Deep beneath the vineyards of the Loire Valley, within the cool, dimly lit tunnels of an historical limestone quarry, lies a museum not like every other. The Musée du Champignon close to Saumur is a residing, underground world dedicated to fungi, the place guests wander by huge galleries lined with numerous mushroom varieties. From delicate chanterelles to towering king oysters, these mushrooms thrive within the quarry’s naturally humid situations, simply as they’ve for hundreds of years.
Extra than simply an exhibition, this subterranean marvel affords a glimpse into the area’s lengthy custom of mushroom cultivation, a apply nonetheless very important to the native financial system. Strolling by the tunnels, surrounded by the earthy scent of rising fungi, seems like stepping right into a hidden ecosystem that has quietly flourished beneath the Loire for generations.
