L'Eacapade des Gourmets

Last night it rained. This morning it rained. It looked like it would rain for our walk in the vineyard today, but in the end the cloud was a blessing, because it was hot enough without the sun. Once in Rasteau, the rain was gone. It is likely that up to 2 thousand people participated in this event.

From the getgo I could build this day up to be a fabulous cultural and gastronomic event. Let me clairify that myth. It was an arduous ascent/descent, 6 km walk around and through vineyards, up into woods and down again. There were six courses of food - not the highlight - with accompanying wines and entertainment- definitely the highlight. There were 20 wine domaines represented at this event. The ambient scenery was not shabby either.

There were six tasting stations, Mise en bouche (nibbly), Foie gras (duck liver pate), Crespeu (vegetable terrine), Supreme de volaille (main course), Fromages (3 cheeses) and Mousse chocolate/gateau (dessert). They were identified on boards as we checked into each station.

The food was nicely presented but generally disappointing. The wines, however, because we were in Rasteau, a village of not shabby wines were excellent and plentiful - four different wines at each station until the main course when there were 13 wines. There was also live entertainment at each station.

The tickets for this event were 42 euros a person and despite our whinning about the difficulty of the walk and the quality of the food, we would say it was well worth it. We may not be able to walk tomorrow, but, heh!

Market #1

Hard to believe, but we've been in France for five days and this is the first time we've gotten to a market. On Saturday it is of course, Ste. Cecile les Vignes, the closest and most manageable market. It was a brilliant sunny morning, so the streets were swarming with locals and tourists alike.

You don't have to travel far from Cairanne to get some memorable photos.

After a lunch comprised of goodies from the market we headed to the Foire aux Vins at Camille Cayran, the Cairanne wine cooperative. This fair featured 9 producers from across France who all set up in the heart of the winery.

We walked away with several cases of remarkable wines and a case of Blin champagne ordered by Margaret. This saved us a trip to the Belvedere wine shop just down the road. The day ended with a BBQ and some of our new wine. Again, La vie est belle!

Cairanne Day 4

Today was another delivery day as Carole and Claude arrived on the TGV from Paris.

We had a late start to the day as the winds once again started to howl. We traveled to Avignon to the TGV station mid afternoon. We initially had no idea that this was a long weekend. In France that means nasty crowded traffic and lots of closed venues. Woo hoo! Had a great duck dinner when they arried but not a lot else to report.

Cairanne Day 3

We awoke to cooler weather this morning after some rain last night. But the Provence sun still shone brightly so I headed out with camera in hand.

Since most visits here have been in the fall, the floral display now is quite different. The following pics are more views in and from Cairanne.

In the afternoon, we delivered Peter & Margaret to Marseilles, where they checked into the airport Ibis to await tomorrow's flight. We had a slow evening with the kitties and anticipate the arrival of Claude and Carole tomorrow.

Day 2 in Provence - La Vie est Belle!

This is a magical part of the world. Sun! Light! Heat! Wine! Did I say wine? The vistas from Chez Pigeon continue to amaze, but the kitty views here are fun. Charlie and Odin(white cat) are certainly a constant amusement. Today we headed to our favourite shopping on the outskirts of Avignon. This mammoth store is a good walk at worst and a gastronomic delight at best. We are always impressed by the full aisle of rose. The highlight of the day is usually back in Cairanne for the heat and sun.

Back to France

It’s been over a year since I’ve posted last. This trip across the pond is not likely to have the exotic elements that were found in our trip to the far East. Nevertheless we are happy to be back in an area that we are familiar with and where we have some hope of manoeuvring the language. We were reminded on our way to the airport that it’s always a good idea to leave early, since unexpected things like this happen.

Once at the airport and through security, we headed to the Air France lounge for a wee respite.

Our flight to Paris was uneventful - as it should be. We had a 5 hour - yikes, who was planning this? - layover before catching our next flight to Marseilles. That flight was super smooth. We landed in the heat of Provence, met Peter and Margaret and returned for our ninth time to Cairanne, where we promptly attempted to rediscover the joys of their wine. And that’s the end of today’s entry.