Pauillac

Pauillac (Occitan: Paulhac) is a commune in the Gironde department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.

History

The United States Navy established a naval air station on 1 December 1917 to operate seaplanes during World War I. The base closed shortly after the First Armistice at Compiègne.

Port

Near the centre of town is a marina with moorings for about 150 boats. 2300m north of this is a floating platform where the very large Airbus A380 wings and fuselage sections are transferred from sea-going RORO ferries to barges. The parts are manufactured in Broughton, UK and Germany. The barges take them through Bordeaux to a dock at Langon and then by oversize road convoy to the assembly plant at Blagnac, Toulouse. See Itinéraire à Grand Gabarit for more details of the transportation.

Population

Wine

The commune consists of only 3,000 acres (12 km²) of vineyards in the Haut-Médoc between the villages of Saint-Julien to the south and Saint-Estèphe to the north, but is home to three of Bordeaux's five first-growth wines: Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Latour, and Château Mouton Rothschild.