Published in French Property News in February 2005

Vintage Choice

The wine producing areas of Minervois and St Chinian meet north of Narbonne. The Minerovis is littered with delightful villages marooned among the vines, but mostly easy to get to. St Chinian is a bit less predictable and wilder. Both produce superb wine and both can offer a relaxed, easy-going life in a warm Mediterranean climate for anyone buying a house here. The coast is never far away and there are enough large towns in the vicinity for supermarkets and entertainment.

The Minervois starts east of Carcassonne and is bordered by the Montagne Noire to the north and Canal du Midi to the south. It straddles the departments of Aude and Hérault. Take a drive among the endless fields of vineyards on slopes, umbrella pines and cypresses and except for the occasional farmer you could be the only person about. The mountains in the distance are beautifully bathed in a clear blue light.

One of the attractive villages is Rieux Minervois. This atmospheric little place is a maze of tight streets and alleyways. Down the main road there are a reasonable selection of shops and Carcassonne is only 25km away. There is a remarkable twelfth century, seven-sided church, possibly the only one of its kind anywhere. It is a small, intimate and spiritual place with beautiful capitals, most of them depicting imaginative foliage. Several are thought to have been carved by Languedoc’s anonymous star of medieval sculpture, the Master of Cabestany. The red stained marble used in the church comes from the nearby quarries at Caunes Minervois. One of Couleurs de France’s estate agent partners has a character property in the area to renovate with 150m2 living space, a former barn of 600m2 and 250m2 garden with trees for 160 000 euros.

North east of Rieux is the pretty stone village of La Livinière, the centre of the select AOC Le Minervois La Livinière, where every other building is a wine domaine. The best of these is Château Sainte Eulalie, 2km out of the village, which produces an exceptionally smooth and intensely fruity Cuvée Prestige 2002. An estate agency working with Couleurs de France has a lovely, renovated character property with 7 bedrooms, a gîte and a barn on 9000m2 of land with a pool for 840 000 euros.

Rooms can easily be let here from Easter to the start of October and often to house hunters at other times. Guest houses tend to work best when owners enthusiastically promote the area and can advise people what to see and do, perhaps offering an evening meal using local produce, or organising days out.

North again the road towards Minerve starts climbing into the hills. This ancient, picturesque beige and brown village, surrounded by slopes covered in vines, clings to the edge of the dramatic, pink-orange-grey Canyon de la Cesse. It is a popular tourist spot with only a hundred or so inhabitants. Houses for sale in some of the villages round about can be reasonably priced.

The small town of Olonzac, 10km south of Minerve, is quite lively. When the weather warms up there is a holiday feel and plenty of foreign voices. People relax under the trees, outside the Café de la Poste, and watch the world go by. There are the usual shops, a couple of restaurants and a market on Tuesday.

Just south of Olonzac, the serene, tree-lined, Canal du Midi calmly winds its way towards the Mediterranean. One of Couleurs de France’s partners has a property for sale in a lovely corner of the Canal-side village of La Redorte. This vine growers house has 225m2 living space, including 3 bedrooms, a kitchen with fireplace, lounge, living room, bathroom, convertible attic, garage and 40m2 courtyard. The price is 172 000 euros. Like all maison vigneronne the garage is used to house the tractor and other farm equipment. Size-wise maison vigneronne are in-between the narrow village house and the maison de maître.

The picturesque village of Somail stretches along the Canal. Ivy covered buildings over-look the water, colourful barges are moored at the banks, a chapel climbs the seventeenth century hump backed bridge, and geese patrol the waters edge. It is a popular spot with British house buyers and holiday makers. Somail is just over 10km from Narbonne and 28km from the authentic village, smart marina and beaches at Gruissan.

Another favourite village is Bize Minervois, beside the river Cesse. At sunset the enchanting river front illuminates orange-red and the garrigue around the village provides an ideal canvas for a startling play of colours; blue sky meets red earth, green maquis, pink- purple clouds and a dazzling orange sun. Bize also has an olive oil cooperative. Increasing numbers of olive groves can be found throughout the area.

Bize is near Saint Chinian and the Parc Naturel Régional du Haut-Languedoc. The small town of Saint Chinian itself, surrounded by an escarpment and low hills, is a pleasant down-to-earth place. The river banks are picturesque. Village houses stand with their feet in the water and gardens back onto the river. Washing is strung out between trees along the river front. Most people come to visit the surrounding châteaux or the Maison du Vin, which has a good selection of wines. If you like light wines packed with a fruity punch try Le Secret des Capitelles 2003. One the estate agents Couleurs de France works with has a large 5 bedroom maison de maître near to the town with an attic to convert, pool, garage and garden of 2500m2 for 452 000 euros. Another has a pleasant, renovated village house with four bedrooms and a little courtyard for 125 000 euros.

North of Saint Chinian, heading into the mountainous Parc Naturel, is the idyllic village of Roquebrun. Pretty, stone houses clamber the rock face and gardens on terraces overlook the pebbly beach by the river. Steep, narrow lanes, weave to the church at the top, where there is splendid view of wooded hills, neat rows of vines and the river Orb. An ancient ruined tower, sprouting plants from its window, over-looks the village. The warm micro-climate nurtures some splendid cacti, palms and orange trees. Coming down from the heights, one of Couleurs de France’s partners has a lovely villa in the Orb valley with 150m2 living space, 6 main rooms, a garage, outbuilding, a pool and 1990m2 of land for 369 000 euros.

Just south, on the route St-Jacques de Compostelle, is the twelfth century, Romanesque abbey of Fontcaude. The site is utterly tranquil, surrounded by garrigue and vines. The soil is so red in these parts it stains the road and assaults the eyes.

The narrow D134 winds down to Puisserguier through red-brown rocks. South again is Capestang, another village on the Canal du Midi, known for its gothic Collégiale St-Etienne. Nearby are the extensive remains of the Roman settlement at Oppidum d’Ensérune.

The biggest town in the area is Béziers. It is a lively place, with a population of about 70 000, which lives by the vine and associated industries. The BSN Glasspack factory turns out over one million bottles a day. The main commercial area is around the central, tree-lined, promenade Allées Paul-Riquet, which has a statue of the great man himself and a wonderfully ornate Italianate theatre at one end. There are plenty of grand buildings with intricate iron balconies, and sunny squares with cafés and palm trees. There is also an atmospheric old quarter near the Cathedral, with narrow, cobbled streets and small hidden-away restaurants. Spanish music and hip-hop flow out of old apartment windows.

Apart from wine the town’s other great passions are rugby (champions of France 11 times) and bull fighting.

The Mediterranean is just down the road. One of the local resorts is Valras Plage, a modern resort with a harbour full of boats and views of snow capped mountains from the beach. Beautiful, black Agde is only half an hour away.

One of Couleurs de France’s estate agent partners has a wide selection of properties in and around Béziers, from small one bedroom apartments in the town for 50 000 euros to classy villas for over 500 000 euros. When the A75 is completed between Beziers and Pézenas, allowing easy access to Paris, Beziers will challenge Narbonne’s claim as the ‘cross-roads to the south’.

Property prices have followed the same pattern throughout the region. 5 – 10 years ago prices were under market value, played catch-up as the region became popular, rose significantly, and have now stabilised, but at a level that remains reasonable compared to many other parts of France.

You can hide from the world amongst the Minervois and Saint Chinian vineyards. They offer a secluded life in the warm, dry, beautiful south. There are also enough towns around like Béziers to provide some action and fun.

Linda Rano, Couleurs de France
Property agents Couleurs de France offer property search in the SW, support for buyers and courses on how to buy property in France.
Tel. 0871 210 6550 / +33 5 61 09 54 39
info@couleurs-de-france.com
www.couleurs-de-france.com