Jon and I visit Antibes in the South of France every summer. We spend our trip drinking much of the rosé that the South of France is famous for, but we’ve never actually made it to a winery. On our most recent trip, we rented a car so we could drive Jolene down with us. It was the perfect opportunity to drive out to Provence and visit some wineries.
Provence is home to some of the most famous rosés in the world. The most famous is one you’ve probably heard of – Whispering Angel. We knew we couldn’t miss a Whispering Angel Winery Tour, and it did not disappoint.
Keep reading for one of my favorite wine tours. If you’re looking for more French wine country, check out my posts on Bordeaux and Champagne.
Xx, Kelsey
WHERE WE WENT
The Whispering Angel Winery Tour is actually part of Chateau d’Esclans. Chateau d’Esclans is the maker of Whispering Angel along with some other world-famous rosés. The winery is absolutely gorgeous, and the drive through Provence is worth it for the views alone. From Antibes, the drive is one hour.
While you’re there, consider stopping by another winery we loved, Chateau Sainte Rosaline, just 15 mins down the road.
WHEN WE WENT
The great thing about visiting wineries is that you can really go any time of year. We visited in September, and they were in the middle of the harvest. Our tour took place at 3 pm so they were in the process of cleaning the equipment from the morning harvest. They only harvest when the temps are lower in the morning or at night.
HOW WE BOOKED
We booked our Whispering Angel Winery Tour through Wine Paths. It was a super easy process since Wine Paths contacts the winery and sets up the tour on your behalf, meaning no need to stumble through emails or calls in French. My contact was so responsive and helpful, even letting me know if dogs were allowed at the winery (they are!).
The Whispering Angel Winery Tour cost €50 for the full group. We had four people, so it worked out to about €12.50 each. This also included a tasting of five wines, so it was totally worth it. Plus the tour was so good!
THE WHISPERING ANGEL WINERY TOUR
Now for the best part, the Whispering Angel Winery Tour! After arriving and parking outside the tasting room, we met our guide for a walk around the winery. I, unfortunately, didn’t catch his name, but he was incredibly knowledgeable, friendly, and spoke amazing English.
We started the tour by walking to the vineyards on the winery property. From there, we could also see the vines up on the hillside. Aside from this, Chateau d’Esclans also has 70 hectares of vineyards in Provence. During the harvest, they drive the grapes in from those vineyards to the winery we were visiting.
Once our guide was done explaining the grapes, terroir, and harvest, we started our tour of the winery itself. We were able to see where the grapes are separated from their branches/leaves and where they’re aged in either stainless steel or oak barrels. I was surprised to learn that Chateau d’Esclans has invested in some of the most advanced technology for making rosé. It makes sense, considering they’re set to do 15 million bottles of Whispering Angel this year (versus 155,000 just ten years ago).
After visiting the winery and seeing the wine-making process in action, we got to take a peek at the famous Chateau d’Esclans itself. The gorgeous yellow and blue chateau is home to the owner of the winery and off-limits to visitors. Luckily they still have plenty of spots to snap a photo with the gorgeous home in the background.
Once we took our photos, we headed back to the tasting room to sample some rosés. We started with their lowest cost rosé, The Pale, before moving on to The Palm. From there, we tried the famous Whispering Angel, Rock Angel, and Chateau d’Esclans. All very delicious and all slightly different. We were also very lucky that our guide had some Les Clans left in a bottle from a sommelier tasting earlier that day. They don’t usually let tours taste their top rosé, but we got lucky. It was by far my favorite rosé, with more complexity than Whispering Angel. I definitely bought a bottle.
DO YOU HAVE TO BUY BOTTLES?
Technically no, if you’ve paid for the tasting/tour. But I usually recommend buying at least one to show your appreciation. Plus the wine is always a few euros cheaper at the winery. For example, Whispering Angel in Amsterdam is usually €23-26. At the winery, they were €19.
Since we were driving, we all picked up several bottles to bring home. Our bar is well stocked now. Some, like the Whispering Angel and Rock Angel, we’ll drink soon. Les Clans is best after 2-3 years, so this will be a bottle we open next year.
