The Bread and Wind Festival celebrates the heritage of the mills, in Faugères this Saturday

Lisa Moreau, from the tourist office, and Boris Degand, from the bakery L’Arbre à pains are stakeholders in the 2nd Bread and Wind Festival. Diane Petitmangin – Midi Libre

Le site des Trois Tours, situé à 417 m, surplombe le village de Faugères Diane Petitmangin

Initiée par la communauté de communes des Avant-Monts et l’association L’Échappée belle, elle met en lumière le patrimoine local et l’envie des acteurs du territoire de faire vivre à nouveau la filière blé-farine-pain.

By a happy coincidence of the calendar, the Festival of Bread and Wind of Faugères benefits from the precious sponsorship of Saint Honoré and Aeolus. Moved to Saturday June 15 due to bad weather (it was initially scheduled for Saturday May 19), this 2nd edition is the fruit of the joint will of the community of communes of Avant-Monts and the ;faugerolle association The great escape to enliven their territory and defend its identity.

The event allows you to delve into the twists and turns of history, when Faugères and its surroundings were dotted with wind and water mills and broom hills "covered with wheat fields". It also highlights the incredible restoration work carried out by local associations to rehabilitate this millstone heritage – in Faugères, it was thanks to the enthusiasm and perseverance of Jeanne Colignon that the Trois Tours mill was able to be restored.

Bringing the territory to life

Above all, the Festival of Bread and Wind highlights all the wishes of today to keep the "country" throughout the four seasons, as evidenced by Boris Degand, baker from father to son and stakeholder in L’Échappée belle. "With the members of the association, we are all in a sustainable development approach. Dynamic the local economy, respect nature and create conviviality by renewing human relationships in and outside the village, this is our objective. We want this celebration, like bread on a table, to invite sharing".

The frame offers incredible cogs which make the mill a precision mechanism. Diane Petitmangin

Moreover, the rehabilitation of the Trois Tours mill gives it – to him and many others – a furious desire to see its wings turn again. “We would like to one day crush flour up there again because it makes a lot of sense today, on an economic or environmental level, to go back up local circuits by working hand in hand”.

The Barbu de Lacaune

The Haut Languedoc natural park has also set up, with farmers, millers and bakers, a wheat-flour-bread sector around the Barbu de Lacaune. "An old variety endemic to the park, grown without pesticides and which is super digestible in these times of gluten intolerance. Made with sourdough, it is very interesting in taste and nutrition, with a very pleasant scent".

In the cogs of the mill

Don't miss the visit to the Moulin des Trois Tours, this Saturday, you will discover a fascinating and so harsh world – bags à at the time weighed 100kg! "Thanks â the weather vane at the top, the miller knew where it was from came the wind and could turn the roof of the mill, placed on rails, so that the wings are well positioned, explains Lisa Moreau, lecturer guide at the OT. The mill can start à turn with a minimum wind of 20 km/h and maximum 80 km/h. Afterwards, çit became too dangerous". Because if the millstones, each weighing one ton, one fixed and the other rotating, touch each other too much, they can create sparks and set fire to ;agrave; the structure, made of stone but mainly of wood.

"The mill is made up of 12 different species, more or less hard. The whole thing constitutes a real puzzle where each beam, gear, oyster, spinning wheel and other layer shaft connected to it to the east wings &agrav; its place to ensure stability of the building. A fascinating world. For those who will not be able to attend, don't worry, the Avant-Monts tourist office, nestled within in one of the towers, organizes visits throughout the season from mid-May to mid-May. end of September.

The variety provides a living for small farmers and runs an associative mill, which defends ancient varieties of cereals. "Today, we make 100 kg of Barbu bread per week, we are still out of stock…" To see bigger, we need more surface areas and also more outlets… "But the file is promising. The Bread Festival allows us to talk about these subjects and bring them to life among as many people as possible".

Ask for the program!

The 2nd Festival of Bread and Wind, which takes place on Saturday June 15 at the mills of Faugères at a place called Les Trois Tours, will begin, & ;agrave; 10 a.m., with the lively kneading and bread-making workshop. by Boris Degand, from the L’Arbre &agrave bakery breads (wholemeal). À 10:00 a.m.: 3:00 p.m., the Pierres sèches association and the ânes of Terrân’Hom will offer a walk on Mont Marcou. For lunch, a local produce tavern will offer gourmet dishes.

À 2 p.m., walk with Dry Stones and Terrân’Hom. À 2:30 p.m., “Wheat” au pain", meeting and discussions around a coffeeé with enthusiasts of wheat, bread and mills (peasant miller, baker…). À 3 p.m., "Once upon a time there was a mill", a tale for young and old by Virginie Lagarde. À 4 p.m., competition for the best amateur bread (tasting and prize giving). And all day long: kite demonstration with OK Mistral; and different workshops: manufacturing of small mills; dry stone with Les Fourmis; basketry, paste & salt, treasure hunts.

Information on 06 45 73 48 82 and on tourisme-avant-monts.fr.

The auguet distributed the wheat to be ground continuously and its bell rang when there was no more grain. Diane Petitmangin

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