Cadillac

Chateau Cadillac in 1759

Cadillac is a village of only 2500 inhabitants, but it also had its fortified wall built during the 100 Years War between France and England. We entered by the Porte du Mere (Sea Gate) built in 1315. Here they showed how the floods can affect the town - the worst flood actually reached the top of the gate. This was one of the original four gates. The town is a Bastide - fortified towns created by charter, built in the 13^th and 14^th centuries. Here  people built their houses and then farmed the surrounding land. Inside the walls, the 16th century chateau of Jean-Louis deLa Valette, first duke of Epernon. Henry III had given him many titles and posts, but Henri IV tried to sideline him by having him build an expensive chateau worthy of his rank, far from the capital. It had a traditional U shaped design. It was designed by two different architects so the front and the back are different. In 1818, the state acquired the chateau and it became a women's prison until 1890 and then a reform school for girls until 1952. While it was a prison, it was run by nuns and they enforced silence throughout the day. The prisoners would rise at 5 AM, have time for prayer followed by breakfast and then work in the workshops. Before lunch they could walk in single file around the courtyard. The same pattern was repeated in the afternoon and after dinner. The kitchen was interesting because it contained one of the first dumbwaiters for serving the food as well as a connection to a sewer which ran to the river. The kitchen also served as a workshop for making the tapestries of Cadillac. Only one such tapestry remains in the chateau, the Siege of La Rochelle. So is there a relation between Cadillac, France and the Cadillac car? Yes, both were named for  Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, the founder of Detroit. 

The Seige of La Rochelle

In the afternoon, we visited a family run winery, Chateau Piada, in the region Barsac-Sauterne. The chateau was originally from 1274. The current owner's grandfather bought the winery in 1940 from a cousin. Frederick, the owner, is trying to learn English to better host the Grand Circle visitors. He did pretty well for the several months of practice, but his vocabulary, as you might imagine, is somewhat limited.

We also met his Father, Jean, whose story of World War II we heard. In the early years, the Belgian and French forces were fleeing from the enemy. They would live for over ten years without electricity or gasoline, but continue to farm. One morning, they listened for 15 hours to the deafening engine noise of the German army passing by. Eventually some young SS troops were stationed here. Jean as a 10 year old boy was impressed by their discipline, goose-stepping parade, and singing. In 1944, a room in their house was commandeered for two lieutenants who had been on the Russian front and they heard the stories of the atrocities that were committed between the Germans and Russians. Later, they would have a similar experience in France.

Jean

We tasted three white wines that were very fruity and unique. The fog from the river here encourages a fungus to grow on the grapes , the Botyrtis Cinerea. The grapes are harvested in 4-6 picking choosing the grapes that have been shriveled up the fungus. The wine is aged for one year in barrels and then filtered and kept in stainless steel vats until 18-20 months after the harvest. They only produce about 1100 bottles a year from this winery. 

After our visit, we almost got lost trying to find the Chateau Yquem, one of the top wineries in the region. The gardens of this Chateau were truly magnificent and the Chateau was quite picturesque. On the way back to the ship, our bus broke down, and Frederick and Jean ended up ferrying us in two cars to get back. More of an adventure then we had planned on.

The gardens of Chateau Yquem

The directors invited Frederick and Jean to the Captain's farewell dinner. The meals on this ship have been exceptional. We had some terrific soups, eggplant and mustard soup, which were quite unique and delicious. Tonight’s meal was filet-mignon, one of the best I've ever tasted. Afterwards we had the crew talent show. Of course, there was much more show than talent and had everyone laughing. It didn't hurt that we had a margarita and several glasses of wine beforehand. By the end of the evening we were up dancing the chicken dance and YMCA.