Marché d'Azay-le-Rideau (Wednesday & Sunday Market)
Twice a week the compact town centre of Azay-le-Rideau fills with stalls selling everything from warm goat's cheese and rillons de Touraine to bunches of locally grown sunflowers. It is the most authentic way to taste the Touraine larder without driving to a supermarket.
What to look for
The Wednesday morning market on the Place de la République is the smaller, more neighbourhood affair — favoured by locals picking up the week's vegetables, fresh bread and rotisserie chicken. Sunday's market is larger and draws producers from across the Indre-et-Loire, including honey sellers, charcutiers and wine growers pouring Chinon and Azay-le-Rideau AOC whites.
Look out for rillons, the chunky slow-cooked pork belly cubes that are a Touraine obsession — vendors sell them warm, glistening and ready to eat with a hunk of sourdough. Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine goat's cheese, rolled in ash with a straw through the centre, is another regional staple worth buying.
Wines of the Azay-le-Rideau AOC
Azay-le-Rideau has its own small appellation producing delicate, off-dry Chenin Blanc whites and light rosés from Grolleau grapes — wines rarely seen outside the region. Market-day is the perfect moment to buy directly from a vigneron and avoid the tourist markup.
Ask producers about cellar visits; many of the small domaines clustered around the Indre valley welcome visitors for tastings in their tuffeau cave cellars, which maintain a natural 12°C year-round.
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