Moulis-en-Médoc 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 the

Gironde Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,62 ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by t ...

in southwestern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Geography

The village is situated in the

Médoc The Médoc (; oc, label= Gascon, Medòc ) is a region of France, well known as a wine growing region, located in the ''département'' of Gironde, on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, north of Bordeaux. Its name comes from ''(Pagus) Medull ...

on a hill, overhanging the Tiquetorte stream, which flows into the

estuary. Districts: ''Le Bourg, Bouqueyran, Grand-Poujeaux''...

History

Vineyards have been cultivated in Moulis at least as far back as Roman times, as three Gallo-Roman establishments have already been discovered. The grape variety biturica is from this era, an ancestor of the cabernet variety. The term "biture" meaning "booze-up", relating to "ivresse" or "intoxication" comes from this variety of grape. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, the Médoc was the granary of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...

. This is demonstrated by the presence of numerous

mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name *Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places Unit ...

to grind the grain. It is from the term "Moulin" that Moulis takes its name: "Moulinis". The vineyards of the era belonged to some feudal proprietors and a religious community which the

Roman Church Holy Roman Church, Roman Church, Church of Rome or Church in Rome may refer to: * The Diocese of Rome or the Holy See * The Latin Church * Churches of Rome (buildings) In historical contexts ''Roman Church'' may also refer to: * The Catholic Chur ...

controlled. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries in

Haut Médoc Haut may refer to: * ''Haut'' (newspaper), a newspaper published in Luxembourg {{disambiguation ...

, the vine was planted inside rather than at the edge of the estuary to avoid detrimental effects caused by humidity from the river and fog, which can decay and decimate the vineyards. The

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

s developed quickly in the eighteenth century. The quality of the land was not left unaffected by merchants from Bordeaux, who had made their fortune in the business of islands and invested in Moulis. The

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

did not help the vineyard, but it recovered quickly, reaching its peak at the end of the nineteenth century with an area of 1,500 hectares, before being decimated by the

Phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...

aphid.

Population

Administration

Moulis-en-Médoc is a commune in the wine-producing area of

. The commune produces

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

with a great reputation which benefits from the appellation of Moulis, one of the six communal appellations of the Haut-Médoc

s. While not forgetting the classification in 1855 - the best properties of the appellation - such as

Château Chasse-Spleen Château Chasse-Spleen is a winery in the Moulis-en-Médoc appellation of the Bordeaux region of France, just north-west of Margaux. Château Chasse-Spleen was selected as one of six ''Crus Exceptionnels'' in the ''Cru Bourgeois'' classificatio ...

, the

Château Poujeaux Château Poujeaux lies in the wine-producing district of Moulis-en-Médoc in the Bordeaux region of France. It is one of the most highly regarded wines within Moulis, alongside Château Chasse-Spleen. In the 2003 classification of ''Cru Bourgeois' ...

, the

Château Brillette Château Brillette is a winery in the Moulis-en-Médoc appellation of the Bordeaux region of France, just north-west of Margaux. Château Brillette was selected as ''Crus Bourgeois Supérieur'' in the ''Cru Bourgeois The Cru Bourgeois classifi ...

, the Châteaux Antonix, the Château of Dutruch Grand Poujeaux, the Granins Grand Poujeaux Château, the Maucaillou Château, the Biston Brillette Château or even the Moulin à Vent Château, have all made a name amongst the biggest wines of Médoc, notably thanks to the classification of the Crus Bourgeois.

Sights

* The

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

of Saint-Saturnin. It stands on an early Christian site and is a beautiful example of

Romanesque art Romanesque art is the art of Europe from approximately 1000 AD to the rise of the Gothic Art, Gothic style in the 12th century, or later depending on region. The preceding period is known as the Pre-Romanesque period. The term was invented by 1 ...

. This church was named for the first time in 1268 in ''Recognitiones feodorum'' in Aquitania, a set of administrative texts for the

Duke of Aquitaine The Duke of Aquitaine ( oc, Duc d'Aquitània, french: Duc d'Aquitaine, ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As succe ...

, then the King of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

..
It is dedicated to the Saint

Saturnin Saint Saturnin of Toulouse ( la, Saturninus, oc, Sarnin, french: Saturnin, Sernin, ca, Serni, Sadurní, gl, Sadurninho and pt, Saturnino, Sadurninho, eu, Satordi, Saturdi, Zernin, and es, Saturnino, Serenín, Cernín) was one of the ''" ...

, the first

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, who died a

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

around the year 250 * Archaeological excavations have found

sarcophagi A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a cadaver, corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from ...

dating from the early Christian ages, which are evidence of early Christian settlements in the South West of France. * The Maucaillou Château is home to a ''museum of wine and vineyard art and artefacts''. The only heir of the castle, Darko Moulis, lives in Croatia.

References

External links

Wine-growing association of the Moulis-en-Médoc appellation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moulisenmedoc Communes of Gironde