Guided Tours
VINITOUR offers you wine tours lasting from 1.5 hours up to one day in the heart of Centre-Loire vineyards (departments of Cher, Nièvre, Loiret and Indre).
You will be accompanied by a wine tourism guide who can answer your questions and take you on tours of the vineyards. The tours are in French or English for groups from 2 to 8 people, or in Dutch or German for 2 people.
You will be transported in a comfortable air-conditioned vehicle. Groups can include more participants if you have additional vehicle(s). Depending on the number of kilometers, VINITOUR can take you back to your hotel, home or to your holiday’s residence (in the Sancerre-Pouilly-Fumé-La Charité region).
Private escorted wine tours are available upon request.
The AOC’s
The Centre-Loire’s vineyards are represented by 10 Controlled Appellations of Origin (AOC): Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé et Pouilly sur Loire, Menetou-Salon, Quincy, Reuilly, Châteaumeillant, Côteaux-du-Giennois, Côtes de la Charités and Coteaux de Tannay. Some of these names are internationally well-known due to the quality of the wines and their extensive exports. For more information, we suggest you consult the BIVC website.
If you are unsure about the choice of appellation, VINITOUR suggests a classical all-inclusive tour. If you have any requests concerning the wine tours (discovery of key products of the regions like the famous goat cheese “Crottin de Chavignol”), VINITOUR will provide a personalised tour customised to your preferences.
If you enjoy organic wines, historical wine heritage or a more technical visit of the most famous wineries, VINITOUR wine tours offers you themed wine tours.
You will be able to visit entirely different estates, from family businesses to “Maison Viticole” (Wine House) covering one hundred hectares and using high-technological processes. These various tours will take you off the beaten track.
Discovery of the diversity and richness of vineyards
You will have the opportunity to discover beautiful vineyard landscapes where different remarkable panoramas, wine villages and terroirs will be revealed. From hillsides overhanging the rivers (the Loire, the Cher…) to vast vineyard plains dating back to the Roman period, the Centre-Loire’s vineyards present a mosaic of landscapes impacting viticulture.
You will have an overview of the different types of soil in the vineyard (ex : marly soil, “caillote” (stony and calcareous soil), flint soil…) as well as grape varieties planted in the Centre-Loire valley.
Depending on the tour’s duration, you will discover the rich potential of this vineyard which covers about 5,910 hectares.
Discovery of wine expertise
During your visit, we will include information about the vine’s life cycle, its works and its treatments.
Depending on the period of your visit, you can observe the pruning, the disbudding, the trellising, the tying-up, the tying-down, the harvest…
Cellar’s and wine estate’s visit
The best wineries have been carefully selected to meet your expectations, ensuring you a welcoming and unforgettable visit. A wine professional will follow you during the visit explaining the winemaking process, from the reception of the harvest to the bottling. Thanks to his experience, this professional will answer all your questions, helping you to understand the secrets of vinification.
Finally, a tasting of several wines will be offered at the end of the visit, allowing you to discover the wide range of aromas obtained from different soils of the appellation or different types of vinification…Some winegrowers will offer you a wine tasting directly “from the tank or from the barrel”.
What the Wine Tour includes?
If you wish to purchase some wines, our VINITOUR car allows you to bring some wine back to your accommodation, but you can also choose to have the wine delivered at your doorstep by a shipping company. So once back home, you will never forget these privileged moments spent with the winemaker and take a part of France with you.
The suggested tours include visits, wine tastings (of Crottins de Chavignol and wines), transportation and the guide service. Lunch at the restaurant is not included, it will be directly paid by yourself. Although, it is not included in our one-day package, we have selected the best tables, among the finest in the region, offering local products so you may enjoy French cuisine whether you chose to dine in a fine restaurant or a bistrot.
During your stay, if you’re looking for accommodation near Sancerre or Pouilly, in the heart of a medieval city with its Priory classified by UNESCO as a world heritage site, we recommend that you go to La Charité sur Loire, https://www.la-charite-sur-loire.com/bookings