Le Goupil

In Dirac, near Angoulême, Le Goupil runs a traditional country bakery that goes far beyond simply making bread. Geoffrey Betoulle grows his own organic cereals and mills the grains into flour himself before using them in the bakery.

This approach, from grain to bread, prioritises short supply chains and ensures that every batch captures the flavour of locally produced goods.

History and origins

Geoffrey Betoulle has been a tenant farmer in Vieux-Ruffec since 2020, on a 27-hectare farm run organically. He then set up an organic bread-making workshop near Angoulême.

Le Goupil project is therefore based on a simple idea: bringing agricultural production closer to processing and sales. The farm produces, in particular, the cereals used for the bread, whilst the bakery handles their processing.

Expertise

Le Goupil works with heritage wheat varieties grown in open-pollinated crops, which are milled directly on site using a stone mill.

The bread is prepared using natural sourdough, then kneaded by hand in a wooden kneading trough. This artisanal method produces bread with a long shelf life, with a crumb and flavours that develop naturally over time.

The bakery also produces biscuits, Viennese pastries and cakes, all made entirely in-house.

The range

• Organic breads. Made from heritage wheat varieties stone-ground and fermented with natural sourdough. These are the bakery’s signature products.
• Biscuits and travel cakes. Sweet treats made in the bakery, available in particular through local sales.
• Viennoiserie and pastries. Homemade products that complement the Fournil Paysan range.

The signature product

The naturally leavened bread is undoubtedly the product you should try first at Le Goupil. Made with locally grown grains, stone-ground and then leavened naturally, it perfectly illustrates Geoffrey Betoulle’s artisanal approach.

To enjoy it to the full, simply savour it whilst still fresh with butter, cheese or a local spread. It also pairs beautifully with local produce from the Charente region.

The visitor’s experience

Le Goupil offers visitors the chance to discover a particularly fascinating ‘grain-to-bread’ process: growing the cereals, milling them on the farm and baking them in the bakery.

Buying directly from the bakery is a unique opportunity to discover the products and chat with the producer.

Where can you find the products?

Le Goupil’s products are available:

• directly from the bakery in Dirac;
• at certain markets, notably in Vouzan on the second Friday of the month;
• at farmers’ shops and local shops;
• in certain specialist shops such as Biocoop, Naturalia and Le Marché de Léopold;
• via the Gond-Pontouvre AMAP.

Key points

Le Goupil embodies a genuine artisan bakery approach: organic grains grown in Charente, heritage wheat varieties stone-ground, natural sourdough and handcrafted baking in the bakery.

A great place to discover local bread that showcases a whole chain of craftsmanship, from field to loaf.