Domaine de Tourreille:
Halfway between the Lauragais plain and the Malepère hills, Domaine de Tourreille was first built in the XIXth century by a retired general of Napoleon's Guards who made it his home, and was later turned into a vineyard estate.
It
is subject to two prevailing winds: the vent d'autan or vent marin (sea
wind) and the vent de cers bringing rain. Pastel (also known as
Lauragais grass) was grown here in the XVth and XVIth centuries and
used for dyeing wool cloth creating great wealth for the merchants of
Toulouse and Albi.
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Leisure activities : |
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Transports: Gare
(Carcassonne) : 17 km
Autoroute A61 : 5 km |
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Shopping: |
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Restaurants / Cellars Auberge
du Vieux Puits Fontjoncouse (Michelin 3 stars) 30 minutes away; one 2
stars (Le Parc) and two 1 star restaurants (Domaine d'Auriac & La
Barbacane) in Carcassonne; La Bergerie in Aragon (1 star) at 20
minutes; Le Puits du Trésor in Lastours (1 star) at 30 minutes; La
Table St Crescent (1 star) in Narbonne at 45 minutes; Le Château de la
Pomarède (1 star) at 15 minutes. |
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Among the cellars of the Malepère area where tasting is possible, we recommend: Maison des Terroirs in Alaigne (5 minutes), Domaine Le Fort in Montréal; Château de Robert in Villesiscle (5 minutes); Domaine La Sapinière in Carcassonne (15 minutes).
Montréal:
Just 1,5 km away, Montréal sits on top of a hill, dominated by its magnificent stately collegiale church.
A stopping place for the first christians coming from Narbonne, for the
Arabs in 720, for the cathar community just before the Albigensian
Crusade in 1250, for the english plunderers of the Black Prince in 1355
and for Wellington's army in 1814, today's Montréal is a thriving
village of 2000 inhabitants tempered by Mediterranean influence. The
Path to Santiago de Compostela runs through Montréal. St Dominic's
Abbey, 5 minutes away, is also worth seeing.
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St Dominic's Abbey |
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Carcassonne:
Just 15 km away, the famous Walled City of Carcassonne was successively a prehistoric site, a Gallo-Roman city, a Visigoth stronghold, the seat of feudal counts, then viscounts, and finally a royal seneschal seat. Every one of these stages, between the Roman period and the end of the Middle Ages, has left its imprint on its architecture. A UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997, the Cité is now an important place of interest with more than 2 million visitors every year.
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The Canal du Midi:
Three minutes from the house, Paul Riquet's Canal du Midi was opened under the reign of Louis XIV and it is a link between the Garonne Valley and the Mediterranean. Since 1996 it is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. Nowadays it is a tourist attraction with cabin cruisers for hire, restaurant-boats and river-trips. It is open to navigation from the third Saturday of March until the first week of November. Outside this period, private navigation can be authorized on request.
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The Mediterranean:
Less than one hour away by car, the beaches of Narbonne and Gruissan offer a variety of water sports.
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Gruissan's marina |
Mountains:
Also less than one hour away, the ski resorts of Ax les Thermes, Camurac, etc. offer a wide variety of winter activities: downhill and cross-country skiing, hiking, etc.
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The Malepère:
The house is surrounded by the wooded hills of the Malepère, with countless opportunities for hiking, pony trekking or mountain bike rides. Many foot-paths will lead you to the discovery of the beauties of this authentic area.
All around the Malepre you will find small medieval villages, often on a circular design and full of quiet charm (circulade de Bram). All gentleness and curves, the vineyards stretch along clay and limestone slopes... Among the rounded hills, oak woods bring their "south western" touch...
Circulade de Bram
Other sites:
The abbeys of Saint Papoul, Saint Hilaire and Sainte Marie de Fontfroide, XIIth century spearheads of catholic orthodoxy...
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Saint-Papoul |
Fontfroide |
Cathar castles:
The Cathar castles of Puivert, Puylaurens, Peyrepertuse, Quribus, etc., all in a 40 km radius, fabulous sites with a past laden with history...
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Montségur |
Peyrepertuse |
The capitelles, stone shelters built in the fields by the peasants.
