Sigean terroir — Portel, Leucate, and Fitou

Portel-des-Corbières

On a hill overlooking Portel is Terra Vinea. Here, hundreds of barrels of wine produced by three local cooperatives operating under the name of Caves Rocbère are aged in the vast cathedral-like space of a disused gypsum quarry 80 metres below ground. The galleries also house displays of wine-making equipment, an underground lake and a reconstruction of a Gallo-Roman villa. Guided tours (in French) are followed, naturally, by wine-tasting. Open every day; tel. 04 68 48 64 90.

A short distance from Portel, standing out against the dark green of vines and garrigue, are the ruins of the 13th century Chapelle de Notre Dame des Oubiels. Built of warm honey-coloured stone, in a style which blends features of Romanesque and Gothic architecture, the chapel is currently being restored. The grove of ancient olive trees to one side of it marks the position of a cemetery; it is a tranquil and lovely spot.

Leucate

La Franqui

The view from the headland above the village

Leucate is, like Gruissan, almost surrounded by water, with the sea on one side and the Etang de Salses on the other. It is a grouping of four distinct settlements: the old village itself, with its ruined fort and its oyster beds; Port Leucate, a vast modern marina and holiday village where the "streets" are canals; Leucate Plage, the traditional resort; and La Franqui, a smaller more intimate village. Between them, these four resorts are the most popular holiday destination in the Aude. The tourist office is in Port Leucate, at the Centre Polyvalent (tel. 04 68 40 91 31).

Leucate

one of the many boutiques

Leucate has everything you would expect of a fun resort — restaurants, nightclubs, casinos, mini-golf ... If you find clothes an unnecessary encumbrance when swimming or sunbathing, there are naturist beaches and holiday villages between Leucate Plage and Port Leucate. The long sandy beaches are renowned among windsurfers throughout Europe because this is probably the windiest spot on the Mediterranean.

To the north of Cap Leucate, protected from the wind by that rare event on this coast, a cliff, and shaded by pinewoods which recall France’s Atlantic coast, is La Franqui.

This is the oldest resort on this part of the coast, and the beach is lined with splendid thirties villas adorned with balconies, their large windows looking out over the sea. In the village itself the houses (mostly holiday homes) are surrounded by pine trees, giving them a tranquil and secluded air.

From the headland above La Franqui there are stunning views over the coast and the Mediterranean itself; it is a popular spot for walking and mountain biking, particularly in spring when the limestone outcrops are covered with flowers. It is also about the only place on the coast where you can go hang-gliding.

Fitou

Fitou is an attractive village, renowned for its robust red wine (actually produced both here and in a part of the Corbières further inland). The winemakers here are fortunate enough to be allowed to produce wine of three appellations — Corbières, Fitou, and the sweet dessert wine Muscat de Rivesaltes. Nearby is the Chapelle Saint-Aubin-du-Pla, a pre-Romanesque church. Used as a stable in the middle ages, it was restored in the 1960s by a local priest who then used it as a hermitage; he died in 1986 and was buried there.