Our home in Gigondas, Valcombe, seems to be as big a part of our experience here as anything else, and so deserves some blog love. Valcombe is outside of the center of Gigondas, about a 5-minute walk up the valley from St. Cosme leading to the Dentelles. It is built into the hillside, thus our nickname for it, the ‘hobbit house’. Other than it’s hillside orientation, it is perfectly sized for humans rather than hobbits.
Our neighbors to the right are some of the St. Cosme syrah vines, and in front of us is a small ravine that spring water flows through. It has a small stone patio that is shaded most of the day by big trees, contributing to the green tinge on the grey stone. The house is rectangular, made of stone and cement, and it’s roof angles down from the level of the road above. It’s walls are about 18 inches thick, solid and rough, but softened a bit inside because the cement is painted light pink. It is a great size for us, and even worked well when Sarah’s parents were with us.
It is quiet country living; the only noises we hear are the birds, the spring gurgling, the rain and mistral winds, and maybe a car. Sometimes we hear the hunting dogs baying, and the occasional gunshot or two (apparently there is good boar hunting in the woods (or vineyards!) on the ridge above us).
The top two photos are outside and inside views of Valcombe, and the bottom photo is the looking from the winery toward the house, which you can see in the middle after the vines.
