Minervois and St Chinian Vineyards Cycling Circuit

From La Calade, follow Route de Bize through pine forests towards Bize Minervois until the first junction, turn right following the road alongside the river Cesse until the next junction. Turn left towards Agel. This quiet village is made up of narrow streets around the 12th century medieval castle.

On leaving Agel on your left, you follow the river Cesse, which has significant seasonal fluctuations in flow. It is also possible if you’re in the dry season that the wide riverbed is only composed of stones and rocks. You continue on the D20 and quickly reach Aigues-Vives, a village that takes its name from a gushing spring. Then onto medieval Aigne, made up of a single street. You continue on the superb D177 which takes you to Azillanet.

The marvelous village of Minerve, perched on its rocky promontory which dominates the gorges of the Cesse and the Brian is the highlight of this circuit and is definitely worth a visit. The ascent into the village leads to the Dove of Light, sculpted in memory of the pyre of 1210 during the Albigensian Crusade. With its terraced gardens and cobbled streets, Minerve is one of the prestigious gateways to the Haut-Languedoc Regional Natural Park and is one of the “Most Beautiful Villages in France”. There are a number of good restaurants here – Le Relais Chantovent if you’re looking for Michelin quality, Aux 2 Rivières for more traditional fayre or a fantastic creperie called D’ame Crêpe

This section begins nicely downhill on the D10, which you follow to La Caunette, crossing the Cesse. La Caunette houses a remarkable Romanesque church which overlooks the river. A medieval gate surmounted by battlements gives access to the old village. Standing on the square, the Château de Pardailhan dates from the 17th century. After the village, you will see a high chimney on your right, a vestige of La Caunette’s mining past, then the route intersects the D907 requiring increased vigilance, before taking the little-frequented D177 and climbing quietly for 3 km to Vialanove. You then continue for 7 km to reach Saint-Jean-de-Minervois, through very pleasant wine-growing plain landscapes. Saint-Jean-de-Minervois is also renowned for its famous muscat à petit grain – tastings are recommended at Domaine de Montahuc or the Cave le Muscat. After Saint-Jean-de-Minervois, the landscape transforms into reliefs of hills and scrubland within which the road winds its way to the extreme east of the route, Assignan, 6 km further on, from which you see the Tower of the Dovecote in the distance.

In a calm and preserved environment, Assignan has been transformed since 2015 into a “wine tourism village”: narrow streets coloured in purple, a wine bar, a gourmet restaurant, a thai restaurant, an art gallery, organised picnics in the vineyards and the impressive winery Castigno shaped like a huge bottle. After Assignan, still in scrubland landscapes, you reach Villespassans, on the Minervois wine route. A long and beautiful descent brings you back to the junction just before Agel which takes you back to Montouliers to complete this perfect cycling circuit in the Minervois