Discovering Bordeaux: River Cruise, Part 2

From our stops along the Gironde estuary we turned eastward towards the Dordogne River, sailing to the town of Right Bank town of Libourne. The area along the Dordogne is known as "the countryside of a thousand and one castles" because of the castles that were constructed along the banks of this winding and beautiful river, by wealthy merchants from the Bordeaux area. From our two-night base in Libourne, we were able to explore further inland to the villages of Bergerac (home of Cyrano of the large nose) and then Saint-Émilion. 

The Hermione

On our way to Libourne we experienced a special event:  we sailed alongside the Hermione, a restored French frigate from 1799, as it headed to Bordeaux to help inaugurate the city's new esplanade.

The Hermione is famous for having brought General Lafayette to the United States in 1780 so that he could join the American side in the Revolutionary War. As our routes parted, the Hermione's canons fired a broadside of 8 successive shots to say "au revoir!"



 

Cyrano de Bergerac

Bergerac is a charming town, and is well known for its wines. It is also home to many culinary delights such as foie gras and duck confit.

 
Our walking tour took us through the lovely winding streets of the town with a stop at its enticing food market and statues dedicated to Edmund Rostand's romantic hero, Cyrano de Bergerac and Roxanne, his lady love.

Savoring duck confit & local wine

Happily, we were on our own for lunch and so could indulge in a feast of tasty local specialties including: salade de gesiers (sauteed duck livers and kidneys -- tastes far better than it sounds), and confit de canard. 

Confit is a centuries-old process of preservation that consists of salt curing the leg of a duck or goose and then cooking it in its own fat-deadly but delicious.

Chateau de Monbazillac

Following lunch we were back on the bus and off to the Château de Monbazillac, one of the area's most prestigious cellars, to visit and to taste some of the local sweet wines.





 

Tasting the local sweet wine

The château dates from around 1550 and has been faithfully preserved. This area was a Protestant stronghold during the Wars of Religion. Because of the prestige of its wines, it was largely left unscathed through the religious wars and the French Revolution.

We strolled around its lovely grounds overlooking the vineyards, and tasted two of its sweet white wines. The grapes are grown in clay and limestone soil, and are picked when over-ripe so that the sugar content is high, after having been attacked by a fungus (the "noble rot") which occurs in the fall of the year. This process concentrates the flavors and sweetness even further.

We then re-boarded our bus to head back to the ship and to an unusual adventure.

Libourne during the mascaret--note the waves

The Dordogne is one of the few rivers in the world that experiences a phenomenon called "un mascaret" or "tidal bore". Such bores occur in areas with a large tidal swing  between high and low water -- more than 20 feet for the Dordogne! -- and where incoming tides are funneled into a shallow, narrowing river or lake via a broad bay. 

We had a full moon, which further amplifies the tidal swings. Our ship risked being caught in the mini-tsunami effect resulting from the clash of in-rushing high-tide inflow, against the inertial outflow of water resulting from both the natural flow of the river and the residual effects of the low-tide outflow.

Surviving the mascaret!

But thanks to the vigilant crew of the River Queen, we were fully prepared for these events. At each change of tide the ship had to leave berth for the safety of the middle of the river, until the mini-sunami had passed. 

This happened each night while we were berthed at Libourne.  We were fortunate enough to witness this while awake one afternoon, from the ship's top deck with drinks in hand! Not exactly Titanic, but fun and certainly interesting.

Our last morning here included a brief visit to the Château Beau-Séjour-Bécot for a wine tasting and the charming villa of Saint Émilion. Unfortunately, it was a rainy and blustery day but that did not stop us. We did not mind because we knew we would be returning here for a few days after the cruise. Wine talk to come.

Blending cabernet sauvignon and merlot, this château produces a premier grand cru wine--very high quality.

Our tasting here offered a glimpse of the wonderful wines ahead from this "right bank" area of Bordeaux.

What was special about this visit to Saint Émilion was the to the subterranean, monolithic church which dates from the 12th century. The church was dug out by hand from a limestone cliff and has the most amazing pillars and sculpture. Difficult to conceive of all the wine shops and restaurants above!