When you go on a family holiday in France and stay in one of those campsites you don’t have high hopes for the beer selection in the supermarket. Imagine my surprise to find, not one, but two local breweries on the shelves. Argelès-sur-Mer, a small seaside town is spoilt, it also boasts a rake of vineyards. So you definitely wouldn’t die of thirst.
Brasserie Cap D’Ona doesn’t seem to have a tap room on site from a quick check that I did. La Canya does though so I rented a bike and did the 5km cycle (with a steep hill) to whet my appetite. The guy there didn’t have much English and I have terrible French so I contented myself with a few beers. All very drinkable but I found the pro Ukraine American Red Ale the most interesting. I like their cartoon style labels too.
I thought it would be rude not to try some of the local wine so I visited Cellier des Vignerons where you can try a few samples before buying. If you are very clever you can even bring bottles to fill for a couple of euros. I’m also pretty sure the bottle I paid €9 for would be a few times more expensive here due to the huge duty that we pay. Anyway, I know very little about wine so I’ll just say that I liked it!
Arbor et Sens was a local restaurant which was recommended. They proudly grow their vegetables on site. This coupled with an IPA from Cap D’Ona made for a very enjoyable locavore experience.
A pub near the harbour boasts a selection of beers from around the world, mostly bottles from what I gathered. Unfortunately it wasn’t open when I was in the area. I would advise checking opening times for anywhere you’re visiting in the area as many close from 12/1 to 3/4 in the afternoon.
I contented myself with a few beers at La Fine Mousse. I’m not sure if there’s any connection with the pub of the same name in Paris. Nevertheless, it was a grand way to pass an hour and I had a couple of tasty croquettes with my beers. When returning home I was impressed to see Cap D’Ona beers on sale in the small airport café. Hopefully this will be useful to some of you if you visit Argelès-sur-Mer this summer. À votre santé!