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2011

Guide to the wine regions of 

the Poitou-Charentes, France

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Tourist attractions, holidays and things to do and see in thePoitou-Charentes

So, why choose the Poitou-Charentes for a holiday? Well first of all, as well as lots of things to doand fabulous tourist attractions, there’s the climate. The region is south of the Loire Valley and parts of thePoitou-Charentes are reckoned to have the most sunshine hours a year in France outside of the

Mediterranean.

The summers are generally quite long,warm and sunny, though you can expecta few rainy days too, while the autumnsare usually clear and bright. The winterscan get cold the further inland you go,but they don’t last long, and you canoften expect a warm spell in March oreven February.

Another great reason is the food andwine in the Poitou-Charentes. It’s not

only home to cognac, but also the underrated aperitif  pineau and some excellent local wine - especiallyfrom the Haut-Poitou area in the north of the region close to the Loire Valley.

The region is equally and rightly noted for its great local delicacies too – for example cheese, honey,poultry, butter and snails – as well as fine restaurants, hotels, cafes and bars.

Then there is the sheer variety of things to do and see in the Poitou-Charentes, such as leisureparks, golf and beautiful towns and villages.  It’s divided into four departments – the Charente, Charente-

Maritime, Deux-Sèvres and the Vienne – and each has its own charms, character and tourist attractions.

Red, white and rosé wine from the Poitou-Charentes -definitely worth discovering!

It may come as a surprise that the Poitou-Charentes has wine - but it most certainly does!

And it doesn't just make for enjoyable drinking - why not visit a domaine to and meet the producers whoare making their mark not just locally, but increasingly throughout

France.

To see why wines from the Poitou-Charentes - red, white androsé - are doing well, you only have consider a little geography.Look at the map, cast your eyes north of Poitiers and you’ll seethat this part of the region of winemakers is right next door toSaumur, the Touraine and the Anjou. Given that sunshine, soiltype and topography are no great respecters of humanboundaries, it's not surprising that parts of the Poitou-Charentesregion – notably the north of the Vienne and Deux-Sèvres -

produce some excellent wines. So which wine-producing areasand names should you look out for? Here's our guide to get you

How to use this guide

Simply click on the title of the

attraction that interests you and 

you will be taken to the relevant 

page on our website where you

can find all the details you

require to make the most of your 

visit.

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started on your way...

Vins du Haut-Poitou (just north of Poitiers): the largest of the north Poitou-Charentes wine areas has a history of vineyardsgoing back to Roman times - in the Middle Ages it was one of thebest-known wine areas in this part of France. Today it is known

for its fine white wines but also produces many excellent redstoo. In 2010 these were awarded AOC label status, with the2011 vintage the first that will be bearing the AOC label.

Vins de Thouarsais (slightly further north and west,

based around Thouars): a small wine producing area in theDeux-Sèvres department. It is noted for its excellent whites,though it produces some fine cabernet and gamay reds too.

Vins de Saumur, nord Vienne (an area in the Vienne

department in Poitou-Charentes but only just south of 

Saumur): another wine growing area with a long history, itproduces some red wines good enough to have been the favourite of the great former prime minister andFirst World War leader Georges ‘The Tiger’ Clémenceau. However it is best known for its white winesand specially its sparkling wines, which many consider a good (and cheaper) alternative to champagne.

.

Vins d’Anjou, Deux-Sèvres (again, just in Poitou-Charentes but just south of Angers or the

Anjou wine area): just 14 communes in the Deux-Sèvres have the right to use the label ‘Anjou’. Itswinemakers produce red, white and rosé wines.

While the above might be the most prestigious Poitou-Charentes wines - because of the Haut-Poitou,Saumur and Anjou names – they are certainly not the only good wines produced in the region. Indeed thewines known as the Vins de Pays Charentais - www.vindepayscharentais.fr - meaning wine from theCharente and Charente-Maritime are very popular with people who know their way around a vineyard andconceal some hidden treasures.

Much of the wine production in this area – and the two Charentes have 4,500 hectares of vines - takesplace along the borders of these two departments, between Aulnay to the north, down past Cognac andSaintes to Jonzac further south. However, the wine producing areas do stretch much further. The Île de Réand the Île d’Oléron off the Atlantic coast both produce wine, and vineyards continue almost as far as thebeach resort of Royan.

Top tip...

Trying to decide what to buy? According to wine experts the

reds from the Charente and 

Charente-Maritime are noted for 

being ‘elegant’ and ‘robust’, the

rosés are reputed for their 

‘delicacy’, while the whites are

said to be dry, light and ‘subtly 

perfumed’. 

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