Although wine drinking was slowly increasing during the 1960’s, the UK’s big transition from a beer and spirit dominated culture was in the seventies.
Supermarkets providing wine with accessibility and affordability helped a lot, but another factor was also at work.
Several other elements contributed to this particular factor.
Oh! What were they?
Motorways here and in Europe and changes arising from England’s 1944 Education Act were helpful “enablers”.
But, the key thing was the intrepid spirit that gripped a generation eager to kick off the shackles that two wars (and the depression between them) had served to constrain their parents.
Travel was possible (but not yet easy) and the acquisition of (often rudimentary) language skills made the idea less daunting.
So, emerged what – given my penchant for alliteration – I think of as the “Gîtes Generation”.
Inexpensive, self-catering accommodation in rural France allowed the perfect immersion into the local lifestyle – and, of course, the local wines.
A good illustration.
My friend, Chris, would often ask in rural restaurants and cafés “Who, locally, has the best chardonnay (or whatever) this year?”.
A trip up a rough track to an unprepossessing farmhouse often followed – as did a car boot containing a couple of cases of the grower’s wine.
Producers warmed to the arrival of a guy in tee shirt and shorts armed only with schoolboy enthusiasm – and matching linguistic abilities.
Often, “tee shirt man” would receive a better reception (and deal) than the polished, “Man from Delmonte” buyer from London.
And the legacy
So began a generation of self-taught wine enthusiasts who helped shake off the elitist aura that, hitherto, had attached itself to wine here.
I am quite proud to say that many such folk now populate the subscriber tribe of MidWeekers.
In today’s post, one of them (Eddie) captures the spirit of those times.
He is, however, quick to point out that – as a campsite fan – he was never literally part of the “Gites Generation”.
Here is what Eddie has to say.
Robert Louis Stevenson’s quote suggesting it is ”better to travel well than to arrive” has been corrupted over the decades.
By omitting one word, it has become ”better to travel than to arrive”.
That suggests just ”getting about” somehow under one’s own steam has connotations of adventure and the core of enjoyment in itself.
That can be true even when the process is a bit of a stretch – and even when France’s “priorité à droite” rules made it demanding.
Nevertheless …
We did eventually arrived at our principal destination – in our case usually after several days of driving and overnight stops.
For us, the stay involved a campsite for a week or two then taking several days to complete a return trip.
I’m sure the difference will not be lost on the reader here when comparing it with a 2 hour flight to a hotel on the Spanish Costa’s and what that mainly involves!
When Brian suggested a title like Gîtes Generation he already knew we’d never ourselves used actual French or Spanish gîtes accommodation.
We’ve always been dedicated “campers” from the get-go, starting with very basic and dubious kit.
But that did evolve
Then we eventually progressed to early style glamping with French Country Camping and better equipped frame tents and a proper fridge.
Over time, we used all the big holiday campsite companies across western Europe including their high-end mobile homes and, finally, to extended family trips to top villa accommodation in the Portuguese Algarve once a year.
Although no strangers to 5 star hotels in the Far East, the main ethos nearer home has always been an independent style of outdoor living.
That determined our whole being, notwithstanding the need for continually travelling.
For example …
Even as early as 1971 we took a mighty car trip to Istanbul via Romania and Bulgaria and back through Greece and all Yugoslavia.
We learned so much on that early-doors 3 week tour that would guide us for decades to come.
And a singular defining feature running through all of these years has been …. self catering.
Perhaps the Gîtes Generation thing initially applied to middle- class Baby Boomers, inspired by the Sunday Times.
Certainly, the pages of its colour supplement overflowed with Euro-travel stuff in those days.
Gîtes did, though, reflect the attitude or state of mind for an entire generation who always seemed willing to continue their education in life.
What our family came to understand was that there was a different way to use our leisure time.
That realisation would eventually find us in France repeatedly, year on year.
But what were gîtes?
Actual gîtes culture was unique at the time involving properties for hire mainly located in quiet, sometimes isolated, rural spots.
They could be cottages or converted barn buildings but always offered something different for the sea-side lovers of Britain.
In particular, they provided terrific value for money when accommodating a whole family group in what now might be regarded as AirB&Bs.
Not for us, though
But even they could never match the ridiculously cheap pricing of municipal parc camping all across France.
There was one on every corner and demonstrating “liberté, égalité and fraternité”, they offered holiday provision for the masses.
The French themselves thrived on them and, most importantly, we could join in too.
The French were the real camping champions of Europe.
Our mantra then was to be like the French for a few weeks and shop, eat and drink like them.
It gave us “hands on” education that no text book could ever provide.
We revelled in it – especially the self-sufficiency.
How that changed things.
To that gîtes generation who tried it, life seemed to have a better purpose than just sweltering beside a crowded pool.
Kids on campsites, especially outdoors just messing-about, always seem so happy and able to make their own fun.
Sadly, many traditional old parcs now are massive holiday camp developments of the type that today’s children seem to demand.
But rural France changes relatively little, except perhaps that no-one is ever far from a SuperU or E Leclerc
Admittedly, though, the latter retail outlet in Chinon no longer has en vrac Cabernet Franc at 40p a litre nor shotgun cartridges available over the counter!!
No matter … we go to shop and look, listen and learn.
Nevertheless, the inquisitive nature of the self-sufficient, self-catering, Generation Gîtes traveller can still hold true.
It brings – literally – so much to the table for those ready to go there simply to enjoy it.
Thank you Eddie – great stuff that will, I am sure, stir fond memories for many Midweekers … Brian
One of those lessons.
Last century visitors to France will have started to discover the joys of “Everyday Bordeaux”.
Of course, the region’s superstars were already here but the simpler – and less expensive – versions were often unfamiliar.
Nowadays, though, those enjoying them have to engage in a major search for what Midweeker Dave calls “Ten Quid Claret”.
Here is one that might fit the bill.
Two warnings first though!
- It is part of the now expiring July Wine Tour in Lidl so maybe found on the “remaindering” shelf.
- Secondly, it combines claret’s classic vegetal aromas and minerally backdrop that does not always impress lovers of fruit forward wines.
If those caveats do not deter you …
Try this.
2021 Chateau de Landiras (£9.99 at Lidl while stocks last and 13% abv):
It is from the Graves region and is dark in colour with Bordeaux’s typical leafy “nose”.
Rich yet smooth damson and blackcurrant flavours form its centre-piece accompanied by well-judged toasty hints.
Good acidity but limited tannin add support – as do sage, cola and cedar hints, along with the graphite edges that I warned you about (but which seems in perfect balance here).
Give it a try if you can find a bottle – even if only to find whether typical, inexpensive claret is for you.
Join me again on Monday to see what I am I recommending as the latest Top Tips among High Street retailers.
Join me again on Monday to see what I am I recommending as the latest Top Tips among High Street retailers.
13 responses
Brian, how does Lidl’s Château de Landiras compare with Aldi’s Chateau La Garde which was on offer earlier this month? The price is/was identical. I have six bottles of the latter and wonder if it is worth investing in another Grand Vin de Graves.
Have not done a “like for like” comparison, Ian, but if you like the slightly vegetal and graphite influenced background to Bordeaux reds, then this is well worth keeping if you can find some. Another favourable omen is that it was better on Day Two than Day One, which suggests good aging potential.
Interesting and enjoyable article, and some lovely evocative comments from Eddie, thanks.
I note that younger members of my family, although reasonably interested in wine, do not particularly take to claret. And this is clearly wide spread, and “generational”, hence the glut of Bordeaux wines, and their vineyard areas decreasing. But the good news is that if one has, or develops, a taste for claret, there are great buys to be had. I often hear of friends, who drink wine fairly regularly, but aren’t hardened enthusiasts, splurging out, for a special occasion, on a comparatively expensive bottle – and being disappointed. Following your excellent advice, if claret suits, the world of Bordeaux opens up. If not, at least one can recognise the risk of splurging on claret!
In my twenties I was a fairly serious claret drinker. Much less so now – there are so many other interesting wine areas and styles. But at a recent Wine Society “Wine Champions” tasting I really enjoyed a 2018 Château Cissac, Haut-Médoc, which was a timely reminder of how wonderful a good claret can be, and at £17, great value. Not an everyday price, but within my splurge range. I ordered a bottle for next year’s Wedding Anniversary dinner – my wife is still a big claret enthusiast. (Note that one gets a 10% discount for the wines featured in their tastings, if ordered within 5 days)
I love claret and always have but there is a tremendous amount of very poor claret out there, especially in supermarkets. And even more especially, in French supermarkets. To an extent, you are paying for the well-known name.
At least with the WS you will be OK!
Oh yes…..memories indeed. We used to load up an old Ford motor caravan with 2 essentials: kayaks and an early tiny gas-fridge. Hey ho on the ferry to Roscoff and down the west coast of France, camping-municipal and exploring the local wines. Just as your article said- a voyage of discovery! One memory that your readers will appreciate: arriving in Margaux village, buying lunch in THE restaurant (huge cost it seemed, but what the hell), drinking THE Ch.Margaux, vintage 1965 (I think…..) and staggering back to the ‘van to sleep. Next day: bread, cheese and vin ordinaire as usual. That was 1978. Lucky us.
Hi Sue, your post reminded me of my own brief encounters with THE Ch Margaux. So perhaps I can also indulge in some memories …
In the mid 70s I was working in central London, and a committee member of our company’s after work Wine Tasting Society. When it was my turn to host an event I remember going to the hallowed Berry Bros shop and buying a half bottle of THE Ch Margaux. Can’t remember the vintage (I have the label somewhere in a notebook). The price was obviously not low but was, just, affordable for such an event. I recall decanting the wine with very shaky hands!
A few years later I bought tickets for a Ch Margaux wine tasting dinner in the Moot Hall, Colchester, hosted by Lay & Wheeler’s Richard Wheeler. We were served an array of Ch Margaux vintages in a tutored tasting. All glasses were then removed and a magnum of Champagne placed on each table to refresh our palates before further vintages were served with dinner! The cost of this event was certainly extravagant, but not outrageous or totally unaffordable. I recall being impressed by the stamina of the mostly much older guests – I was flagging by the end.
Then children came along. Our wine hobby was no longer appropriate or affordable, and I sold my small collection of wines, including a case of 1970 Ch Montrose (in half bottles). I spent the proceeds on children’s play equipment for our garden.
But here’s an interesting question for Brian – or anyone else. Because vineyard management and wine making practices have greatly improved since the 70s, and climate change ensures grape ripening is more consistent. Can one assume that many more wines can now achieve the quality of the top wines of the 70s? E.g. would a good Crus Bourgeois of today be of similar “quality” to a classed growth wine of, say, a 1970 vintage? Or does a specific terroir trump everything else? Clearly the really top wines are now totally unaffordable to all but the seriously rich, but has the price of a “very good” bottle of claret actually, in real terms, fallen?
Ah, happy days there, Eddie .. we didn’t camp but we did stay in chambres-dhotes, which provided some of the best meals I have ever eaten, vin compris 🙂
We mainly camped or self catered but one year – it was the year of widespread strikes by fuel delivery drivers in UK and France – we were forced by the absey of fuel to spend a couple of nights in a small hotel in the Auvergne ( we were heading for Millau ) Our dining experience was terrible – like I imagine an English boarding goy in the fifties , bacon and cabbage ,the dining room being shared with a few French couples who seemed to share our misery. The next evening walked to a nice lakeside restaurant.
Thank you all for kind comments. By necessity much had to be left out in way of greater detail arising out of the challenge to capture the ambiance, but in the space available. Brian’s final reference to specifically Bordeaux is the perfect example of how the spirit of the situation happened in practice, serendipity for sure, and how unknown voyages of discovery might happen.
Sue’s comments especially are very pertinent and exactly how it could happen.
We went to France first in 1982, to Brittany where many Brits found it easy to be and easy to access from the Chanel ferry ports. That first trip was a less usual Newhaven to Dieppe crossing!
We stayed at a site near La Baule and it rained solid for 48 hours. We had gone for sunshine and couldn’t have been more disappointed on our very first day. The spirit for adventure and a need to rectify matters took over.
We travelled in a well used, part-rusted Mk3 Cortina estate with a dodgy alternator and were already 600 miles from home base. And for no proper reason other than ”we thought ‘Bordeaux’ might work better” departed south that next 300+ miles to nowhere we knew. No pre-booking made, no knowledge at all about any of this. Just a Michelin #78 yellow map in hand.
The devil may care attitude of 20-something Boomers 11 years previous and the chancy Istanbul driving trip had dissipated. We were adults now with a 10 year old child and the responsibility that involved.
But what we found by trial and thankfully little error was an area of France easily spoken about now writing here decades later. Back in the day it was a mysterious revelation especially relating to its main industry, wine production. For those who know it, an understanding of its etherial charm that pervades in the silent, sandy floored pine forests of the Haut-Médoc that border the Gironde where sits some of the greatest wine estates in the world. Drive east towards Bergerac on the D243 along the Dordogne and the leafy estates of Saint-Émilion punctuate the landscape at every corner much in the same way as the municipal camping sites did.
Speaking of sandy floored pine forests it is that very thing, the sous bois, the persistent, vegetal, hedgerow, stalky, leafy, characteristics of ”older-fashioned” style wine especially, that might well be the very thing that detracts for new claret drinkers of the Cabernet’s, perhaps more than the Merlot’s. Austere and often bone dry more than fruit-forward shall we say but very appropriate with the right food, more than when drunk as a recreational glass.
So we kept going back to ”our” site we discovered at Lanton on the Arcachon Basin and trying bottle after bottle! A ”when in Rome” kind of thing I suppose but with its disadvantages. So much stuff, so cheap, supermarket autumn sales, stores rammed with bottles, boxes and wooden crates and a lot that was not good no matter how cheap. Might as well shop at Aldi for their ubiquitous regular stock that was the same in Germany as well as France.
I tend now to stick with The Wine Society list of Bordeaux reds of which they offer much and vintages do matter. That’s for hobbyist, try-out reasons. Mainly under £10 still it doesn’t always deliver as it might.
But the Aldi Pierre Jaurant Merlot-Cabernet Bordeaux at £5.49, that might might be as old as 2021, strangely doesn’t fail in the way of a very affordable, enjoyable type. Much in the way as the Tesco Bergerac/Merlot/Bordeaux blend really delivers a very satisfying drop from the area of Bordeaux furthest east. Drinkable, cheap Bordeaux it can be without it be outstanding. I think the Lidl shelf bottle is ok too.
Thank you to Brian for having me share our adventures. More and more these last 10 to 15 years pure tenting seems to have declined over there, even towed caravans are less. Motor homes seem to be ruling these days. But nevertheless the spirit of the Gîtes Genration still exists and always necessitates that self-catering need and the shopping discoveries that it brings with it. Even driving a rhd car on the right can be fun. Especially with a second driver in the passenger seat saying ”pull out a bit and I’ll tell you if it’s safe to overtake”. We’ve all been there I bet…. and come home safely too …
At the risk of going on like an old Grandad which I am. Morrison’s currently have 30% off 3 or more bottles of their best wine which includes all the block wines that Brian recently highlighted.
This grandad is more than happy to see news like this being spread through the comments section. So no problem with keeping others up to the minute whether they are grandparent or not.
Loving this article and comments!
One thing I meant to mention was the ease of finding good wine that you never see in the UK. For example we had a holiday in Provence, near Draguignan and discovered that local vineyards were selling in some cases, very grand wine indeed, with prices to match .. but in others, top quality wine at very affordable prices. I think this applies to lots of wine growing areas .. I once asked at a restaurant near Munster, in Germany, for a bottle of whatever he thought was the best local riesling at (I think) €20 or less. The result was amazing. I told him “We can’t buy wine like this at home in England,” To which he winked and said “Yes, I know!”
Enjoyable responses for claret both at home and abroad and holidaying memories in gods own country. Seems so many who were invested did very similar things and experienced similar highs and lows too!
Jeez, we’ve had some poor French restaurant food all over the country, city, seaside and rural, but wine to die for on other occasions that no one was going to tell us from whence it came. But the best grub when found was always terrific especially in the Périgord Noir. Soleil Plage Camping at Vitrac on the Dordogne river with an amazing bottle labelled Graves, nothing else, a case in point!
A hotel stop over under Millau Viaduct never to be repeated and a Vietnamese pavement cafe in Paris where no dish back in the late 90s was more than £1 each. And never, ever a return to a cheapest-of-the-cheap hotels with Formula 1.
There are more than a few fans who are MWWers who have football allegiances so here is one story for them involving Bordeaux FC
The French national side in the early 80s was of very high quality, goes without saying really. Those games with West Germany in Spain and Mexico the ’82 and ’86 World Cups are legend .
Domestically FC Girondins de Bordeaux were in both ’84 and ’85 national Ligue 1 champions and internationals Alain Giresse, René Girard, Jean Tigana and Marius Trésor played at that time.
We were at our usual spot at Lanton-Cassy, near Arcachon in the summer of maybe ’84, and picked up on the new local sports stadium where Club Sportif Lantonnais played their games, having a special opening fixture. Le Girondins were playing the locals!! All the stars were there even Domenique Dropsy in goal!! We stood with just a few hundred more around the pitch, drank small bottled beer and ate saucisson in baguettes. It was like stumbling on Chelsea having a kickabout on Wimbledon Common! My boy was just at that age when football enthralled him and he couldn’t believe what we had found.
Just a few years ago when we stayed on the Venice Lagoon my son took me and his son along the autostrada to the San Siro in Milan to watch Inter against Lazio. The things dads and granddads get up to eh?
A Boro supporter … yanawatImeanlike …….