Château de Crémat

Just a short journey from the centre of Nice, high in the hills of the Côte d’Azur, we discovered a vineyard that was far more than we expected. Château de Crémat is part winery, part château, part art gallery and part Riviera legend, with links to Coco Chanel, ancient cellars, organic Bellet AOC wines and breathtaking views across Nice to the sea.

As always when travelling, I like to add in a wine adventure wherever I can. For me, discovering a new place is not just about the beaches, the restaurants or the famous views. It is also about finding the vineyards, meeting the people behind the wines and seeing how each region tells its own story through the glass.

During a trip to the South of France, while staying near Nice on the Côte d’Azur, we decided to explore some of the local vineyards that could be reached using public transport. This immediately made the adventure feel more interesting. No hired car, no organised coach tour, just a tram ride, a small electric bus and a little curiosity.

Our next vineyard visit was to Château de Crémat, set high in the hills above Nice and part of the historic Bellet AOC, one of the smallest and most distinctive wine appellations in France. The estate is also certified organic, having held organic certification since 2014, which adds another layer of interest for anyone who enjoys discovering wines with a strong sense of place.

From the centre of Nice, the journey took less than an hour. First came a short tram ride, followed by a small electric bus that wound its way up the mountain roads. It was the kind of route that makes you smile and grip your seat slightly at the same time, a little “crazy bus” climbing higher and higher above the city.

Then, suddenly, the château came into view.

Standing proudly on the hilltop, Château de Crémat is impossible to miss. Built in 1906, the building is striking: a rich red façade with cream edging, decorative parapets and a grand entrance that immediately makes it feel more like a palace than a winery. It has that wonderful Côte d’Azur confidence about it — elegant, dramatic and just a little theatrical.

When we arrived, we first entered a small shop area with shaded seating outside, a welcome relief from the heat of the day. The team explained that wine tasting was available there and that we could sit in the shaded area to sample the wines. But, of course, I was hoping to see more than just the shop. I asked whether it might be possible to visit the winery itself.

At first, this seemed uncertain, as they were setting up for a large private event. A phone call was made to check, and to our delight, they said they could take us in.

We were asked to head further up the immaculate driveway towards the gallery area. Everything around the estate looked beautifully maintained: the paths, the buildings, the gardens and the views. There was a real sense that this was not just a vineyard, but a destination.

The gallery itself was a surprise. It was a generous space, currently displaying a collection of modern art and graffiti-style paintings by local artists. Before seeing any barrels or tanks, we found ourselves wandering through contemporary artwork in the hills above Nice. It was not what I had expected, but it immediately added another layer to the visit.

Then Clara, who was working in the gallery and spoke excellent English, offered to take us up towards the château and winery.

At this point, we still had no real idea of the elegance and history we were about to discover.

As we walked a little further up the hill, Clara stopped beside an elaborate, ancient-looking door. Above it was an interlocking double “C” design. She asked whether we recognised it.

Of course, it looked familiar.

The symbol immediately brought to mind the legendary Chanel emblem. Clara explained the story connected to the château: Coco Chanel was said to have been a close friend of the owner and a regular visitor to Château de Crémat. According to the château’s story, the double “C” design here inspired the now-famous Chanel logo.

Whether you come for the wine, the architecture or the legend, it is a wonderful moment of discovery.

Then Clara opened the door, and we stepped inside.

The interior was extraordinary.

Room after room was decorated with a level of elegance you might expect from a royal palace. These were not the château’s original furnishings, but pieces acquired more recently at auction from the Ritz in Paris during one of its renovations. This gave the interiors an incredible sense of glamour and theatre.

One room was described as connected to Lady Diana, said to have been her private room when staying at the Ritz. Another was linked to Coco Chanel herself, complete with her original desk and an enormous bedroom that opened into an equally impressive bathroom. Inside was a sample trolley, which Clara explained had been used by Coco Chanel when mixing perfumes.

The whole place felt almost unreal.

There was a huge dining room with table set for 12 people with artistic plate  around the table, grand bedrooms, richly decorated sitting rooms and doors opening onto terraces overlooking the vines. From one of the patios, you could look down over the vineyards stepping neatly across the hillside, each row beautifully kept and framed by the landscape of Provence and the Côte d’Azur.

Then came the tower.

Clara led us up a series of steps to the top of the château. I will admit, by the time I reached the top, I was slightly out of breath. But the reward was more than worth it.

From the tower, there was a full 360-degree view across the hills, towards Nice and out to the sea. It was one of those views that makes you stop talking for a moment. The kind of view that reminds you exactly why wine regions are so special. They are not just places where grapes are grown; they are landscapes, histories and experiences all woven together.

After the tower, we headed down into the cellars beneath the château.

The atmosphere changed immediately. It felt almost like stepping into dungeons, although beautifully restored ones. The walls had been carefully finished, but certain areas had deliberately been left exposed to show the soil structure and the ancient stonework beneath the building. Clara explained that parts of the site went back to Roman times, adding another layer of history beneath the glamour above.

We walked through the cellars until we reached a large red room filled with barrels. Even here, art had been brought into the winery. Some of the barrels had been decorated in a bold, modern style, almost like Picasso-inspired paintings. There were also ceramic eggs used for fermenting wine, alongside barrels and other traditional winemaking features.

Further along were large open areas that had once been used as fermentation chambers. They are no longer used in the same way today, but they have been preserved and presented beautifully, almost like a museum of winemaking.

Then Clara checked whether the team were working in the modern winery area. As this was something I was especially interested in, she kindly took us through.

Inside, we saw the stainless-steel tanks, presses and working areas used for modern production. Like the rest of the estate, everything was immaculate. It had the polish of a museum, but this was still a working winery. At one end, we could see where the team had been sampling and tasting wines as part of the winemaking process.

After the tour of the main building, we returned to the terrace near the gallery and sat outside. Clara then came out and guided us through a tasting of three wines from the château: a rosé, a white and a red. Each wine was introduced and explained, giving us a better understanding of the estate, the Bellet AOC and the wines produced in the hills above Nice.

And the tasting did not stop there.

Afterwards, we walked back down the hill to the shop area, where we tasted another six wines. Again, the team took the time to explain each one, the grape varieties used and the individual character of the wines.

By the end of the visit, Château de Crémat had become far more than just a convenient vineyard trip from Nice. It was a full Côte d’Azur wine adventure: public transport, hillside views, art, history, Chanel stories, palace-like rooms, ancient cellars, modern organic winemaking and generous tastings.

It is a place I would recommend even to someone who is not especially interested in wine. For wine lovers, it is fascinating. For travellers, it is beautiful. And for anyone staying near Nice, it is a reminder that some of the best adventures can be found just a tram and a mountain bus ride away.