An urban winery set in Marseilles, Microcosmos Chai Urbain crafts Provence style wines in red,…read morewhite, and rose. Passion reigns supreme in every hand-produced bottle of wine, as the owners ensure each bottle of wine is a delicate, expressive wine with a good deal of character. I toured the winery with one of my friends, and we got to taste a selection of wines. The owners were so friendly and you can really tell how much they respect their craft. Fabienne really understands the science behind the fermentation of the grapes, and each grape is grown and stored in a special cellar in Marseilles. We sampled a white, red, and two rose wines. The Marvin 2015 pur Mourvèdre de Provence, a gorgeous, fragrant rose wine, was my favorite. I even purchased a bottle to enjoy with lunch. It was light in colour, with subtle fruity notes that were delicious. The wines are refreshing, focusing on the natural flavors of the grape variety, and are never heavy. The owners are a wonderful duo who make the entire winery more than a hobby, but a lifestyle. Their friendly, outgoing personality shows in each of their bottles, and they provide a great experience touring their urban winery. Wine lovers in the heart of Marseilles will find delicious, delicate wines at Microcosmos Chai Urbain. A gorgeous place to enjoy a glass and share a story, as the owners are knowledgeable and ready to pass on their love of fine wines with all their guests. It was a wonderful experience and the wine was delicious!

Craft beers and microbreweries are everywhere. Now it's time for wine business to undergo the same…read moretransformation. Microcosmos is a cool little outfit producing wine on a very small scale, from locally-sourced organic grapes. The approach is traditional, but with a modern twist. This urban winery is also run by two passionate individuals who will be more than happy to share their knowledge with you. Red, white and rose are produced on-site. You can visit, taste and buy at the same time in a relaxed atmosphere. No need to be an expert, or to speak French. Go and have a look if you are in Marseille, you won't be disappointed.

A beautiful landscape surrounded by acres of pure nature and fields of olive trees …read more The complimentary wine tasting allowed us to discover and select the perfect wine for our palate and dinner pairings. A special thanks to Monsieur Anthoine for his kindness and the time he took to thoroughly answer all our questions--his passion truly elevated the experience. The open terrace setting made it even more enjoyable, especially when paired with a lovely charcuterie board. A relaxing and memorable visit overall.

Saw this winery on food & wine on instagram and bookmarked in case I ever went back to aix. Low and…read morebehold here I am again this time for a wedding. Only 20 minute drive from city center Aix through windy roads of lush green hills and trees. So beautiful thru the driveway and into underground parking. They have a high end restaurant or an out door cafe which is nice after tasting wines or wandering thru the vineyard to see the many sculptures. (There is a fee to view the sculptures) Highly recommend a visit!

We booked this tour as a cruise excursion and we didn't realize we were arriving at Toulon and not…read moreMarseille until that morning. But lucky moment #1, Laurent was flexible and accommodating and came to pick us up at the other port in an hour. He informed us it was a holiday in France and most places were closed. He would try his best to get us into a winery that was open until noon, but it was going to take a little luck to get us there in time. Lucky moment #2: they were open when we arrived. We tasted two old vine Rhône blends and a 92-point rose. All delicious. The kind owner stayed open an extra 25 minutes for us, lucky moment #3. Then because we wouldn't be able to make it to any other wineries, we had to pivot. We bought 3 bottles of wine and a salami that the owner sliced for us and put into a paper bag. Next stop, the bakery was open! Lucky #4! We purchased two baguettes. Then off to the charming town of Le Castellet, with its narrow cobblestone streets and centuries old buildings. Lucky moment #5: we got a great parking spot and set off to explore. What to do on a national holiday when shops and restaurants are closed? Head to the National Park and have a picnic! But not just anywhere, Laurent's secret spot at the top of the mountain. I can't say where it is because we were sworn to secrecy. Just as we arrived, another car pulled in. Would they beat us to a seat at the best view in France? Nope. Lucky moment #6, they went the other way and the secret spot was all ours. A fresh French bread and salami sandwich washed done with a great Mourvèdre while gazing down at that amazing blue of the Mediterranean. This is the essence of travel--connecting with a stranger who takes you through his country as though you are a friend and you become exactly that. You talk about life and politics and food and wine and culture. We wanted to have 7 lucky experiences because after all 7 is the luckiest number, but our #7 became our #1. Because the luckiest thing that happened to us was that we had our friend Laurent sharing his world with us for one unforgettable day.

From the owner: organiser des excursion insolite en Provence à la journéeread more

Very nice winery with an amazing view. You can book tasting through the " office du tourisme "…read more(ot-cassis.com). The woman is super nice and gives plenty of explanations. Some of their wines are very very nice!

Camille was beyond warm and welcoming! We came during the off season when tours were unavailable,…read moreyet she provided us with so much information about the wines we were purchasing. She even gave us a small taste of a few! Afterwords she walked us out- but before saying goodbye, she showed us a lovely view on the side of the building overlooking the ocean and provided us with restaurant recommendations. Lovely experience.

This review is for Tayac, the restaurant that is in the winery…read more We had lunch here with our family. WOW! We loved every bite, and we got a variety of delicious dishes. The soup was fabulous, as was the amazing risotto! The fish and lamb mains were each perfect as was the cheese board! The use of local, fresh vegetables in almost every dish is wonderful. The feeling of eating so very well and still very healthily is a bonus! Wines from the Domaine la Citadelle our hostess Margaux brought with each dish were also excellent. The room is newly completed and gorgeous, the service was incredible, and the price was also very reasonable. Restaurants like this are part of why we so love France!

If you were to visit any place you must absolutely visit this one for sure. We heard about this…read moreplace and we're so glad we came. Set in a beautiful location, the drive to this place you pass lovely vineyards. The building is beautifully constructed and it has a gift shop if you happen to like souvenirs that are tasteful and elegant. We were greeted by a very sweet lady with bright red hair. She was so worldly wise and made for excellent conversation while we sipped the wines. She spoke English and give us a wonderful history of the grapes, how they are classified by terrain and they're famous corkscrew museum. She'll ask you what you like to drink rather than go through all the wines like a mill. I happen to like white and rose wines but we enjoyed everything so much we tried out the Reds. They also happen to have a medicinal herbal garden which is worth visiting with kids. It is a shame that it is difficult to import French wines, because wines from other countries and even American wines use way too many sulfites. The French use few sulfites, and their wine is impeccable. We got two rose's and a red- the Artemis rose and the gouverneur red. We will be back!

Ah, wine! Nectar of the Gods, no? It truly is a spiritual experience at times. Just think about the…read moreself propagation of the grape for a moment. A perfect, juicy fruit that is like catnip to birds. They eat it, and the seeds within, then fly to a different location and take a crap along the way. That crap has grape seeds in it, and is already fertilized by the crap! If that's not divine intervention, I don't know what is. Ok, so we've established that wine is next to godliness, correct? Now let's establish the fact that this vineyard and winery is also heaven sent! As soon as you roll in through their front gates and look across the vineyards you know you're in the right place. Then as you walk inside and sample their wine you know you you've stumbled upon something special, something angelic even! I know, I know, hyperbole much? Ok, guilty as charged. It's just that wine puts a smile on everyone's face, and this place, paired with the wine they produce is seriously something special. Their rose is something to write home to mom about. Primarily of the Grenache varietal, it's light, fruity and refreshing. A solid wine to drink by itself, or pair it with some fish or salads. I'm tellin' ya, if you find yourself wandering about the French Riviera and in the mood for a quick winery tour and tasting, add this place to your list. You'll be glad you did.

My group of 3 did the rose excursion with Brian. I can't think of a more memorable way to celebrate…read moreProvence's bounty of good wine and food than indulge in this one-of-a-kind wine "lesson" (which, for us, was more of a boozy, let's-drink-and-laugh-and-celebrate-life excursion). Brian picked us up from Aix and drove us along a scenic route stretching along Mount Ste. Victoire. We arrived at a local winery where we sampled red, white, and rose wines. We walked amongst the vines, had a great time and eventually made it to a secluded park where we set up a picnic table and drank 2 bottles of rose, ate fresh baguettes from the market and nibbled on fresh strawberries and grapes. All this epicurean goodness while drenched in the golden, Provencale sun and surrounded by the very landscape that inspired Cezanne's paintings. Does it get any better? Only if you have great company to do it with (and I did!). I would relive this afternoon again in a heartbeat. Some quick tips: -This wonderful afternoon excursion was approximately 80 euros a person, which included all the bites, (lots of) wine, and transportation. -I highly recommend it to anyone traveling through Provence who is more comfortable speaking English (although our host was also fluent in French). -Our host was very knowledgeable and personable. If you are serious about tasting wine and learning about it, the Wine in Provence folks have your back. -Wine in Provence offers other great wine tastings, cooking classes and winery tours.

My wife and I are traveling Europe with another couple and stopped in Aix for a few days. We just…read morefinished "The Best of Aix" tour with Hilary and had a great time. She took us shopping in the market, olive oil tasting, to the cheese shop, the wine shop and back for a cooking class to pair a three course lunch we cooked with three wines. We made a quiche, fruit dessert and a little app and it was all delicious! I can't say enough about this tour. Hilary was incredibly bubbly and knowledgable. She was on a cheek kissing basis with everyone, even the cheese guy who scowled at the rest of the locals. I recommend this tour to anyone and everyone traveling in Aix!

My family visited this winery while vacationing in Provence. While the tasting room itself is…read morepretty simple, the warmth and friendliness of the staff was more than enough to make up. One of the staffers even gave us a personal tour of the chateau and the garden itself. I believe it was built in the 16th century, and the owners have plans to turn it into a high-end hotel. If you're in the Aix are I highly recommend a visit.

Expected more here. Pretty vineyard but small, uninspiring tasting room. Nothing to go out of the…read moreway for. Didn't like any of the wines except the 2010 Viognier.

If we could give 10 stars it wouldn't be enough…read more As a sommelier, ex wine director and a lover of Bandol, finally visiting my favorite winery on the planet was a bucket list item. Expectations were exceeded on every level. MAEVA, our host has joined the winery and is offering private tastings for the first time. And WOW, she blew us and our other guests, including a NYC sommelier out of the water. The wines are unique and incredible and the 3 hours we spent were amazing. The care was personal, the setting in the the cellar perfect, and recalled my time working in Napa. Can't recommend it enough! Go!!!

The Wine. The hospitality. The view. All 5 stars…read more Did my tasting with Victoria the owner. Her family have been at the work for four generations (think the vineyard was founded in 1935). Lovely lady, very kindly put up with my terrible French, walked me through the wines, showed me the vineyard and shared stories with me. Not snobbery at all, just a friendly passionate person. All her wines are fantastic. The Rose is widely reviewed as one of the top 5 in Provence. Could taste that; it's neither as saline heavy as many other Provence rose, nor is it a candy store fruit basket. Stuck in the middle, complex, enjoyable. The white is from a plot they just bought with a completely different soil composition. It's so light and delicate. You think it would be an insult to say it drinks like water, but it's like flowery, melon-y, peachy water. So good. So refreshing. The red is also excellent. Drank the '14 and '15. Both are well balanced. '15 is a little more fruit forward, but mellowed by 18 months in oak. '14 is more. Dark, brooding. Bought a bottle to carry home. To get there: I Hiked out to Bandol wine country from the train station (Beautiful, but highly recommend catching the bus from the train station or renting a car... it's far). Beautiful Rocky Mountains (the last of the Alps) and vines upon vines make up the view. You pass a charming high school and beyond that is the Chateau. They have 60 acres of grapes, and the majority are gathered around the house.