugnan, Duilhac sous Peyrepertuse, and Padern. The red wines from Corbieres-Queribus (most of the appellation’s production) derive from the red varietals of Carignan, Grenache, Cinsault, Mouvedre and Syrah; while the whites wines come from Bourboulenc (aka Malvoisie), Marsanne, Muscat, Maccabeu, and Piquepoul.

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Sentier de la Fontaine: Trail in a Nutshell

 

Trail Name: Sentier de la Fontaine

Trail Type: Short distance circuit; Somewhat roughly maintained; Marking on the trail is limited.

Length: 3.5 kilometers/2 miles

Convenient to:  None, but the closest big city is Perpignan

Marking: Wooden signpost with a pointing finger, with the trail name inscribed, at the beginning and end of the trail, (see the featured photo)  and educational signboards, see below, along the way.

Educational Signboard

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