Private 8-Hour Tour
Cognac distillery & Bordeaux winery – Day-trip
Craft your own Bordeaux wine and uncover the secrets of Cognac in a refined day tour through iconic Cognac and Bordeaux vineyards
The Cognac vineyard, distillery & flavours – Half-day trip
You have an afternoon and want to grasp the essentials of Cognac country. In 4.5 hours, this private tour takes you from an artisanal distillery to a maker of gourmet products of the terroir, with no wasted time and no logistics to handle.
Your local driver-guide takes the wheel: you can fully enjoy meeting a distiller who introduces you to their craft, from vine to glass, and pours you a tasting of their eaux-de-vie.
A short format, designed to fit into a stay in the region or an arrival by train from Paris or Bordeaux.
Excursion Details
Understanding cognac in a few key facts
Cognac comes from a two-tier chain. Winegrower-distillers craft the eaux-de-vie; the large trading houses buy them, age them from three to several decades, then blend them. Four houses (Hennessy, Rémy Martin, Martell, Courvoisier) account for 85% of global sales.
This half-day puts you in direct contact with the first link, the artisanal distiller, the one rarely met on a conventional trading-house visit.
Afternoon – In the Heart of the Vineyards, Passionate Artisans
Your local driver-guide will take you to the heart of the vineyards along the charming country roads typical of this region. You won’t have to worry about directions and can fully enjoy meeting local artisans and savoring your tastings without the stress of driving.
You will meet local artisans who are delighted to share their expertise and offer you tastings of their products.
You will visit a traditional distillery, a supplier of eaux-de-vie to renowned cognac houses, where you will learn about the entire process from vine to glass. The distiller will explain the roles of the cognac houses and winegrowers and present the three main methods for producing the finest cognacs.
You will also visit a small-scale producer of gourmet products made from cognac grapes, where you will understand why this region of Charentes is also known as the French Tuscany.
Stops are planned at superb viewpoints to admire the landscapes, local architecture, vernacular heritage reflecting the millennia-old local culture, opportunities to take original photos.
End of day
During this excursion, your arrival point may be different from your departure point. For example, you may depart from Paris by TGV to meet your guide at the Angoulême TGV station and be dropped off at a hotel in Cognac at the end of the day.
The highlights of the day-trip
• The essentials of the Cognac vineyards in a single afternoon
• One artisanal distillery and its distiller
• Three cognacs tasted
• A maker of gourmet products of the terroir, with tasting
• Short format, ideal alongside a stay or a train arrival
• Logistical flexibility: arrival point may differ from departure
Duration
4.5 hours
Starting points
Angoulême
Cognac
Jonzac
Saintes
Number of participants
From 2 to 6 people
Price
From € 400 for 2 people
The day-trip includes
- Private vehicle with a local driver-guide
- Visit to a cognac distillery
- Tasting of 3 cognacs
- Visit to a traditional gourmet food producer
- Stops with stunning views of the vineyard landscape
The day-trip does not include
- Transport to the starting point
- Personal insurance
- Souvenirs
- Gratuities
- Services not listed in the description
Bookings
This excursion can be booked online with immediate confirmation.
When booking, please specify your departure city. To guarantee an unforgettable experience, the places visited will be confirmed at the time of departure, once the venues have been contacted and the availability of the professionals who will welcome you has been confirmed.
If you would like to customize the excursion to fully meet your wishes or constraints, for example, a different arrival point than the departure point, a visit to a winery producing red and white wines, a visit to a Pineau des Charentes specialist, a visit to a distillery producing whisky, gin, or liqueurs, or participation in a blending or tasting workshop, please do not hesitate to contact us for a personalized offer.
Practical arrangements
Select your starting point
If you are staying in Paris or Bordeaux, a same-day round trip is possible.
From Paris, in the morning, take the TGV from Paris-Montparnasse station to Angoulême, a city located 2 hours and 15 minutes from Paris. We will pick you up at the station around 2:00 PM.
From Bordeaux, take a train from Saint-Jean station to Angoulême or Jonzac, cities located one hour from Bordeaux. We will pick you up at your destination station around 2:00 PM.
In the evening, we can drop you off:
– at the Angoulême TGV station for your return to Paris or Bordeaux;
– at a hotel in the Charente region (Cognac, Angoulême, Jarnac, Saintes);
– at the Jonzac train station to reach downtown Bordeaux.
Learn more about the world of cognac
Cognac houses are merchants who purchase eaux-de-vie distilled by craft distillers.
These houses age the eaux-de-vie for anywhere from 3 to over 50 years, then blend them to create cognacs of varying ages and aromas.
There are four main houses: Hennessy, Rémy Martin, Martell, and Courvoisier, which together account for 85% of global cognac sales.
A dozen smaller merchants represent 13% of sales, and winegrowers-distillers who produce their own cognacs account for 2%.
Immersing yourself in the origins of cognac during a half-day experience will allow you to discover the remarkable work of the winegrowers-distillers and meet one of them who will explain their production philosophy.
Offer a gift coupon
For anyone who would rather give an experience than an object, give this half-day as a gift voucher: an elegant introduction to the world of cognac, for a birthday, a thank-you or a getaway for two.
Personalised to the recipient’s tastes, it suits a couple passing through as well as a curious enthusiast wanting a first immersion.
The recipient chooses their date and starting point. A refined present that does not require a whole day.
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