The town of Aubière in the Puy-de-Dôme department is less than 5 km from Auvergne cities of Beaumont and Clermont-Ferrand.
The story of Aubière is strongly linked to wine. The predominant wine business until the late nineteenth century had ceased following the outbreak of phylloxera. This wine had found many witnesses, such as town houses feature a winery and the numerous caves built on the northern and southern flanks of the Artière valley creek that runs through the village of Aubière. You can discover this wine spent in the Museum of Vine and Wine Lower Auvergne, also called "La Cave à Madame", which houses the cellars of the seventeenth century.
The cultural heritage of the town is remarkable, like its many sights to see, such as Ramacles, the site of the Caves, church, or the remains, which attest to an ancient and rich history.
The Aubière natural heritage also deserves to be visited, including the Puy Aubière last green oasis of the town to the unique biodiversity.
The viticultural past of Aubière is still very present today, with vineyard houses that have retained the traditional appearance of the villages of the hillsides of Limagne, with a building on several levels with clean features and a ground floor. pavement provided with a cuvage.
The Caves site is of major interest. Built in height because of the proximity in the village of the water table, these cellars are distributed on two main sites.
The site of the cellars of "The Cross of the Tree" on the north slope, grouped about 200 cellars. The eastern part is now home to the university complex of Cézeaux.
The "Petites Caves" and "Grandes Caves" are spread over the southern hillside.
The cellars represent about 180 entries for nearly 900 cellars in total, unique site in Europe for its extent. They were conceived in successive waves between 1831 and 1877, until the stop of the program of construction, because of the epidemic of phylloxera.
Luxurious buildings were built during the second half of the 19th century on the north and south slopes of the village. If their plan is common to many houses of Aubière, the areas are much larger, with a huge cuvage, a large wall, a large iron gate and especially the use of Volvic stone, which confirms the wealth winemakers at this time.
The neo-gothic church of Aubière was rebuilt between 1853 and 1855. It has a remarkable decapitated silhouette. You can see magnificent stained glass windows recently restored.
The Aubière cemetery is one of the major sites of the town. It presents a unique set of Volvic stone vaults and chapels.
The Ramacles were born in the early nineteenth century. These bridges were built at the initiative of the vineyard owners, without municipal authorization. The winegrowers' houses built in the past against the ramparts of the North face of the Place offered no outlet on it, depriving the vine growers of access to their properties and cellars in the South of the village. There are now four Ramblas in the commune.
Aubière has other important sites, such as the Rossignol gate, the Beneilh bridge, or the Menhir des Sauzes, granite megalith of 2.30 meters high.
The natural heritage invites to the walk, such as Artière, stream that runs through the town or the Puy d'Aubière, treasure that can be discovered via the Ophrys trail.
In the past, there were two gateways to the town of Aubière: one to the north, called the Quaire gate (or Quayre, according to the scribes) in the direction of Clermont-Ferrand, and one to the south, called the door of the Ram- or carries grape harvests) which allowed the inhabitants to go to the cellars and vineyards. These doors were sold stone by stone during the Revolution.
The plateau of Cézeaux was, until the 1930s, a cultivated land: vineyards, gardens, orchards. It is the construction of the avenue that goes up to the plateau (today avenue Jean Noellet) which allowed the inhabitants to build on the plateau. During the 1950s, Michelin cities were built. Today, the Cézeaux plateau is known for its university campus.
The market of the town of Aubière takes place on Friday and Sunday from 8h to 13h. You can taste various products of the region, such as fruits and vegetables, cheese, poultry, charcuterie... but also stock up on flowers, handicrafts and clothes.
In June, Aubière organizes its funfair, with many attractions that will delight children. It is also during this period that the rosière of the commune is celebrated.
Aubière organizes the fair of Saint-Loup end of August, with the program shows, fireworks, animations, garage sales and exhibitions spread over two days of festivities.
