Lyon to Collonges

Wednesday November 14 in Lyon and Collanges. We wake in Lyon and have a leisurely morning on the boat before we sail to Collonges on the Saone River. In the afternoon we travel by bus to the Beaujolais, a historical province and a wine-producing region. It is located north of Lyon, and covers parts of the north Rhône-Alpes and parts of the south Burgundy. The region is known internationally for its long tradition of winemaking, and more recently for the enormously popular Beaujolais nouveau. This wine is fermented for just a few weeks before being released for sale on the third Thursday of November.

Oingt

As we travel to the winery we stop in Oingt a small town in the Beaujolais that is postcard perfect. It is a classified and restored medieval village overlooking the valley of the Azergues river and belongs to the Golden stone country, known for its use of local limestone containing iron oxide which gives it a distinctive golden color. It is listed as one of the most beautiful villages of France.

We visit the small family winery of Domaine du Bois Pothier that has been in the same family for more than 6 generations. We meet the family and go into the tasting room for some Beaujolais wines which are quite good. Someone asks about the Beaujolais nouveau which will go on sale after midnight of the day we are at the winery. They explain that they can not sell it to us, but we can taste it. They open a bottle and we all taste the fruity wine. A fun experience to actual be in France when the popular wine around the world is released.

Beaujolais nouveau 

We travel back to the boat for our last wine paired dinner hosted by the Nalle family. It turns out to be one of our best. It's much fun because it is the end of the trip. Tomorrow we leave to travel home. 

Nalle winery main course. Beef Tenderloin with hollandaise sauce.