The FarmOur family history
Our family has been farming here for many generations, since at least 1630. Our ancestors cultivated the land and built buildings to house the family and for agricultural use.
Over the generations, there have been many changes in the crops grown:
Silkworms
The farm – and indeed the Ardèche region as a whole – had its golden age at a time when silkworms were bred here. The Bastide is a former magnanery or silk worm farm, and rooms on the upper floor housed the precious Bombyx caterpillars and their silk cocoons. Unfortunately, the arrival of pepper disease in the middle of the 19th century and the introduction of synthetic textiles had a serious impact on silkworm farming.
Fruit trees
Until the 1980s, fruit trees, including cherries, apricots, chestnuts, and especially peaches, were a valuable crop for the farm.
Vines
Vine growing has always been part of the landscape in this region. Domaine d’Augnac’s barrels and wine press are still to be found in the Bastide’s cellars. Until the 1930s, wine was made on site and sold directly to the dealers, but since then the grapes have been taken to the wine cooperative in Rosières.
Olive trees
Olive trees are now the main crop at Domaine d’Augnac. This is a new undertaking, and in a few years we will be able to offer you our own oils and olives to eat. But you have to be patient, as an olive tree takes ten years to produce its first crop.
Tourism
In the 1980’s, Claude and Maryse added a new chapter to the life of the farm in the form of a holiday village. They wanted to keep the buildings in the family and find a way to renovate and maintain them.
Their son Sébastien is continuing the history of the domain today.
His grandfather had passed on his passion for working on the land, his parents a sense of hospitality.
Tourism and agriculture, throughout the seasons, bring the Domaine d’Augnac to life.
“Today we are proud to continue the adventure by inviting you to stay among the beautiful stone buildings at the heart of our land, and to discover the landscape and stories of the Ardèche.”
