La Cuverie - A Post Office and a Wine Bar

Raymond Blake visits what must be the most unusual yet wonderfully appealing post office in France

- Raymond Blake

Thursday 15th December 2022 was a bleak day in Vosne-Romanée, the village that can comfortably claim to be the heart and soul of Burgundy, with no fear of a challenge from the likes of Gevrey-Chambertin or Puligny-Montrachet, no matter how exalted their reputations might be. I am only half joking when I tell people that it is, “the centre of the known world”. The express purpose of my visit was to check out a just-opened new wine bar — and post office. But first came the obligatory stop at the cross that marks the most celebrated plot of agricultural land in the world — the 1.81-hectare Romanée-Conti vineyard. This stop is part of a ritual that I never deviate from, reasoning that if I am lucky enough to be passing close then a slight diversion is warranted.

The wind clipped the ankles and set the eyes streaming. Chilled fingers and blurred vision made photography more challenging than usual. A languid stroll was out of the question, so I marched northwards on the road (a glorified track really) between Richebourg to the left and RomanéeSaint-Vivant to the right, stopping after a minute to stamp my feet before retreating to the cosy comfort of the car. It would be wrong to suggest that I wasn’t enjoying myself; I adore the Côte at any time of year and have a special affection for the winter months when the absence of throngs of visitors gives it a more private, closed-in feel. Add in the low-lying, leaden cloud that leaves only a seam of visibility between sky and ground, and you have a bewitching combination that goes unnoticed too often by those pressing on to another appointment, with no thought for stopping to “smell the roses”.