Page 318 - Lonely Planet France’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

DETOUR:
ROQUEFORT
Start: 7 Millau
The village of Roquefort, 25km southwest of Millau via the D992 and the D999, is
synonymous with its famous blue cheese, produced from the milk of ewes who live
in natural caves around the village. Marbled with distinctive blue-green veins caused
by microscopic mushrooms known as Penicillium roquefort, this powerfully pungent
cheese has been protected by royal charter since 1407, and was the first cheese in
France to be granted AOC (Appéllations d’Origines Contrôlées) status in 1925.
There are seven AOC-approved producers in the village, two of which (La Société
and and Gabriel Coulet) offer cellar visits and tasting sessions. The cellars of five
other producers (Roquefort Carles, Le Paipillon, Le Vieux Berger, Vernières Frères
and Les Fromageries Occitanes) aren’t open to the public, but they all have shops
where you can sample the village’s illustrious cheese.

in the local lingo): Montpellier- le-Vieux of steel, but somehow
Sauveterre, Méjean, Noir Tourist Train (www.montpel still manages to look
and Larzac, each slightly lierlevieux.com; Montpellier-le- like a gossamer thread,
different in geological Vieux; adult/child €4.40/3.60; seemingly supported by
character. You could h9am-7pm Jul & Aug, nothing more than seven
spend several days tour- 9.30am-5.30pm late Mar-Jun & needle-thin pylons.
ing along the tangled Sep-early Nov) instead. It’s such a wonderful
roads that cut between The Drive » Continue along structure, it’s worth see-
them, but the D996 the narrow D110 towards Millau, ing twice. Begin with the
along the Gorges de la 18km to the southwest. There drive across: head north
Jonte is particularly are a couple of great roadside of Millau on the D911,
detour-worthy. lookouts on the way, as well as a and then turn south onto
South of Le Rozier is trail to the top of the local peak the A75 motorway.
the Chaos de Montpellier- known as Puncho d’Agast. Once you’ve crossed
le-Vieux (www.montpellier the bridge, turn off at
PYRENEES & SOUTHWEST FRANCE 28 PONT DU GARD TO VIADUC DE MILLAU
levieux.com; Montpellier-le- TRIP HIGHLIGHT exit 46, and loop back to
Vieux; adult/child €6.80/5.40, 7 Viaduc de Millau Millau along the D999
combination ticket with Aven and D992, which passes
Armand €15.80/11.50; h9am- Finish your road trip directly underneath the
7pm Jul & Aug, 9.30am-5.30pm with a spin over the bridge and gives you an
late Mar-Jun & Sep-early gravity-defying Viaduc unforgettable ant’s-eye
Nov), where centuries of de Millau (www.leviaducde view. En route, you’ll
erosion have carved out millau.com; A75, Millau; toll Jul pass the bridge’s visitor
a landscape of amazing & Aug €9.80, Sep-Jun €7.80; centre, Viaduc Éspace
limestone formations, of- h24hr), the famous road (%05 65 61 61 54; www.
ten given fanciful names, bridge that hovers 343m leviaducdemillau.com; D992,
such as the Sphinx and above the Tarn River. Millau; guided tours adult/child
the Elephant. Three Designed by the British €6/3.50; h10am-7pm Apr-
walking trails cover the architect Norman Foster, Oct, to 5pm Nov-Mar).
site, or you can cheat the bridge contains over
and catch the Chaos de 127,000 cu metres of con- 54 p317
crete and 19,000 tonnes

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