France
Flavigny-sur-Ozerain
Benedictine nuns making anise bonbons in a village that moonlit as Chocolat's film set.
The air smells of aniseed. Flavigny-sur-Ozerain in France has been making its tiny sugar-coated bonbons in a Benedictine abbey since the 8th century, and the scent drifts through the cobbled lanes on warm days like a signature the village can't wash off. The film crew that used it as the set for Chocolat understood the appeal — a hilltop village that looks and smells like something confected.
Flavigny-sur-Ozerain sits on an isolated hilltop above the Ozerain valley in the Auxois region of Burgundy. The Anis de Flavigny — aniseed drops coated in layers of sugar syrup — have been produced in the Abbaye Saint-Pierre since at least the 8th century, making them one of the oldest continuously manufactured sweets in France. The abbey itself dates from 719 AD and is partially open to visitors, including the production rooms where the bonbons are still made using traditional dragée methods. The village served as the primary filming location for the 2000 film Chocolat, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. Rampart walks circle the hilltop with views across Burgundy's agricultural plateau. The village holds fewer than 350 permanent residents and the official Plus Beau Village de France designation.
Solo
Tour the abbey factory where the bonbons are made, walk the ramparts with the valley below, then sit in the square where Chocolat was filmed. Flavigny is a village that works as a single, atmospheric half-day.
Couple
The aniseed-scented lanes, the abbey visit, the rampart walk, and a glass of Burgundy at the village bistro — Flavigny compresses charm into a hilltop small enough to share without rushing.
- Anise bonbons have been made in the Benedictine abbey since the 8th century — the village smells of aniseed in summer.
- The film Chocolat used Flavigny as its set — the village square is recognisable but better in person.
- Rampart walks circle the hilltop with views across the Ozerain valley to Burgundy's rolling farmland.
- Small enough that an afternoon covers every lane, but atmospheric enough that you'll want to stay until the light changes.
Anis de Flavigny — tiny sugar-coated aniseed drops made in the abbey since the 8th century.
Burgundy snails and a glass of Auxey-Duresses in the village's single bistro.
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