Mediterranean Wine Cruise, France, Corsica and Italy
31st August to 7th September 2011
This personally escorted wine cruise by Arblaster & Clarke Wine Tours, on a luxury ‘super yacht’ through the western Mediterranean, takes in superb wines from the classic wine regions of the South of France, the ‘Super Tuscans’ of the Tuscan coast and the great Barolos of Piemonte. There will be on-board tastings and visits ashore to taste a panoply of great wines. You will visit small harbours and drop anchor for impromptu swims.
Gourmet dinners are served with superb wines from the regions along our route, selected and com¬mented on by the wine guide. Lunches are accompanied by wines from the ship’s list or some¬times from our selected producers who may join us. As the party size is small you soon get to know your fellow passengers and the crew and the atmosphere quickly becomes like a relaxed and jolly ‘house party’.
The Ship
Le Ponant is an 88m, 3-masted sailing-cruiser with a draft of 4 metres. She has a crew of 30 and is equipped to accommodate up to 66 passengers, but our party will be a maximum of 54. Le Ponant has four decks:
Sun deck: Top deck equipped with deck chairs.
Antigua deck: Cabins 1 to 5, the bridge and the open air restaurant where casual but delicious buffet lunches are served each day.
St Barth deck: Comfortable air-conditioned lounge and bar; the gastronomic restaurant, the reception and boutique. The bar area leads out onto another covered deck space and the swimming platform.
Marie Galante: Lower deck with remainder of the cabins.
The Itinerary
31 August: We meet in Nice in the late afternoon and set sail along the Côte d’Azur. Soon, we drop anchor for a swim off the ‘lido’ at the stern of Le Ponant. We have our first wine tasting and enjoy a gourmet dinner with Tim Clarke’s selection of fine Provençal wines.
1 September: Arrive at St Louis Port de Rhône. We have an included full day out to the southern Rhône. We are invited to join the owners at Domaine Font de Michelle in Châteauneuf-du-Pape where we visit the superb estate and enjoy their wines with lunch (included). On our return to Le Ponant we set sail westwards, heading for Sète. We expect to arrive late this evening so you can go ashore for a late coffee as we will be moored up overnight. Dinner is onboard, with wines from our favourite growers in the southern Rhône villages of Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Beaumes de Venise.
2 September: This morning we offer an optional wine visit to Mas de Daumas Gassac, one of the top wine estates, if not the top estate in the Languedoc. Lunch is back on board Le Ponant. There will be some time to explore the attractive har¬bour of Sète before we set sail in the afternoon. We’ll taste a few of the most interesting wines from the Languedoc-Roussillon, Minnervois, Banyuls etc over din¬ner onboard, served on the atmospheric open deck.
3 September: We sail east overnight to arrive just beyond Marseilles around breakfast-time at the pretty inlets known as ‘Les Calanques’. We moor up for a while here to swim. It’s a short sail to the pretty fishing village of Cassis which you have time to enjoy for a couple of hours. Then we’ll be joined on board by one of the leading vignerons of Bandol as we continue sailing west and enjoy their powerful reds and delightful whites over lunch. We’ll arrive at the pretty island of Porquerolles in the afternoon where there is a superb beach and a nearby wine estate for an optional visit. Dinner is on board, with wines from the ship’s list.
4 September: We sail into the pretty yacht harbour of St Florent, at the base of Cap Corse, Corsica.
A tasting of Corsica’s top region, Patrimonio is included onboard today. After lunch on board we set sail north around Cap Corse making a brief swim stop near a beautiful beach. Dinner is onboard and with it we serve a flight of great wines from the Northern Rhône including Condrieu and Hermitage.
5 September: Arrive off the south Tuscan coast. This morning there is an optional visit ashore to taste some of the stunning ‘Super Tuscan’ wines at Tenuta dell’Ornellaia, one of the great Bolgheri wine estates. Lunch is back on board. We set sail north and plan to drop anchor for a swim stop in the afternoon. Dinner on board with more superb Tuscan wines including our favourites from Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino and Vin Santo.
6 September: Morning arrival at a harbour on the west Ligurian coast. Today we have an optional wine excursion to the great Piemontese wine region of Barolo. We visit two of the best estates; first the dynamic Ascheri and then lunch with the family at Cordero di Montezemolo. Alternatively you may stay on Le Ponant for a relaxing day where lunch is included on board with the ship’s wines. A gourmet dinner is on board with more Piemonte wines including fine Barbaresco. We set sail in the late evening.
7 September: Morning arrival in Nice and disembark. You can then return home or choose to extend your holiday. We highly recommend the Château de Berne near Lorgues or Le Mas Candille near Mougins as a delightful Provençal gourmet base for a couple of nights. We can book a couple of nights at either of these for you. Please call for prices. You could equally choose to stay on in Nice and we can recommend some good hotels in the area for an additional stay.
What’s Included
Breakfasts; buffet lunches with wines from the ship’s cellars; afternoon tea and pastries, gourmet dinners with wines selected by Arblaster & Clarke. Snorkelling equipment. Porterage, tips and port charges. Crew tips. Excursion and lunch in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. All on board tastings. Welcome & Captain’s farewell cocktails. Other wine visits are optional extras.
Prices for the 7-night wine cruise including above inclusions start at about £4,999 per person.
Please contact us to provide prices for return flights and transfers. We can also quote for the TGV / train. It is also quite possible to drive to Nice.