The visit of the King of England Charles III and Queen Camilla, Friday afternoon in Bordeaux, will be carried out with a bang. Town Hall, Place de la Bourse, visit to the Le Pain de l’Amitié association for the queen and the Floirac Experimental Forest for the king, then visit to the Smith Haut-Lafitte wine estate in Martillac, south of Bordeaux , at the end of the afternoon… The royal stroll will be “perfect” according to the authorities.
But what a “tremendous spotlight” for those who will have the honors, as underlines Philippe Traissac, president of the Le Pain de l’Amitié association, rue Saint-Nicolas in Bordeaux. This was chosen by the royal couple because it is part of the “In Kind Direct” network, an international charitable structure founded by Charles III when he was Prince of Wales.
“We have traced the entire peregrination of the queen”
Organizing such a visit is particularly difficult for a small association like this. “Everything is very prepared, carefully planned” insists Philippe Traissac. And he will not soon forget that day in July, when he saw “around forty people disembark, with representatives of the British embassy, the prefecture, the town hall, the protection personalities in Paris, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs…” Since then, “there have been two other preparatory visits. We have traced the queen’s entire journey through the premises, and everyone knows where they should stand, it’s very precise. » Two families from the Sahel must also be presented to the queen, with whom she will speak briefly, before giving them a package.
Designated last February, for a visit which was initially scheduled to take place in March, but which had been postponed due to demonstrations against pension reform in France at that time, Le Pain de l’Amitié, a charitable association part of the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul network, helps families in need, the homeless and migrants. A social restaurant offers meals for 1.50 euros. In her solidarity grocery store, she sells fruit and vegetables for 50 cents per kilo, and meat for one euro, as well as hygiene products.
“We won’t really be in real conditions”
The duration of the royal visit should not exceed 25 minutes. Short, to explain all the challenges of the association, emphasize that “the number of beneficiaries is increasing by 30% this year. »And then, “we won’t really be in real conditions” a volunteer points out to us. For security reasons, the number of people within the association will actually be (very) reduced.
Whatever. “Our teams are happy, proud, and this will give us the notoriety which we need to recruit new volunteers” insists Philippe Traissac. “And then,” smiles a volunteer, “at least the city came to clean the yard, that had never happened before.” »
Four wine estates were in competition
King Charles also wanted to mark his trip to Bordeaux with the seal of his great passion, organic farming. And for Florence Cathiard, the owner of the famous Grand Cru Classé Smith Haut-Lafitte, this is certainly why her wine estate was chosen by Buckingham at the beginning of the year.
Four Bordeaux estates were in the running to host the royal visit, “even if when we were contacted for the first time, we did not know which personality it was,” says Florence Cathiard. We were told about an ambassador, then a minister… Then after four visits, we learned that it was for the king. »
Delighted, the owner of the place believes that there is “a certain logic if we were chosen, because we are organic pioneers. » When Florence Cathiard and her husband Daniel – both former members of the French ski team, and founders of the Go Sport brand which they have since resold – bought the estate in 1990, “we immediately took steps to go organic,” she says, even if she recognizes today that “it was a mistake, because it was too early. » After difficult starts, back and forth between organic and conventional, several harvest losses, as in 2013, the 78 hectare estate, including 11 hectares of white wine, is today “100% organic, and even biodynamic , but without the mystical aspect…” And with a regularity in quality, which has been unanimously approved for several years.
A first meeting with the Prince of Wales around twenty years ago
Florence Cathiard further emphasizes that “we were also the only château to have been invited to COP21, because we are the only ones to recycle our 20 tonnes of CO2 emitted by our tanks. » Finally, “we are also in bioprecision, that is to say that we use drones, sensors on board tractors, and computerized optical sorting, because in an English climate like us In Bordeaux, we encounter problems, especially mildew. »
In short, Florence Cathiard and King Charles speak the same language. The boss of Smith Haut-Lafitte does not hide the fact that she has been a “fan” of him since he became Prince of Wales, and that she even had the opportunity to meet him around twenty years ago. of years. “A friend who was organizing a charity event in Great Britain asked me if I was interested in attending to meet Prince Charles. I was already closely following what he was doing in terms of organic farming on his Highgrove estate, he was a visionary, so yes I wanted to meet him. At the end of his polo game, he approached me while I was serving my wine, and we talked about organic. Well, he has obviously forgotten this exchange since, but for me, it reassured me in our choices in the field. » Particularly in terms of diversifying, by also launching the Caudalie cosmetics brand.
Last rehearsal Friday
At Smith Haut-Lafitte, the visit will also be precise. “We have a route, which we will repeat one last time on Friday, but it is subject to slight modifications depending on the weather. » The king and queen should in any case go down to the castle’s cooperage, the Grand Cru Classé of Pessac-Léognan being one of the four Bordeaux wine estates to make its own barrels, with Château Margaux, Lafite-Rothschild, Haut -Brion. “Perhaps the king will even help the cooper,” says the owner of the place.
She also hopes to be able to take him to the top of the castle tower, “where we can see our entire vineyard, and in the distance our positive energy cellar dedicated to young vines. » In the distance, he should also see the grape pickers at work, since the estate is in full harvest of its red grapes, but for security reasons the activity of the castle will have to be pushed beyond a certain perimeter . Too bad, because the royal couple will not be able to witness the sorting of the grapes, a mix of technology with the optical sorter and tradition since it is also done by hand.
Two free bottles
On the other hand, it will pass through the “cathedral”, an impressive cellar with a thousand barrels, reserved solely for the château’s grand cru. It is currently the 2022 vintage which is stored there before bottling. It will be joined at the end of the harvest by 2023.
Will the royal couple taste the wine? “We really hope so,” says Florence Cathiard, who specifies that she is authorized to offer “only two bottles” to her distinguished guests. “As the 2022, the year of his coronation, was not yet in bottle, we were authorized to create a blend of two vintages that are closest to it,” she explains. And these two bottles will be stamped with the royal seal, with special labels. »
Everything will be done to make this moment historic. And if for Smith Haut-Lafitte, known worldwide among wine lovers, the issue of the event will not be recognition, “we still hope that this will establish our notoriety”, anticipates Florence Cathiard.