The Bergeron apricot, a fruit of chance

In the early twentieth century, the Rhône Valley was a major source of fruits and the Ampuis apricot, grown to the south of Vienne near the Pilat massif, enjoyed a solid reputation. That was before Pierre Bergeron, a native of Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d’Or and horticulturist by trade, conquered the taste buds of the people of Lyon with a new apricot variety, produced by pure chance: the ‘Gabrielle-Bergeron’.

© Camille Gabert

However, producing this star fruit of the region’s orchards is no easy matter. It is very sensitive to wind and likes to grow at a low altitude, of between 200 and 500 metres. Its roots like dry soil, while the aboveground parts do well in the sun and heat. All of these conditions are provided by the Coteaux du Lyonnais area. Among its producers, Grégoire Côte, located in Loire-sur-Rhône since 2020, delivers all of his fruit to the cooperative SICOLY (SIca des COteaux du LYonnais), which also runs Terres Lyonnaises, a network of shops selling local produce.

“On my orchard, the season for the Bergeron apricot is very short, lasting only fifteen days or so, in early July,” he emphasizes, “but you can generally eat it for one and a half months as its production is highly dependent on the terrain. The lower the altitude at which this apricot is grown, the earlier it will reach maturity.”

With its orangey-yellow colour, speckled with red, its firm, sweet and slightly tart flesh, the Bergeron is the most well-known apricot of the 80 or so existing varieties. It is also the most sought-after!

While it is enjoyed unadulterated on its own, for a picnic for example, it also lends itself very well to making jam, coulis, fruit juice and various pastries.

Where to find it?
In the network of Terres Lyonnaises shops in Terres Saint-Laurent-d'Agny, Châtillon-d’Azergues, Jonage, Lyon’s 3rd, 6th and 7th districts, Bron, Saint-Genis-Laval, Ecully… 
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