The village of Saint Hilaire

8, rue de la Gloire is in the medieval part of the village of Saint Hilaire. The village is famous as the place where sparkling wine was invented, in 1531.

The Abbey: Blanquette de Limoux was made by the monks of the Abbey of Saint Hilaire; Dom Perignon (also a monk) took the recipe north to the Champagne region of France. You can visit the tenth century Abbey and see the cloister with its sixteenth century fountain. The wine shop in the village also sells local wines, many of which have won international awards.

The restaurant: Le Clos de Saint Hilaire is a very good restaurant and hotel (Logis de France). It serves local wines and the owners speak good English. They are happy to talk about the local wine and are a good source for everything local.

The café/bar: Both the café and the restaurant overlook the Abbey. The café is a good place to have a drink in the evening and you can sit at tables outside to watch the world go by.

The shops: All the shops close between 12.30-2.30 for lunch. There is a small supermarket which is open every day. The boulangerie is excellent and they also sell cakes, local honey, ice-cream and biscuits, it is open every day except Wednesday. The newspaper shop, butchers and the pharmacy are next to each other at the other end of the village. The butcher is well-known in the area.

The post office: Is only open on Wednesdays.

Shopping further afield…

Supermarkets: The best place to do a larger shop is at Le Clerc and the other supermarkets in Limoux, which is twenty minutes away (south). Limoux is a very lively town with good cafes and restaurants around a central square with a very beautiful fountain (Place de la Republic).

Markets: The market in Limoux is on Friday mornings (0800-noon). It is three linked markets, one for general goods in the square, a vegetable market in the covered market and a fish, meat and olives market next door. There are good cheese stalls in the vegetable market. On the first Sunday in each month there is a 'bric a brac' and antiques Limoux, rue Tivoli.

The market in Carcassonne is on Wednesdays and Saturdays, but there is also a daily covered market which sells fish, meat and other local produce, every day. The Wednesday and Saturday market also has clothes and general goods.

There is a craft market which also has vegetables, meat, fish and general goods in Mirepoix every Monday. Mirepoix also has good restaurants, and it’s a good place to get a great view of the Pyrenees as you drive in and out.