Your favorite Wine Tour in Bordeaux?

I like Rustic Vines and have used them a few times. You can take their tours from Bordeaux center or from St. Émilion. They offer tours in both left and right bank. https://rusticvinestours.com/

Thanks for the recommendation Kimberly, I’ll check them out!

The tourist office has a bunch of tours listed. We did 2 when were there and both were very good. One went to a number of smaller wineries, and the other went to one winery, and we helped with the harvest then had a great lunch!

What time of year? I was there during a wine festival (mid-June) that was great for wine tasting because hundreds of vineyards came to the town center. I believe they have at least two big wine festivals in town every year.

We did 3 days of private tours with rustic vines last year. Highly recommend!!

I planned a trip to Bordeaux that didn't happen. I has planned to use Ophorus for a couple of wine tours. We had used them previously in Alsace, and were pleased with every aspect of the experience.

https://www.ophorus.com/destination/5/france/aquitaine/bordeaux

Our experiences with Ophorus in Bordeaux were good. Right bank tour was especially enjoyable, and this is coming from a cabernet sauvignon fanboy.

Hi Isabel,

There a couple of reputable tour companies. In my opinion Ophorus and Bordeaux Wine Trails are the two most notable. However, I would recommend that you visit the wineries on your own. It will save you a lot of money. Chateau Pape Clement and Les Carmes Haut-Brion are located within the city of Bordeaux, you can visit their websites and book a tour.

I would also check out this website: (https://sauvistication.com/). It will teach how to navigate Saint-Emilion and Margaux on your own.

Safe Travels!

Stefan, you make a good point about cost. But if I were visiting châteaux on my own, I'd need to hire a driver, which would wipe out any savings, and then some. Those who have someone else to drive them who won't enjoy the vineyard products should certainly follow your guidance.

Fair point Jphbucks,

I've often rented a bike for the ones nearby Bordeaux. In Saint-Emilion there are a good few wineries walking distance from the train station.

My wife and 6 friends came In on a cruise ship back in July. We couldn't get a spot on the cruise ship tour and came across this guy https://bordeauxwinepilgrim.com/ it was an absolutely memorable experience, we had an absolute blast, because we were 8 people he offered us a private tour at the same public price. It was an ebike wine tour around Saint Emilion. My daughter and husband are in the region next year and have already booked a tour with the same operator, so will update the post again after. We didn't spend much time in Bordeaux city center but we did an excellent history tour with a young American gentleman from https://bordeauxfreewalkingtours.com/?lang=en again went for a private history tour and it Still came in less than what cruise ship was asking, for the large group tour. One last thing if you are in Bordeaux and looking for a good steak one must visit El national, pricey but we had a wonderful dinner there.

In March we spent 3 days in Bordeaux, using the City Pass. We visited Cité du Vin on the pass. It's a pretty impressive experience, with lots of interactive stations to learn all about grape growing, harvesting, wine making etc. One tasting is included. If you'd rather have a more intimate museum experience, my brother and sister in law were just there and they chose to do the museum of wine and trade instead - less$, and 2 tastings with a great selection of wines.
We also went to the Moon Harbor Distillery (on the city pass) which is located in an old WWII German fuel bunker. The tour was in French but the guide spoke English, gave us a written guide and answered any questions we had. It's a pretty cool thing to see.

In September, we toured Chateaux D'Yquem, in the Graves area about an hour south of Bordeaux. It is renowned for it's sweet wine infected with the "noble rot." A bit of a splurge, as it cost 90 euros per person for the tour (just the two of us and the guide) and a glass of their wine each, which sells in the US for $500 on up for a half bottle. But it was a very interesting experience, and I was glad we did it.

We visited Cité du Vin on the pass. It's a pretty impressive experience, with lots of interactive stations to learn all about grape growing, harvesting, wine making etc. One tasting is included. If you'd rather have a more intimate museum experience, my brother and sister in law were just there and they chose to do the museum of wine and trade instead - less$, and 2 tastings with a great selection of wines.

For any wine lover, these two museums aren't an "either-or" situation; both are must-visits. They offer very different experiences. I agree that the negotiants' museum is more cosy and intimate, and it offers a superior tasting experience to Cité du Vin.

As for Yquem, it's a bit like Château Petrus and Le Pin: expensive simply because it's expensive. There are many other fine Sauternes that are available for a small fraction of the price that, for most tasters, will be essentially indistinguishable from Yquem. But $90 to visit Yquem seems pretty reasonable to me.