This was the view we had from the car yesterday as we drove in to the Château de l’Oiselinière, a winery/vineyard/B&B some 30 minutes from Nantes. Laurent, at Melinda’s request, had arranged for us to have a private tour of the vineyard, followed by a wine tasting.

Scott, you would have loved it.

This particular vineyard dates back to 1635, although the history of the property dates back even further. It’s like going back in time. For the tour of the vines, we were taken by M. Verdier, our host who spoke in both French and English, out into the vineyard. He talked in specific detail about how the vines are cultivated, including the 6 months it takes each year to prune each individual bush by hand.

After that, he showed inside the buildings and talked about the fermenting process, before taking us to the wine-tasting room. All they make is a white wine here and we got to sample several different vintages.

Note, the link above is to the English language version of their website. Much more detail can be found there.