Splendor in Solitude
The Wines of Irouléguy, in French Basque Country
ST.-ÉTIENNE-DE-BAÏGORRY, France — On a Saturday morning, this village in the French Pyrenees seems like any other small French town. Shoppers wend through the outdoor market while tourists snap photos. But resounding above the ordinary fray are the cries of young men playing pelote, a game akin to jai alai.
On an outdoor fronton, or court, adjacent to the market, using a basket shaped like a scimitar, they hurl a hard ball against a wall; it ricochets skyward at incredible speeds, sometimes flying onto the street, obliging passers-by to keep their heads up. Taking it all in, you realize that St.-Étienne, in the heart of Irouléguy in French Basque Country, is a different kind of place.
So it is with the wines of Irouléguy (ee-RHOO-lay-ghee), very much part of the constellation of appellations found in the southwest of France yet separate and distinct. It’s not that the grapes are different — the reds are made of tannat, as in Madiran, and cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon, as in Bordeaux and Bergerac. Whites are made of gros manseng, petit manseng and petit courbu, as in Jurançon.
Yet the land, the climate, the language and the culture remain apart, isolated by the Pyrenees, which wrinkle upward in a confluence of steep, verdant slopes like the sides of a giant bowl, containing this land of picturesque towns, rivers and patchwork farms. The wine expresses those differences as plainly as the Basque differs from the French on the region’s dual-language signs.
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Couldn't resist! We (family of 4) visited the Pays Basque on our trip 'around' France. Was before Amy's first grade, so its been a while. Didn't visit St. Etienne de Balgorry, but did stay overnight in St. Jean-Pied-de-Port, here, with glare:
Was early part of our trip, first stop after landing in Paris was train to Bordeaux, where we rented car. Was quite a trip, which I planned for a LONG time! Was just recalling today, with Julie, the planning that went into it, 2 young children, 1 month away! Anyway, was very nice, I have some nice photos and recollections.
caused by my photo album. Had a great Nikon, birthday gift from my folks 35+ years ago, which developed problems after I loaned it to one of daughter's friends, and then 'misplaced' after separating from husband and leaving the house. I'm very sorry about that, had some good lenses, too, and would be fun to play with it here + in photo group, tho don't know how I'd connect it with internet.
