Wine Tours
the Concept
Organize trips to wine regions, combining meetings with renowned winemakers and cultural visits to places steeped in history.
Unlike traditional trips, we don’t stay in hotels, but in a large house where we dine together every evening and taste a selection of carefully chosen wines.
Experience shows that this warm environment brings people together and creates a friendly atmosphere throughout the trip.
The Course of Events
The trip usually lasts six days (five nights). It starts on a Sunday, which is ideal for traveling.
We meet up in a big city, usually Paris or Lyon, and drive to the region where we will be staying. The house is located at a reasonable distance from the places and estates we want to visit, to optimize travel time.
We start the day with breakfast around 8 a.m. and leave before 9 a.m. We alternate between cultural visits and wine estates in a balanced way. Not forgetting shopping, of course!
We have lunch every day in a restaurant recommended by gastronomic guides (Michelin, Gault et Millaut, etc.).
We return around 6-6:30 p.m. so that the group can rest a little and prepare dinner. We usually sit down to eat around 7:30 p.m. and finish around 9 p.m. Quality is preferred over quantity, both for food and wine, which we also taste together.
The Wine Makers
We meet winemakers whose reputation is well established. They own small-scale estates, which allows them to remain in complete control of their production process. All of the wines are produced with the utmost respect for the environment.
The visit of the estate is conducted by the winemaker and includes a visit to the cellar and a tasting of his wines. We often visit the vineyards, which is the icing on the cake.
If you enjoy the wines, you can usually purchase some to take home.
Cultural Visits… But Not Only That
The history of wine in France is, of course, closely linked to the history of the country itself. From the 7th century onwards, monks played a major role in the development of viticulture, alongside the magnificent monuments they left behind. Similarly, the great kings of France contributed to the reputation and growth of wine in France and beyond its borders.
During our stay, we will visit the major historical sites in the wine region: castles, abbeys, and town centers. We will occasionally be accompanied by certified Russian or English-speaking guides.
And of course, no trip to France is complete without shopping. So we will take the time to stroll through the stores and fashion boutiques.
Life in a Group at Home
Group trips involve a number of rules that must be followed to ensure their success. One of the most important is the quality of the accommodation and the associated service.
We pay particular attention to the choice of house where we will be staying. It must be large, attractive, modern, and have enough bedrooms and bathrooms for everyone to be comfortable. The kitchen and living area must also be spacious and comfortable. All these elements contribute to the cohesion of the group and the creation of a good atmosphere.
Breakfast consists of pastries, cheese, and cold cuts, accompanied by butter, jams, and honey. Tea, coffee, fruit juice, and milk are also available.
It is usually served at 8 a.m. for a departure before 9 a.m.
The evening menus are provided in advance, but can be discussed if necessary. The ingredients are purchased at markets or from local producers. Supermarkets are avoided as much as possible.
A meal includes at least one hot dish and cheese. A starter and/or dessert may be added for those who are still hungry.
The Participants
The number of participants can be up to 8 people. The goal is to remain a close-knit group, a small family, where human relationships are important. There is no age limit in either direction.
Testimonies
Thank you for your trust
Evgenya
Good times spent and enjoyed with VoilàVino😍
I really love the French countryside, the small welcoming villages dotted with vineyards, its wonderful inhabitants who have maintained this beauty for centuries, honoring and preserving the history of the place. I am also a great lover of French wine 🍷 and gastronomy, always ready and eager to discover a variety of interesting flavors, facts, and stories about the lives of winemakers and regions. And my guide to the world of fine French provincial wines has been Jérôme (VoilàVino❤️) on numerous occasions! In his company, my friends and I have traveled through several French wine regions, and each time we have been welcomed and received with love by enthusiastic and knowledgeable winemakers, sommeliers, and wine lovers. Jérôme himself—in the best sense of the word 😬, a huge fanatic about everything related to wine—even tried his hand at working in a vineyard, which makes him not a “social climber” as we see today, but an expert. With him, we spent a wonderful day in world-renowned vineyards, visiting the rich world of Burgundy and Rhône wines, where the masters of their art made me fall even more in love with winemaking. While learning about wine, we naturally familiarized ourselves with local specialties and flavors, including those prepared personally by Jérôme. Another detail: on our trips, the group is always great and we have a blast.
Elena M.
In March of this year, I visited France. More specifically, I went on a gastronomic trip to Provence. It was my first trip with a group of people I didn’t know. We stayed there for five days, and each day was full of new experiences. Every day, we visited two or three wineries, where we were welcomed by friendly people who told us in detail about wine production and their family businesses. We tasted some very tasty wines. I don’t know much about wine, but in such an environment, everything was of the highest standard. We stayed in a villa and had incredible French croissants for breakfast every morning. We went on lots of excursions, and I really enjoyed the trips to Lyon and Orange. The guides were professionals. The excursion to the vineyard was very memorable. It was my first time seeing one. A big thank you to our organizer Jérôme. He prepared delicious meals for us and took us to good restaurants. We felt very comfortable in his company. It was fun and relaxed. We have fond and warm memories. I intend to visit France again.
Inna
A trip to Provence!
It was my first time visiting this region. I really wanted to see France in a way I hadn’t seen it before, the kind of France that the locals see. I mean the kind of France you don’t see on group tours. Jérôme showed us his France. We went to places I had never been before. He was always attentive and stuck to the exact schedule we had planned. The estates we visited were interesting. I even bought several bottles for my personal cellar in Moscow.
Jérôme also acted as interpreter and always described the wines beautifully, proving himself to be an excellent expert. During the day, we had wonderful lunches at local restaurants, and in the evening, we were treated to fabulous dinners prepared by Jérôme. I had never been fed so deliciously by a man! The trip was memorable, with interesting impressions and delicious food! Jérôme! I look forward to more trips!
Elena S.
Jérôme and his company create a whole world of wine and gastronomy, which you enter and it seems that there is nothing more important and interesting. And that’s exactly what it is 👏
His professionalism, his ease of communication and presentation of information are simply fascinating. His energy and love for what he does attract people with whom the most unexpected and grandiose ideas are born and realized.
What a pleasure it is to be among friends and like-minded people, a little crazy but above all attentive to you. You can live a whole life in a few days of travel and tastings.
Igor
My wife and I always try to travel independently, mainly because it gives us the opportunity to meet new people who are as open as we are to sincere communication on topics of our choice: travel, food, and wine. So, after a quick search, we found ourselves in a small group of French food connoisseurs visiting Champagne. We immediately noticed how well organized the trip itself was. The organizers selected the group of participants so well that we are still in touch more than a year after the trip ended.
I think the best possible compliment is that there are no comments about the daily organization of the trip other than admiration. We hope to immerse ourselves in a similar trip again. I’m not sure we could have found, negotiated, and visited most of the vineyards on our own. The same goes for the selection of restaurants for lunch. However, perhaps the most notable fact that demonstrates the advantages of such an event is the dinners in the villa organized by the friendly chef “😊Jérôme Depeille😊.” Not only did we have the chance to participate in the preparation of the dishes, but we also enjoyed tasting a magnificent range of exceptional wines that Jérôme had carefully and thoughtfully prepared for us.
I am certain that the excellent organization of these tours will encourage us to participate many times in the near future.
