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The Hameau Duboeuf is celebrating its twentieth anniversary! As a pioneer in wine tourism in France, the Hameau Duboeuf, which has already welcomed more than two million visitors since opening, is celebrating its twentieth anniversary. It is a grand and symbolic occasion for the first European wine theme park ever, which has remained unique and now attracts more than 80,000 visitors every year. The Hameau Duboeuf was thus created by the family of the same name, a family dedicated to its vineyards for more than four centuries. When creating the Hameau Duboeuf twenty years ago, the Duboeuf family fulfilled their wish to make this know‐how and love of vines and wine available to all.
20 years of commitment When Georges Duboeuf set up the hamlet in 1993, it was an ambitious wager: he wanted to create a place of learning and fun which would help visitors of all ages and all levels of knowledge of wine to appreciate the beauty of the vineyard. Whether complete novices or real wine aficionados, all visitors are transported by this magical place. During the inauguration, Georges Duboeuf declared “I wanted to show connoisseurs, wanderers or simply curious visitors the backdrop of a theatre which is not well known: that of the vine and wine. I wanted to tell the history of the Beaujolais.” Georges Duboeuf, who numbers among his supportive friends such notable personalities as the great chef Paul Bocuse or the cultural celebrity, Bernard Pivot, managed to achieve this visionary project, and was motivated by his unconditional love of his “terroir”. Today, 30,000 square meters (as against 10,000 square meters in 1993) are devoted to this incredible place, which offers its customers more than five hours of visits at four sites with different themes.
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Today, Franck Dubœuf and his wife Anne watch over the hamlet. The couple is totally devoted to the unique potential of the Hameau Duboeuf, working every day to satisfy customers and families, sharing this common and unflagging love of their region. Franck Duboeuf wants "(…) the visitor to be happy and content with his visit, for the visitor to learn that our regions are marvellously beautiful and bear the traces of history and tradition and that wines from our regions are unique and exceptional in quality. Is it not said that ‘wine borrows its qualities from the sites which watch over its birth’?”
Twenty years of pleasure and teaching It was the desire to pass on this knowledge which guided the founders in setting up and building the various attractions at the theme park. No one can possibly be worn out from a visit to the Hameau Doboeuf, for the sites have been designed to bring younger and older visitors together in the beautiful discovery of the culture of vines and wines. “It is a place of memory at which all the acts of the drama of wine making are played out, a temple in which I wanted to pay tribute to and beyond wine, to the men who love it and cultivate it, winemakers, artisans, poets… It is a book in which I wanted to write the biography of wine in general and of the Beaujolais and the Mâconnais in particular, in the form of a great fresco.” Georges Duboeuf, at the creation of the Hameau Duboeuf in 1993. Between the very playful attractions and the expertly constructed exhibits, visitors leave the hamlet amused and won over, some with their curiosity more than aroused… The collections presented in the course of the visit present two thousand years of the history of vineyards and wine, with more than 3000 collector’s objects and an exhibit devoted to advertising, with more than 500 antique posters. The course also includes original attractions and shows: a three dimensional film, a dynamic cinema, a theatre of automatons… And obviously there is a wine tasting room to allow visitors to delight in the fragrances of the vintages. When they created the hamlet, the Duboeuf bought the Romanèche‐Thorins train station just opposite the wine park, which was on the mythical wine transport route from Paris to
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Lyon to the Mediterranean. The train station is now home to an exhibit on wine transport by rail. A rare item, the magnificent imperial coach which the Compagnie du Nord gave to Napoleon III, is on exhibit for the public. A wine‐making centre plunges visitors into the heart of wine production, while gardens dedicated to an initiation into fragrances and an Adventure Golf course complete the visit.
Twenty years of innovation The Hameau Duboeuf, which has always been convinced of the incredible potential of new technologies, regularly creates new forms of animation, which are always innovative and playful. The initiation into the world of wine is thus punctuated by automatons, holograms, videos, and 3D animation. Thus, in 2012, the Hameau Duboeuf was able to offer its visitors a new key attraction: the Ciné Up, a dynamic cinema with simulators, allowing spectators to enjoy an original discovery of the landscapes of the Beaujolais and Mâcon regions. As Franck Duboeuf said when inaugurating Ciné Up, “the logic of investment is the common denominator behind all theme parks aiming at customer loyalty. Our goal is clear: we want our visitors to enjoy meeting us and to be revitalised. We have introduced sensation and liveliness. We are maintaining our aim of teaching through playfulness. My father put his vision out there and managed to breathe life into it. He gave reality to something which did not yet really exist: wine tourism.” And because vines and wine is constantly being renewed through new methods, new consumers’ habits and a unique history, the Hameau Duboeuf has not ceased to evolve since it was created. It thus imposed itself as a unique place for the family, where young and old come and come again to rediscover a universe that is as mysterious as it is enchanting.
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And a great celebration for the Hameau Duboeuf’s twentieth anniversary… You don’t turn twenty every day, and for the Hameau Duboeuf, the anniversary is a major event indeed: twenty years of joy, development, sharing, new attractions and passion. And we will be celebrating this unique event with our ever loyal public! The anniversary party of the Hameau Duboeuf is to take place on June 6, 2013. The programme of this unique evening includes a dinner show with prestigious guests, exceptional numbers and obviously some great surprises. The event is open to the public at 130 € per person. For the public at large, a great Treasure Hunt is to take place from May 1 to December 31, 2013 at the Hameau Duboeuf. Every family or group of friends will choose a postcard and observe, look for and identify the collector’s items which correspond to the photographs on their postcard within the 30,000 m2 of parkland. At the end of each month, the winning form will be drawn at random from the forms with the right answer. The winner will received an exceptional dinner or lunch in a restaurant in the region awarded a Michelin star.
The famous draftsman and scriptwriter from Lyon, Michel Rodrigue has retraced the story of the Hameau Duboeuf in a comic book which is to be available from June onwards. As the designer of the official mascot of the Rugby World Cup in 1987, he participated in various major works such as Spirou, Pieds Nickelés and the History of the French Revolution. The comic book will be on sale as of June, 2013.
Press contacts Agence Pain Vin & Company
Hameau Duboeuf
Blandine de Roaldès
Anne Duboeuf
[email protected]
[email protected]
01 55 35 03 86
03 85 35 22 22
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