Certain monasteries in France and in the world remain places of a living faith. L'Abbaye d'Aiguebelle, located ten kilometres from Grignan en Drôme, is one of them. Presently numbering 30 monks from 36 to 92 years of age, the community leads its monastic life, helping the poor, welcoming those who want to make a retreat and live by working with their hands.

In a long tradition of distilling medicinal plants which has been practiced for centuries, l'Abbaye d'Aiguebelle offers a range of products in his little store that are well worth the detour. There we find the famous Alexion, a non-alcoholic drink that offers the combined benefits of 52 plants. There are also balms made from essential oils (try the geranium if you have irritated skin!), lavender with its healing, antiseptic and digestive properties, the coffee of the Abbaye de Koutaba straight from a monastery in Cameroon, and the delicious syrups that are simply for pure pleasure.

An amusing detail: l'Abbaye d'Aiguebelle, who answers to l'Ordre Cistercien de la Stricte Observance (OCSO), the Cisterian Order of Strict Observance, no longer sheltered monks for almost 25 years at the end of the 17th century. In 1815, a group of Cisterciens came and brought the monastery to life again. From a group of French monks from l'abbaye de La Trappe and placed under the guidance of the Father, they travelled the length and breadth of Europe, pursued by revolutionary armies, before finding refuge in Aiguebelle. They came directly from Switzerland...

Contact and information: www.abbaye-aiguebelle.com
Le Magasin de l'Abbaye
26230 Montjoyer - France
Tel.: (+33) (0)475 986 473
Photo: Alexion, Abbaye d'Aiguebelle

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