Northern side of the Butte
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Rue des Saules tips steeply down the north side of the Butte past the terraces of the tiny Montmartre vineyard. Its annual harvest in mid-September yields an extraordinary 1500kg of grapes, producing in the region of 1500 bottles of pretty foul wine. A small festival celebrates the harvest on the first weekend of October. To the right, rue Cortot cuts through to the water tower, whose distinctive form, together with that of the Sacré-Cœur, is one of the landmarks of the city's skyline.At 12 rue Cortot, a pretty old house with a grassy courtyard was occupied at different times by Renoir, Dufy, Suzanne Valadon and her mad son, Utrillo. It's now the Musée de Montmartre (daily except Mon 10am–12.30pm & 1.30–6pm; €4; M° Lamarck-Caulaincourt), whose mainly disappointing exhibits attempt to recreate the atmosphere of Montmartre's pioneering heyday, via a selection of Toulouse-Lautrec posters, mock-ups of various period rooms – including a bar complete with original zinc, or pewter top – and various painted impressions of how the Butte once looked. The museum does, however, offer a magnificent view from the back over the hilly northern reaches of the city and the vineyard, and the shop usually has a few bottles of Montmartre wine. Berlioz lived with his English wife in the corner house on the steps of rue du Mont-Cenis, from where there's a breathtaking view northwards along the canyon of the steps, as well as back up towards place du Calvaire. The steps are perfect sepia-romantic Montmartre – a double handrail runs down the centre, with the lampposts between – and the streets below are among the quietest and least touristy in Montmartre.
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