Polisot

Setting on the Seine

Polisot lies in the south of the Aube département, about 35 kilometres south-east of Troyes, right on the Seine. Its neighbours are Bar-sur-Seine to the north, Celles-sur-Ource to the east, Polisy to the south, Arrelles to the south-west and Villemorien to the west. That places it in the surroundings of Bar-sur-Seine, the centre of the Côte des Bar, the southernmost wine-growing area of Champagne. Polisot itself is neither a Grand Cru nor a Premier Cru, but a rural commune with scattered housing. In 2023 it had 321 inhabitants.

Landscape and climate

Land use is mainly agricultural: in 2018, 44 per cent of the area was arable land and 33 per cent woodland. Permanent crops, which include vineyards, take up 8.4 per cent. The climate is temperate, with cool summers and harsh winters. At the nearest Météo-France station, in Celles-sur-Ource, two kilometres away, the annual mean from 1991 to 2020 was 11.4 °C, with rainfall of around 747 millimetres. There, exactly 40.6 °C was recorded on 25 July 2019, while on 20 December 2009 it fell to minus 15 °C. Growers in the region know such contrasts well, since spring frost and summer heat shape every vintage.

“There, exactly 40.6 °C was recorded on 25 July 2019, while on 20 December 2009 it fell to minus 15 °C.

History: mills and railways

As early as the 16th and 17th centuries Polisot had mills, among them the Moulin de la Besace and the Moulin Buton. Several papermakers are on record, and in 1674 paper from the mill was being traded in the village.

In the 19th and 20th centuries Polisot became an important railway junction:

• The line from Troyes to Gray ran through the commune from 1882 to 1969. Passenger services ended on 2 March 1969.
• The narrow-gauge line from Polisot to Les Riceys and Cunfin was in operation from 1897 to 1952.

A curiosity was the pair of stations facing each other. One was built in 1868 by the Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Est, the other by the Chemins de fer départementaux de l'Aube. The tracks had different gauges, 1.435 metres for standard gauge and 1 metre for metre gauge. As a result, goods had to be transferred at Polisot. With better roads and more motor traffic, rail traffic declined from 1950 onwards.

Billecart-Salmon Champagne

What to see

The most important building is the church of Saint-Denis, protected as a Monument historique since 1936. If you are touring the Côte des Bar, Polisot makes a quiet stop in the Seine valley, for instance on the way to Bar-sur-Seine or to the wine villages of the area.

For the table

You will not find any of Champagne's big names in Polisot, but you will find the landscape in which the Pinot Noir of the Aube grows. The commune makes a good starting point for visiting growers in the neighbouring villages and tasting the more powerful, fruit-driven champagnes of this region.