Color Me Fall

It’s that time of year when the days are shorter, cooler and wetter. So far November has lived up to its season but not without layering on fall charm. We had heard a little about the nearby town of Collobrières, the capital of the Maures region, that sits inland and is tucked closer to the Massif des Maures mountain range. The town is well known for its chestnut groves and cork trees, both serving as mini local industries producing numerous chestnut related products (i.e. ice cream, spreads, liqueur and more), and cork items respectively. The chestnut harvest festival is one of the most popular events in Collobrières and takes place in October. Although our day visit occurred a few weeks after the event, we still enjoyed the flavorful town and a perfect fall outing.

Our walking tour of the town included some of the more historic sites like the 19th century Old Bridge (bearing the name of Resistance fighter, Roger Rossi), the town hall square and the Gothic Notre Dame des Victoires Church (19th century). The path through the colorful streets ascended to the town’s hilltop at times getting narrower and more cobble-stony, making for a fun stroll with the girls.

Soon enough lunchtime was upon us and we had options among several restaurants that were still open this time of the season. Our meal exposed us to one of the local cooperative red wines which we loved, and it motivated us to visit a nearby winery just minutes from town. Domaine de la Portanière was our destination where wine is just one of the things produced on-site. The domaine was more like a farm with animals and other orchards consisting of apple and pomegranate trees. We enjoyed the wines and were glad the girls also had something to taste, fresh apple cider.

With fall came the colors that define it, yellow, brown and red, and seemingly we had to travel a bit inland to find it.