The Menton Lemon Festival — A Citrus Carnival With a Serious Story

The town that throws lemons like confetti

Every February, Menton — a pastel seaside town wedged between Monaco and Italy — does something only Menton would dare: it builds towering sculptures and parade floats covered in citrus. Not citrus printed on vinyl. Citrus you can hold in your hand. Lemons and oranges turned into architecture.

That’s the Fête du Citron (the Menton Lemon Festival): part carnival, part art installation, part living advertisement for a place whose identity is literally tied to its orchards. The festival, as it’s officially known today, took its name in 1934, and quickly became a signature winter spectacle for the French Riviera.

But here’s the twist: behind the bright yellow showmanship is a story about scarcity, agriculture, and the difference between “lemon flavor” and a lemon that actually smells like sunlight.

How it started: from winter visitors to a lemon festival

Menton has long had a reputation for a gentle microclimate — the kind of place where winter tourists historically escaped the cold. The early events in Menton had carnival energy (parades, winter social life), and the citrus idea grew out of that broader “winter season” culture. The festival’s modern origin story is simple and charming: exhibitions of flowers and citrus drew attention, and the city formalized the celebration under the name Fête du Citron in the 1930s.

Over time, what could have remained a quaint local fête turned into something bigger: night parades, street animation, and the now-famous Biovès Gardens citrus sculptures — essentially an outdoor gallery where the medium is fruit.

What happens at the festival today

The modern Fête du Citron typically includes:

  • Themed floats (citrus-covered structures that roll through town in parade form)

  • Monumental citrus sculptures in the Biovès Gardens

  • Night-time illuminated parades (often the most cinematic moments)

And yes: it is big. Articles frequently cite crowds in the hundreds of thousands across the event period.

If you’re planning around it: the official festival site lists February 14 to March 1, 2026.

The not-so-obvious truth: festival lemons aren’t necessarily Menton lemons

Here’s what many visitors don’t realize at first: the festival is a celebration of Menton’s lemon reputation — but the citrus on the floats is often imported.

Why? Because the real Menton lemon is increasingly rare and valuable. Reporting has described production as limited (small producers, small volumes) and notes that the local fruit is too scarce/expensive to use as parade décor.

This isn’t a contradiction — it’s the point.

The festival is a symbol. The orchards are the soul.

Why Menton lemons are special (the quick sensory version)

If you’ve ever zested a lemon and instantly smelled “perfume” — that’s the direction Menton lemons lean. Multiple sources describe intense aromatic skin and essential-oil richness, with an aroma profile that can read as citronella-like, fresh, and bright.

That aromatic peel matters because for many uses — especially spirits — the peel is the story.

Why this matters for Gin d’Azur

Gin lives and dies on aroma. And citrus aroma lives in the peel.

So when a gin chooses Menton lemon, what it’s really choosing is:

  • Aroma intensity (zest-forward, essential-oil rich character)

  • A terroir story (a specific place, not generic citrus)

  • Honest scarcity (limited fruit, limited runs, no pretending otherwise)

This is why “we use Menton lemons” isn’t a throwaway line. It’s an ingredient decision that pulls the entire brand toward authenticity.

Next up: the deep dive on what makes the Menton lemon taste and smell different — and why it’s the zest that changes everything.

Try Gin d'Azur...
Want the Riviera-in-a-glass serve? Try Gin d’Azur with premium tonic, lots of ice, and a generous expressed lemon zest over the top — that aromatic oil is the magic hour.

Back to Our Blogs