Granit

In the land of Muscadet grapes, the village of Clisson is not only home to Hellfest – one of Europe’s biggest heavy metal music festivals – but also to Granit, the wine bar & shop run by Pierre Orhon! Seated at the tiny counter, around the communal table on wheels, or on the big terrace with its guinguette-feel, let this wine enthusiast serve you treasure after treasure, all sourced from his 250-bottle-strong collection: Sauv’ Qui Peut, a sparkling wine from the Touraine winery La Pensée Filante (€6 a glass), Indomptable, a Roussillon syrah from the Domaine de Mena (€23 a bottle, not counting the €7 corkage fee if you want to open it up in house), or a skin-contact Alsatian pinot gris produced by Pierre Frick (€30)… And make sure to try one of the local appellations, like L’Ouche du Four, a Muscadet from Antoine Delaunay (€9.50). But the soft drink selection is also worth considering (props to the Les Filles de l’Ouest schorle sodas), and so are the snacks: saucisson from the Maine-et-Loire department, local goat cheeses, seafood plates (which include Noirmoutier oysters when they’re in season), homemade sardine and smoked mackerel rillettes… In other words, Granit is a rock-solid affair! // Larosé 

THE BULLET-PROOF BOTTLE: Poïèsis by Olivier Lejeune (€28), a 100% Anjou chenin vinified in Mont-Benault, the same village that a certain Richard Leroy is from…