Musée du Vin et du Négoce

This small Wine and Trade Museum, hidden in one of the city's oldest buildings – an Irish merchant's house dating to 1720 in the ancient trading district of Chartrons – offers a fascinating insight into the historic origins of Bordeaux's wine trade and the importance of the négociant (merchant trader) in the 18th and 19th centuries. The vaulted cellars, 33m long, display dozens of artefacts, including hand-crafted stave oak barrels and every size of wine bottle from an Avion to a Melchior. Visits end with tasting of wine by small, lesser-known producers. To find the museum, walk north along rue Notre Dame then turn left onto rue Borie.