The Castle of la Gabelle is a 12th-century building that takes its name from the salt tax once levied in the region. The castle was once held by the Mévouillon, a very powerful family of the region, whose influence was halted by Louis XIV with the dismantling of their lordship.

It was in 1838 that the saga of the Castle of la Gabelle began for the Blanc family, then the Roux family, when François-Xavier acquired this Provençal building. A lavender production was then launched on the domain’s lands. Over the years, the family settled in Buis-les-Baronnies. The castle was left abandoned, but not the lands. The family continued to cultivate the flower and also ventured into other typical crops of the region.

But in 1960, life reinvested the castle’s walls. That year, Pierre Blanc, a descendant of the Roux family, inherited the castle thanks to legacies from his mother and distant cousins. He settled there with his beautiful Lombard wife, Margherita. In this authentic and wild place, the couple devoted themselves to the estate’s operation and the education of their 7 children.

However, life at the castle was tough. Bad harvests followed one another, and the building’s condition continued to deteriorate. The decision was then made by Pierre and Margherite to open guest rooms to subsist in years when the harvest was tough and to finance the necessary restoration work.