Chez Bret Water Mill

Built in 1706 on a reach that brings water from the Seugne, the Chez Bret water mill has been completely restored by the municipality of Jonzac and has been in operation since the summer of 2007. In the room of the paddle wheel, mechanisms and gears, Aline, the miller, explains the driving force of water, how the wheel works, how walnut oil is made and its virtues, fishing for downstream eels, life in the river. The paddle wheel, made of oak with metal parts, rotates at a speed of four revolutions per minute, giving it a power output of about 11 horsepower. It drives the mill mechanism and a dynamo that generates the equivalent of a car battery. The water mill produces some of the best cold pressed walnut oil in the region. A 30-minute scenography reminds the visitor that Jonzac was born from the river (testimonies of archaeologists, geologists, actors of the local life, millers...). In addition to the scenography, an exhibition of various objects testifying to the presence of a Gallo-Roman villa between the mill of chez Bret and the Antilles de Jonzac. Tools, construction elements, working utensils and jewellery are reminders of the wealth and refinement of this civilisation, which had already settled on the banks of the Seugne some 2000 years ago. Other exhibitions are also regularly held at the watermill. Walnut oil made by the Moulin de chez Bret is sold on site.