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Bordeaux Bargains for the Wine Tourist
By Barney
Lehrer and Jesse Nash
When wine lovers think about Bordeaux the first
thought is often “The Best Wines in the World.” The second
thought is quite often “too bad that I can’t afford them.” But
there is no need to skip the Bordeaux region because of cost.
Not all good Bordeaux wines have crazy prices. Sure a bottle of
a great vintage Lafitte-Rothschild or Château Assuone can cost
you a few months’ pay. But keep in mind that there are more than
6000 wineries in the Bordeaux region. And many make excellent
wines that can cost as little as $15 or $20.
Where to Stay
Of course there are super luxury resorts
throughout the region. And some Chinese entrepreneurs are now
building very high-end wine resorts with golf and other
amenities especially for their wealthy clientele. But there
still are many moderate-priced hotels to stay with prices
ranging from about 80 to 150 Euros per night. A particularly
wonderful place is Château Beau Jardin (http://www.chateaubeaujardin.com),
a beautiful small hotel and gourmet restaurant in the northern
Médoc run by English/South African Michelle and her husband
Jean, a French award–winning chef who trained in Lyon. Many
winemakers are renting out rooms in their homes or châteaux at
very moderate prices.
Or you can do what I did on a recent trip –
AirBNB (http://www.airbnb.com),
which is a way of staying in people’s houses, often together
with a family. I stayed in a clean and cozy room in David’s
home. A former banker, David gave up the secure corporate
lifestyle to open a wine bar, Le verre Ô vin (http://www.bar-a-vin-bordeaux.com/)
in the heart of the “Place Bordeaux,” the neighborhood where
most of the famous wine brokers (negociants) historically have
had their offices. Unfortunately I was there on a Monday
night, when the bar was closed. Next time!
Where to Drink
As for the wine – the first stops on any wine
lover’s pilgrimage to Bordeaux should be the Bar à Vin (http://baravin.bordeaux.com)
run byLe Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux (CIVB)
– Bordeaux Wine Council. It’s a beautiful place in the center of
the city with an extensive wine-by-the-glass wine list from all
parts of the Bordeaux region. The list of 30+ wines changes
frequently, as it’s the obligation of the Council to help all
6000 winemakers! And there is a good selection of wines:
sparkling, whites, rosés and reds from most regions of Bordeaux.
And the prices! From
2.50 to 8 Euros per glass! I drank a refreshing crément (3
euros), and two more than impressive Médoc reds – Château de la
Pez (6 euros) and St. Hilaire (3 euros).
And if you really do want a taste of the “big
boys” without paying for a whole bottle, it is a 5 minute walk
from the Bar à Vin to Max Bordeaux (http://maxbordeaux.com),
what one might call a “super wine bar” in the center of Bordeaux
city. Here for a relatively small price you can sample all of
the top wines from Bordeaux. As their website states, “MAX
BORDEAUX is more than just another wine boutique, it is the only
place in the world you can taste the 48 best Bordeaux grands
crus by glass!”
Where to Eat
As in most large French cities there is a wide
range of restaurants in Bordeaux. If you’re looking for great
Michelin stars at reasonable rates, go to Le Pavillon des
Boulevards (http: //www.lepavillondesboulevards.fr),
and Jean-Marie Amat (http://www.jm-amat.com),
an ornate converted château right next to the ring road highway
at the Aquitaine bridge in Lormont. Both these restaurants serve
extraordinary food for a relatively low price of 30-40 euros for
lunch.
Slightly lower on the price scale, but an
important and unique culinary destination is La Tupina (http://www.latupina.com),
the most famous provider of hearty “Southwest Cooking,” whose
staples are “fatty duck” (La Tupina’s motto is “Tout se mange
dans le canard” – “All can be eaten in a duck”), fish from
the Gironde estuary, and game (“Le Sud-Ouest est le pays de
la chasse” - “The Southwest is the land of hunting.”)
Still lower on the price scale are some quite
good choices, in addition to the pizza and kebab joints that
grace almost every corner. If you are looking for a satisfying
and cheap meal, take a stroll on Rue Saint-Rémi (http://www.cityvox.fr/restaurants_bordeaux/rue-saint-remi/Rue),
where there are many moderately-price bistros as well as Asian,
kebab and pizza places.
Château Beau Jardin
50, route de Soulac
33340 GAILLAN-EN-MEDOC
Telephone: +33
(0) 5 56 41 26 83
Email: book@chateaubeaujardin.com
http://www.chateaubeaujardin.com
Le verre Ô vin
43, Rue Borie
33000 Bordeaux
Telephone : 05.56.02.52.09
Email: contact@le-vov.com
http://www.bar-a-vin-bordeaux.com/
Bar à Vin
Conseil Interprofessionnel du vin de Bordeaux
3, cours du XXX juillet
33000 Bordeaux
Tél. : 05
56 00 43 47
http://baravin.bordeaux.com
Max Bordeaux
14 Cours de l'Intendance
33000 Bordeaux
Telephone: 05
57 29 23 81
Email: gallery@maxbordeaux.com
Le Pavillon des Boulevards
120, rue Croix de Seguey
33000 Bordeaux
Telephone: 05
56 81 51 02
Email:pavillon.des.boulevards@wanadoo.fr
http://www.lepavillondesboulevards.fr
Restaurant Jean-Marie Amat - Château du Prince
Noir
1, rue du Prince Noir
33310 Lormont
Telephone: 0556061252
Email: vudupont@orange.fr
http://www.jm-amat.com
La Tupina
8 rue porte de la monnaie
33800 Bordeaux
Telephone: 0556915637
Email: latupina@latupina.com
http://www.latupina.com
Rue Saint-Rémi
http://www.cityvox.fr/restaurants_bordeaux/rue-saint-remi/Rue
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