The charm of the cadoles

A unique heritage in Champagne…

Cadoles are dry-stone vineyard lodges found locally only in the south-east of Champagne, around the villages of Les Riceys, Gyé-sur-Seine and Courteron. Where their source material, the Jurassic “Burgundian” flat stone, exists in abundance. The cadoles are distinguished by their vaults formed of superimposed flat stones, positioned in a corbelled manner. Their entrance is often narrow. They thus have an igloo shape, which helps to maintain a certain thermal neutrality in the room (cool in summer and temperate in winter). Probably built in large numbers, there are still about 150 of them in the Côte des Bar, unfortunately many are in ruins. They can be found on the high ground, on the hillsides and on the plateaus. They are often accompanied by “murgers” (dry stone walls, which can sometimes reach surprising dimensions) and protective windbreakers. The oldest could date back to the 18th century. These shelters show a variety of detailed shapes, especially their roofing, which can be cone-shaped, dome-shaped, in some cases in the shape of a Chinese hat, an inverted bell or even that of a sugar loaf. Some types can be very localised: overhanging roofs between Courteron and Gyé-sur-Seine, very few domed roofs very rarely in Les Riceys.

… to shelter the winegrowers

These constructions and their accompanying facilities bear witness to the time when man gained space over nature. The cadoles are more or less occasional shelters for breaking bread, resting, spending the night if necessary, and storing some tools. They served as a protective cocoon for workers or passers-by. Nowadays, most of them are in the undergrowth and are sometimes not easily accessible. Vines have decreased significantly today and since the end of the 19th century: phylloxera around 1895, the wine crisis at the beginning of the 20th century, the First World War… Vineyards were halved, then further reduced until the gradual recovery of the Thirty Glorious Years. These constructions, built without any supports, formworks or brackets, bear witness to the intelligence, the understanding of the use of local stone, the imagination, the skill, the know-how and the human genius. As such, they deserve recognition and protection. To find out more, you can consult the inventory of cadoles carried out by the Unescomission with the aim of restoring and preserving this heritage.

Discover the cadoles!

On foot or by bike, sporty or curious, alone or with others, discover the cadoles in a superb natural setting! Discover the cadoles trails and the different events that will take you through the green landscapes of the Côte des Bar…