Sadly, Sancerre is really hard to get to from Tours by public transport. There is no train station; the nearest is at Cosne-sur-Loire, or for a larger city, Bourges. There will be a bus service, but doubt it's direct from Tours. Personally, I do not know of organised tours from Tours to the vineyards of Sancerre/Pouilly. It is really much easier if you are prepared to rent a car and drive yourselves, particularly because many of the best wine producers are in outlying little hamlets.

The other alternative, if you enjoy fresh Sauvignon Blanc wines in the Sancerre style is to explore the vineyards in the Tours area, which might be a little easier for you. They also make Sauvignon under the Touraine AC label. One producer I would recommend would be Henry Marionnet in Soings-en-Sologne - not that close either but an easy day visit by car. (www.henry-marionnet.com)

Sorry can't be more helpful. For general info on Loire wines in English, see www.loirevalleywine.com

Many thanks for your suggestions. Unfortunately my friend and I can't drive so it looks we'll be reliant on public transport sadly. Do you know where we might be able to find organised wine tours from Tours to Henry Marionnet? Also, although we are not big fans of sweet wines do you think it might be worth visiting Vouvrary? It looks quite close by.

Many thanks for your help.

As I said, I'm sorry I don't know about organised tours - just suggest you ask at the Tours tourist office.

But, definitely recommend a visit to Vouvray - you can even arrange to get a taxi there and back, then visit wine producers within walking distance - there was another thread on this site somewhere about this. Vouvray produces whites wines from dry (sec) to sweet (moelleux) and also some good sparkling wines. It's a pretty village with some dramatic chalky wine caves.

Many thanks. Will try Vouvray!