Angoulême Airport

About Angoulême

The Charente river and its valley set the agricultural tone for this département until the mid-eighteenth century. Then along came Jean Martell from Jersey, Baron Otard of mixed Scottish and Norwegian ancestry, and an Irishman called Richard Hennessy.

These men set up businesses devoted to refining the distillation and storing of the area's low alcohol wines, and voilà, the “elixir of the gods,” as Victor Hugo described cognac, was born.

The skill in making cognac lies in the blending of the various eaux de vie which must all come from the six strictly defined areas of vineyards. Most of the producers allow free visits for tourists, and tastings last about an hour. Unless you’re a connoisseur of one particular brand, the visits are all pretty similar - although at Cognac Hennessy you get a trip across the Charente thrown in. If you visit in the winter months, only a handful are open.

The birthplace of François I, Château des Valois has a prison chamber where scratched messages made by British prisoners of war at the end of the 18th century can still be read on the walls.

Angoulême has attractive medieval stone and half timbered buildings and the Grande-Rue which leads you down to the warehouses on the riverside. The roofs of Angoulame are black from the fungus which lives on the cognac in the casks.

All around Angoulême there are billboards advertising Pineau de Charente. Pineau de Charente is a sweet liquor made with a blend of grape juice halted in fermentation by adding cognac. It is said to have been invented to use up surplus grapes as production of cognac is strictly limited. It can be drunk chilled as an aperitif, or poured into half a charentais melon as a starter.

Angoulême is built on a natural rock outcrop with man-made ramparts against attackers. An important market town, Angouleme's 12th century cathedral was restored sympathetically in the 19th century. The old part of Angouleme has some fine renaissance style inns. Nearby is the unfinished château La Mercerie which has been described as the Versailles of Charente.

About Angouleme Airport

Angouleme Airport is located 15km north-east of Angouleme. Angouleme Airport has 2 runways, the longest of which is tar and measures 1,810m. Angouleme Airport can process 50,000 passengers a year. There are 100 free parking spaces, and there is a taxi service from Angouleme Airport to the nearby city of Angouleme.

16430 Champniers,
France

http://www.aeroport-angouleme-cognac.com