Guide Oenotourisme Béziers 2018 Oenotourisme Béziers 2018 | Page 32

LES VIGNERONS DE SÉRIGNAN Cooperative Winery A TASTE FOR OTHERS It was in 1935 that smallholders of vineyards in the municipalities of Sauvian, Sérignan,Valras-Plage and Vendres got together to form the cooperative winery of Sérignan. Their wines are convivial and pleasant to dr ink. The forerunners of inter-municipal grouping, this union enabled them to share their winemaking methods and become a more competitive whole. History was being made and the 250 current members continue to make it. Of course, the economic and environmental contexts have changed and they continue to fight on these two fronts. The winegrowers of the winery are on average quite young. The estates have all grown and this allows them to make a living from the wine business. The image of the winegrower has improved, as well as the fruits of their labour. Wine has become a trendy drink, giving a positive image of the vine today. But they remain very aware of the pressure from property development and have mobilised against the urbanisation that is slowly absorbing the land of the vineyards, which their businesses all depend on. They are also concerned with levels of salt on their lands, which poses problems for the vines, because the sea is nearby, bringing all its advantages but also all its challenges. Their key words are advice and assistance and they support their members both in terms of production and management. Thirteen references are presented and sold at the sales cellar. This cooperative winery’s commercial strategy Sérignan’s collegiate church watches over the surrounding vineyards is based on direct sales and a large part of the yield goes locally, encouraging short food channels. The favourite wine of Arnaud Lupia, president of the winegrowers of Sérignan, is the “Muscat Sec”, a gold prize winner at the ‘Concours Général Agricole’ (Paris Agricultural Fair) once again this year and produced on the Plateau de Vendres, a remarkable terroir which yields a delicious wine. They like conviviality at Sérignan and the programme of festivities around wine shows this. They open the season with the traditional producers’ market (all handpicked!) in May: oysters, meat, olives, cheeses and other gastronomic dishes delight parents while the children discover the mini-farm and enjoy pony-rides. The new addition this year was an exhibition of old tractors Of course, you can eat on-site while tasting the wine from different wineries. Highly recommended. Guided visits of the cellar with the screening of a film followed by a wine tasting are offered twice a week in July and August. The winegrowers of Sérignan also export their wine, well, not too far away... to the producers’ market at Béziers, Valras and of course Sérignan. They also host “Wine and food pairing” evenings in restaurants. You will have understood that wine means everything to them. 114 AVENUE ROGER AUDOUX - 34410 SÉRIGNAN 04 67 32 23 26 - vignerons-serignan.com Cave Coopérative Les Vignerons de Sérignan Monday to Sunday from 9 am to 12 noon and 3 pm to 6 pm. L’HARMONIE This is a partner restaurant of the wine- growers of Sérignan for their evenings and events around wine and food pai- ring. And we can easily understand why these “bons vivants” winegrowers come to this ancient manor on the banks of the Orb River where Bruno Cappeleri prepares a well-crafted and generous menu that will delight any gourmet. Chemin de la Barque – 34410 Sérignan 04 67 32 39 30 - lharmonie.fr Closed: Monday, Saturday lunchtime, Sunday evening. 32