Auvergne Culture, Heritage and Tradition

• Auvergne has a rich heritage from the past, viewable all around the region and the departments Allier,Cantal, Puy de Dôme and Haute-Loire.
• Numbers of restored or in ruins castles, standing on hilltops, as many religious buildings retrace the long history of Auvergne.
• Auvergne culture also means delicious food and drink. Very old Auvergne's vineyards produce many fruity, fresh and characterful wines like the Côtes d'Auvergne and Saint-Pourçain, perfect with Auvergne meals like "potée" and perfect cheese lovers.
• The festive and friendly atmosphere is also typical of the Auvergnat people, and to discover through folk music and folk "auvergnate" dance.

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		Auvergne Gastronomy
Drink		The Côtes d'Auvergne vineyards are covering the hills from North of Riom to South of Issoire.Main wines: Châteaugay, Chanturgue, Corent, Boudes,Madargue The Saint-Pourçain, oldest vineyards of France, stretche out over 19 towns.Main wines: Saint-Pourçain, Gamay noir, Pinot noir, Chardonnay Famous fruity spirits made in Alsace: Avèze, Velay verbena, Arbuse, Maurin. Mineral waters: Vichy-Célestins, Saint-Yorre, Chateldon, Sainte-Marguerite, Volvic, Châteauneuf, Arvie, Mont-Dore, Rozanna. All are naturally filtered by the volcanik rock and famous in France as all over the world.
Food		Auvergne has five “AOC” (a label guaranteeing the origin)and well-known cheeses: Cantal and Saint Nectaire;the oldest ones,Salers;the strong one, Fourme d’Ambert; the cylindrical one, Bleu d'Auvergne”; the creamy one. The “potée auvergnate”(boiled dinner), the truffade (a potato and cheese dish), potato pâté and pounti (pork and prune meatloaf)account for the best and most famous Auvergne specialities. Have also good reputation:bovine meat(Charolais, Salers and Aubrac, Mézenc),lamb, poultry, dried sausages,andouillettes,blood sausages,hams, pâtés, terrines, pork rillettes. Are also appreciated:Fish (brook trout, char, salmon) Are also very flavorful:mushrooms, potatoes, chestnuts, garlic, green lentils.
		Auvergne Leisure and Festivals
Leisure		The traditionnal musical culture is still alive through the folk auvergnate music. The main musical instruments including: accordion, hurdy-gurdy, le violon. The traditionnal dance "la bourrée auvergnate" is still practised all over the France and mainly in the south Auvergne.
Festival Celebrations		Numbers of locals markets offers the opportunity meet local farmers, also celebrated during the famous "Festa del Païs" in August in Saint-Flour. Festival of the High Country "les Hautes Terres", in Saint Flour, end of June, celebrates mountainous art and patrimony.
Language		French is obviously the predominant language in Auvergne, even if 71% of inhabitants want to maintain and develop the regional language called " auvergnat".
		Places of interest in Aquitaine
Fortifications		In Auvergne, restored castles or castles in ruins are countless and include: Murol Castle: with medieval military architecture,Lapalisse Castle: with Italian Renaissance features,Sedaiges de Marmanhac Castle: with 19th century's architecture, Montluçon Castle, built in 11th century and rebuilt in 1370. Others are not to be missed:Puyguillon,Varenne, Bourbon-l'Archambaud, Busset, Conros, Pontgibaud, La Batisse, Saint Saturnin, Tournoël, Saint Vidal, Effiat, Valprivas, Domeyrat,Chavaniac Lafayette and Pesteils castles, as Polignac fortress or Veygoux Manor.
Religious monuments		Auvergne gathers more than 500 Romanesque churches. Are of interest: the Saint-Austremoine abbey, Notre-Dame-du-Port on the World Heritage list,the Puy-en-Velay Notre-Dame cathedral with its 134 steps, Brioude Basilica, Lavaudieu abbey. Le Puy-en-Velay is one of the main European meeting-points for pilgrims. This is the famous starting point for one of the roads for travelling to the Spanish sanctuary of Santiago de Compostela, crossing the Monts du Velay,through Saint-Privat-d'Allier, Monistrol-d'Allier, Saugues, Conques and Rouergue.
“Beautiful Villages”		The following typical villages are classified among “The Most Beautiful Villages of France”: Allier:Charroux. Cantal:Salers, Tournemire . Haute Loire:Arlempdes, Blesle, Lavaudieu, Pradelles Puy de Dôme:Montpeyroux, Saint-Floret, Saint-Saturnin, Usson.
Museums		Auvergne is rich of 130 museums including:"Musée Anne de Beaujeu" with the regional prehistoric objects,"Musée de la Coutellerie" of Thiers : with knife as symbol, "Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires" of Haute-Loire: about popular lifestyle and craft in the past, "Musée d'Art et d'Archéologie" of Aurillac : with art collection and cantal history, "Musée municipal" of Vichy, with art and archeology collections."Musée du Veinazès" about regional human history.
Trades Routes		"The Route des Métiers" invites everyone to discover craftsmen’s workshops and museums dedicated to producing fine traditional and contemporary products.
Historical Routes		The "Châteaux d'Auvergne" road is divided into 6 circuits, crossing Allier, Puy de Dôme, Cantal and Haute Loire departments and passing through volcanic, mountainous and natural fantastic landscapes.

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