Bandol (; oc, Bandòu) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
in
Var
Var or VAR may refer to:
Places
* Var (department), a department of France
* Var (river), France
* Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran
* Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
department,
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (; or , ; commonly shortened to PACA; en, Provence-Alps-French Riviera, italic=yes; also branded as Région Sud) is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, the far southeastern on the mainland. Its pref ...
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
, southeastern France. Bandol and the seat of its eponymous commune, was founded in 1595 and built around a small military fort.
The Bandol wine region, located near the coast east of
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
and
Cassis
Cassis (; Occitan: ''Cassís'') is a commune situated east of Marseille in the department of Bouches-du-Rhône in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, whose coastline is known in English as the French Riviera, in Southern France. In 201 ...
, is one of Provence's most internationally recognized wine regions. Built around the village of Bandol, west of
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
, the Bandol AOC covers the production of 8 communes with silicon & limestone soils. Those soils and the warm, coastal climate are ideally suited for the late ripening
Mourvèdre
Mourvèdre (also known as Mataro or Monastrell) is a red wine grape variety grown in many regions around the world including the Rhône and Provence regions of France, the Valencia and Jumilla and Yecla '' denominaciones de origen'' (DOs) of S ...
grape which is the major variety of the region. For both the red and rosé wines, Mourvèdre must account for at least 50% of the blend, though most producers will use significantly more, with
Grenache and
Cinsaut usually filling out the rest of the wine's composition.
Homage To Bandol -- Provence's Great Red Wines
Forbes, 9 January 2015
Population
Notable people
* Alain Bombard, scientist
* Alexander Lévy
Alexander Lévy (; born 1 August 1990) is a French professional golfer who currently plays on the European Tour.
Lévy won the French Amateur Championship in 2009, and the French International Amateur Championship the next year. Turning pro in ...
(born 1990), professional golfer
* Louis Lumière, cinematographer
* Paul Ricard
Paul Louis Marius Ricard (; July 9, 1909 – November 7, 1997) was a French industrialist and creator of an eponymous pastis brand which merged in 1975 with its competitor Pernod to create Pernod Ricard. Ricard was also an environmentalist and t ...
, businessman
* Jacques Torres
Jacques Torres (born 14 June 1959) is a French pastry chef and chocolatier based in New York. Torres is a member of the International Culinary Center community as Dean of Pastry Arts, as well as holding pastry demonstrations. He appears on the sh ...
, pastry chef
* Jonny Wilkinson
Jonathan Peter Wilkinson, CBE (born 25 May 1979) is an English former rugby union player. A fly-half, he played for Newcastle Falcons and Toulon and represented England and the British & Irish Lions. He is particularly known for scoring the w ...
, rugby player
International relations
Bandol is twinned with:
* Nettuno
Nettuno is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy, south of Rome. A resort city and agricultural center on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it has a population of approximately 50,000.
Economy
It has a ...
, Italy
* Onex, Switzerland
* Wehr, Germany
See also
* Communes of the Var department
The following is a list of the 153 communes of the Var department of France.
The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2020):[Bandol (wine)
Provence (Provençal) wine comes from the French wine-producing region of Provence in southeast France. The Romans called the area ''provincia nostra'' ("our province"), giving the region its name. Just south of the Alps, it was the first Roman pr ...]
* Island of Bendor
References
{{Authority control
Communes of Var (department)
1595 establishments in France