48-Hour Wine Tour of Chinon

Domaine Bernard Baudry — Chinon's Reference Point

Start your Chinon education at Domaine Bernard Baudry in Cravant-les-Côteaux, 3 km west of Chinon center. Matthieu Baudry (who took over from his father Bernard) produces the appellation's benchmark wines across multiple vineyard sites, giving you an immediate sense of Chinon's terroir diversity.

The 90-minute tour and tasting covers their estate history, viticultural practices (sustainable, minimal intervention), and a comparative tasting of wines from different soil types:

• Les Granges — Gravel terraces, light-bodied, peppery, drink young
• La Croix Boissée — Tufa slopes, more structure, minerality, age-worthy
• Le Clos Guillot — Their top cuvée, old vines on limestone, complex and powerful

This tasting establishes your Chinon baseline. Everything else today builds on this foundation.

Domaine de la Noblaie — Family Estate Excellence

Drive 10 minutes to Domaine de la Noblaie in Ligré, run by brothers Jérôme and Benoît Billard. This is a slightly more traditional operation than Baudry — they've been making wine here since 1953 — but their wines are impeccable.

The cellar visit reveals their aging caves carved into the tufa hillside, maintaining perfect temperature and humidity year-round. Taste their range including their signature Les Blancs Manteaux (white cloak) cuvée from very old vines.

Walk-in tastings usually possible, but tours require advance booking. Allow 60 minutes.

Lunch in Chinon Old Town

Return to Chinon for lunch in the medieval center below the fortress. The old town is compact, atmospheric, and has several excellent restaurants focused on local ingredients and Chinon wines.

Les Années 30 (recommended) — Art Deco bistro on the main square serving updated traditional cuisine. The wine list is exclusively local, organized by terroir. €30–€45 per person for lunch with wine.

Alternative: Au Chapeau Rouge (more upscale, €45–€65) or L'Océanic (casual crêperie if you're wine-tired and want something light, €15–€25).

After lunch, spend 30 minutes exploring the old town's medieval streets and visiting the Musée du Vin et de la Tonnellerie (Wine and Barrel-Making Museum) if you're a completist (€5 entry, 30 minutes).

Forteresse Royale de Chinon

Walk uphill (10 minutes) or drive to the Forteresse Royale de Chinon, the massive medieval fortress overlooking the town and vineyards. While not wine-focused, the fortress provides essential context for understanding Chinon's importance as a medieval power center.

From the ramparts, you get spectacular views over the Vienne valley vineyards — you can literally point out the estates you've visited. The fortress also has a wine exhibition explaining the region's viticultural history from Roman times to present.

Allow 90 minutes. The fortress is large and involves walking/stairs.

Natural Wine & Dinner

For a change of pace, visit Domaine de la Chevalerie (advance booking essential), a biodynamic/natural wine producer that represents Chinon's younger generation. Pierre and François Caslot farm 40 hectares biodynamically, producing wines with minimal intervention that divide opinion — some find them brilliant expressions of terroir, others find them too funky. Judge for yourself.

Alternative: If natural wines aren't your style, return to Baudry or Noblaie to purchase bottles (both ship internationally).

For dinner, Les Caves Painctes — a troglodyte restaurant carved into the tufa cliffs on Rue Voltaire. The setting is magical (literally dining in a cave), and the menu emphasizes regional cooking paired with local wines. Expect €40–€60 per person. Book ahead for weekends.

Château de la Grille — Estate Experience

Start Day 2 at Château de la Grille, a beautiful estate with its own château (rare in Chinon, where most producers are farmers, not aristocrats). The Gosset family has owned the estate since 1951, farming 30 hectares organically across Chinon's best terroirs.

The tour includes vineyard walks (weather permitting), cellar visit, and extended tasting. This is more leisurely and comprehensive than yesterday's visits — good for absorbing everything you've learned. They're particularly strong on explaining the difference between young and aged Chinon (taste the same wine from 2020 and 2015).

Cross the Loire — Bourgueil Comparison

Drive 25 minutes north across the Loire to Bourgueil, Chinon's neighbor and friendly rival. Bourgueil also makes Cabernet Franc, but the terroir is different — sandier soils produce wines with more obvious fruit and softer tannins compared to Chinon's structure.

Visit Domaine de la Chevalerie (different estate, same name as Chinon's natural producer) or Domaine des Ouches. A comparative Chinon-Bourgueil tasting is revelatory — same grape, very different expression. Allow 60 minutes.

Lunch & Return

Lunch in Bourgueil village at Le Germain (simple bistro, good local food, €20–€35) or return to Chinon for a final meal at L'Océanic overlooking the Vienne.

After lunch, you have options depending on departure timing:

• If departing afternoon: Drive back to Tours (50 minutes) for onward travel
• If staying another night: Visit Château d'Azay-le-Rideau (30 minutes from Chinon), a stunning Renaissance château on the Indre River — a perfect palate cleanser after wine immersion
• If you need more wine: Domaine Couly-Dutheil in Chinon (large, commercial, but excellent and open for walk-ins Sunday afternoons)

Designated Driver Essential

French law: 0.05% BAC limit (lower than US/UK). Police checkpoints are common, especially weekends. Penalties are severe.

Options: Alternate days driving (one person tastes Day 1, switches Day 2), hire a driver (€200–€350/day through local tourism offices), or taste-and-spit rigorously (awkward but effective).

Note: Many estates sell by the bottle or case. Factor shipping costs into your budget rather than trying to carry bottles.

Booking Timeline

2–3 weeks ahead: Domaine Bernard Baudry, Château de la Grille, any weekend tours

3–5 days ahead: Restaurant reservations (Les Caves Painctes, Les Années 30)

Walk-in usually OK: Domaine de la Noblaie, Bourgueil estates (but call ahead to confirm someone's available)

Best Times to Visit

May–October: All estates open with full hours

September–October: Harvest season — most atmospheric, but estates may be too busy for visits. Book further ahead.

November–March: Quieter, more intimate visits, but some smaller estates close or reduce hours. Confirm availability.

Wine Buying Tips

Prices: Chinon offers exceptional value. Excellent wines start at €8–€12/bottle, with top cuvées rarely exceeding €25–€30.

What to buy: Multiple bottles of mid-tier wines (€12–€18 range) tend to be better value than single bottles of top cuvées.

Shipping: Most estates ship EU-wide (€20–€40 for 12 bottles). International shipping is complex due to alcohol laws; check your home country's import rules.

Aging potential: Basic Chinon drinks well young (1–3 years). Top cuvées from tufa soils age beautifully for 10–15 years.