Norah Jones to headline France’s 60th Colmar Wine Fair

“Music is the wine that fills the cup of silence” and this year from 10th to 19th August at the 60th Colmar Wine Fair the cup will surely be brimming over! As well as being a wine fair of international reputation, the Colmar Wine Fair has also become one of the largest music festivals in France.

Fifteen concerts will take place over ten days featuring a variety of international artists. Headlining are Norah Jones, The Rakes, Mika and Indochine. Other confirmed artists include The Chemical Brothers, Joe Cocker, The Smashing Pumpkins, Marillion and Status Quo. Tickets start at €20.00 (£13.50).

The Colmar Wine Fair was started in 1948 in an attempt to dispel the gloom that still lingered in Alsace after the end of the Second World War. It was an opportunity for the regions wine growers to get together and sample each others produce. Inevitably, the wine was accompanied by delicious local food and the evenings ended with music and song. Sixty years later over 370 of the regions top wine and food producers will create a wonderful open market feel with plenty of opportunity to sample and purchase some Alsatian specialties including Riesling and Gewürztraminer wines and the delicious Munster cheese.

For more details on the festival and to purchase tickets for the concerts please visit Foire-colmar.com. The website also gives details of all of the hotels and campsites in the vicinity of the Wine Fair. The Colmar Tourist Office (ot-colmar.fr) can tailor make a travel package for anyone visiting the event. For information on all that is happening in Alsace visit Tourism-alsace.com.

The TGV Est high speed train link is now open between Alsace and Paris. The service has reduced rail journey times from London to Colmar by almost half and it now takes just four hours and fifty minutes (tgvesteuropeen.com).