Lou  Recantou   &   l'Ancien Pressoir

Weather & seasons


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Summer
  • generally hot and dry
  • daytime temperatures frequently soaring above 30°C/85°F
  • almost always comfortable in the shade
  • evenings and nights usually warm and comfortable for sitting out, but can be cool enough to require long sleeves
  • humid days relatively rare, but do occur when a southeast wind (called the Marin, because it comes off the Mediterranean), brings moist air and, sometimes, rain
Autumn
  • the favourite season of many people who live here
  • a mellow time, with a special, soft light
  • vendange (grape harvest) in full swing from late August or early September till late Sepember or early October
  • fall weather highly variable and can change not only by the day, but by the hour
  • September usually sunny and warm - even hot - but not predictably so
  • rain may arrive with the Marin in the morning and disappear with the Cers (the north-west wind that "chases" away the clouds) in the afternoon. Or vice-versa.
  • temperatures can fluctuate wildly, from mid-summer heat wave to grey chill and, just as quickly, back again
  • October and November even more variable, with temperatures in late October occasionally reaching 30°C/85°F or, very rarely, dropping almost to freezing at night
  • Clothing should be worn in layers, starting with a T-shirt
Winter
  • generally mild, with occasional cold periods, when night-time lows can drop to -2°C (0°C = 32°F) or -3°C, or, very rarely, even -5°C or -6°C
  • Pansies and Primroses thrive in the winter garden
  • Bumblebees and butterflies visit the garden a little less often
  • Colourful summer birds replaced by, among others, Robins, Serins and Chaffinches; their intricate songs make it seem more like spring than winter
  • The Cers can blow hard and temperatures may drop but, in a sunny, sheltered spot, it may be warm enough for a T-shirt; even in winter, the sun can be very strong here
  • Almond trees fill with pink or white blossoms toward the end of January, along with the yellow blooms of mimosa trees, followed in February by masses of white cherry blossoms
  • It's rare to see snow anywhere but on the Pyrénées, though a few scattered flakes might drift in the air in January or even in February
  • Once or twice a winter, the upper slopes of the Montagne Noire are white with snow
  • Usually, several days in February are warm enough to sit outside in the afternoon sun in short sleeves
  • The terrace in front of Lou Recantou is sheltered from all but the strongest winds
Spring
  • a spectacular time in the Languedoc
  • long, sunny, warm days
  • fields of wildflowers
  • sweet scent of Spanish broom splashing the hills and untilled land with brilliant yellow
  • bunches of purple wisteria draped over rose-covered walls and fences
  • zebra-striped Hoopoes return in March
  • multi-coloured Bee-eaters soar overhead from late April
  • From mid-to-late April and throughout May, Nightingales pour their hearts out day and night from almost every clump of bushes and brambles
  • vineyards grow thicker and greener as you watch
  • daytime temperatures usually mid-to-high teens (Celsius) in early spring, rising to around 25-30°C (75-85°F)
  • often a few cool and/or wet days and, sometimes, the Cers blows hard, making it seem much colder

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Online weather forecasts

Note:   It's often cloudier and rainier in Carcassonne, only 40 km. (25 mi.) to the west of us, so the Narbonne forecast is usually more accurate for Oupia than Carcassonne's and much more so than Toulouse's.

The best and most detailed local weather forecast we've found yet is at:
http://www.yr.no/place/France/Languedoc-Roussillon/Oupia~2988994/
- and it's in English.

Another detailed site, also in English, is on Yahoo at:
http://fr.meteo.yahoo.com/france/languedoc-roussillon/oupia-615362/

For other weather forecasts, go to:



Month-by-month averages

According to our local newspaper, La Semaine du Minervois, this is what we can normally expect in the way of weather throughout the year - sorry - no statistics for wind. These are only average temperatures and precipitation amounts, meaning that it is sometimes much colder, warmer, wetter or drier.

January:
between 7 and 10 days when the temperature rises above 15º
between 1 and 3 days when the temperature rises above 20º
average low: 5°C
average high: 13°C
average precipitation: 8 days of rain, 65.83 mm

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February:
average low: 5°C
average high: 15°C
average precipitation: 4-5 days of rain, 39.8 mm
"un mois tradionellement sec, anticyclonique, ensoleillé" (traditionally, a dry, sunny month, with high barometric pressure)

March:
average low: 7°C
average high: 18.5°C
average precipitation: 4-5 days of rain, 33 mm
March also tends to be a dry and sunny month.

April:
average low: 9.5°C
average high: 19.5°C
average precipitation: 7 days of rain, 46 mm

May:
average low: 13°C
average high: 23°C
average precipitation: 6 days of rain, 44 mm

June:
average low: 16°C
average high: 29°C
average precipitation: 3.6 days of rain, 32.7 mm

July:
average low: 18°C
average high: 30.5°C
average precipitation: 3 days of rain, 394 mm

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August:
average low: 18°C
average high: 32°C
average precipitation: 5 days of rain, 50 mm

September:
average low: 15°C
average high: 26°C
average precipitation: 4.5 days of rain, 56 mm

October:
average low: 11°C
average high: 22°C
average precipitation: 6 days of rain, 90 mm

November:
average low: 6°C
average high: 15.5°C
average precipitation: 6 days of rain, 81.5 mm

December:
average low: 5°C
average high: 13°C
average precipitation: 7 days of rain, 94 mm

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