On the third Thursday of November, France marks the arrival of Beaujolais nouveau. It’s the country’s most famous “vin primeur” (young wine) and hails from the beautiful and highly protected Beaujola…
Source: Beaujolais nouveau: Covid-19 pandemic dampens celebration of new French wine – French connections
Installed in Astaffort, in Lot-et-Garonne, far from the grayness and the rumors of the capital, Francis Cabrel doubtless thought he could escape mirages. It is also his friend Jacques Dutronc who had advised him to stay on the sidelines of the system, as the singer has just confided to our colleagues from the Parisian. “I learned the lesson: it’s a dangerous job if you get too close to it. So, I am a bit of a lonely bear, reclusive far from Paris. And happy to be. “
But even keeping an eye on the grain, being careful not to be devoured by the demons of notoriety, Francis Cabrel could not totally escape his fate… Today, in fact, there is something in his existence which destroys him a little more each year, to the point that the singer declared that this activity was killing him! What is it about ? Well the harvest, in which he regularly participates, especially since his brother, Philippe, is a winegrower on the family estate! “We harvested a fortnight ago,” he explained. I had my kidneys broken for three days! It kills me every year! “
However, this participation in the work of the vine is not the only thing to undermine the artist. Indeed, when we listen to his last album, the fourteenth, we say to ourselves that Cabrel has perhaps never been so far in privacy. Never before, for example, had he spoken so clearly about his father and the ties between them. Nor the great guilt that inhabits him at the idea that the latter has toiled all his existence to support his family. “I feel guilty every day for having a life that is too simple and too easy, with a guitar, a notebook, a pencil, compared to my father’s. The money earned, it has always been cumbersome … I do not talk about it easily elsewhere … “he confessed to Laurent Delahousse, on October 11, at 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, on France 2.
But if he finds it difficult to “talk about it”, Francis Cabrel has managed to write a magnificent song in memory of his father, Te resembling: “I would have liked to resemble you, I swear. But now, it is not enough to want, it was not in my nature. You must have really questioned yourself, I’m sure. And one day, I crossed a guitar, I lived as we have fun. You had your feet on the ground. And I was just the opposite… ”
A sublime declaration of love and admiration, which should free the son and touch the father, if he can hear him, from “up there”.
The winged creatures may help the wine industry salvage a terrible year
It’s not such a batty idea: Bordeaux wine producers are building bat-friendly habitats on their vineyards to help eradicate the issue of grapevine moth and grape berry moth infestation.
And in doing so, they’re hoping to salvage a beleaguered French wine industry that’s suffering not only from pests but high tariffs, climate change and the on-going COVID-19 pandemic, all of which is decimating sales of high-end wine bottles.
As Forbes reports, wine producers in France are creating strips of grass between the vines and building bat boxes; the hope is that the insect-eating mammals will eradicate the moths that cause botrytis, a gray mold that’s seriously hurt the industry before, particularly Champagne.
A Bordeaux-based scientist has been catching bats in nets and testing for the moths in their digestive systems; unfortunately, even their presence can’t prove if the yields will increase, as there are too many factors (such as climate) that change every year.
Source: Why French Winemakers Are Welcoming Bats to Their Vineyards – InsideHook
“Each and everyday, we strive for quality and modernity. Like perfumers, we create flavors.”
“Making sauce is an art,” explained Alex Gabriel, AKA French Guy Cooking, in a video last week announcing his new project: sauces.
Gabriel is known for his enthusiastic DIY approach to cooking, paired with instructional interviews with the best in the biz. In this new series on the 5 French Mother Sauces (béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise, and tomato), Gabriel sets out to learn about the dynamic and delicious world of sauces. He visits Christian Le Squer, the Chef de Cuisine of the Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris, a 3-Michelin star restaurant, where Le Squer explains to Alex that cooks are sauciers, first.
Executive Chef, Romain Mauduit, introduces Gabriel to the importance of thickening sauces through reduction. “As volume decreases, concentration increases, so flavor intensifies.” The copper pots full of monstrous quantities of veal and chicken stock will make your mouth water.
“Each and everyday, we strive for quality and modernity. Like perfumers, we create flavors. From tradition to modernity.”
Source: French Guy Cooking Tackles the 5 Mother Sauces – Frenchly
As temperatures fall, it’s time to start culinary planning for the cold months ahead. Luckily France is the perfect country for it. Warning: Waistlines may expand.
Pot-au-feu
Pot-au-feu is a mouthwatering stew of different kinds of meat, marrow bones and root vegetables. Preparation is easy but the stew needs to cook on low heat for quite some time. The meat, veggies and broth are served in separate dishes, accompanied by horseradish, spicy Dijon mustard and pickled gherkins. The bone marrow is spread on to toasted pieces of bread, but this may not be everyone’s cup of tea
Onion Soup
French onion soup is well known outside of France, and with good reason. It’s easy to make and it’ll definitely warm you up when it’s cold outside. There are a few different, but equally delicious, variations on the recipe. Some suggest a slice of bread on top while others are gratinéed to create a crusty layer of cheese.
Continue reading “The 10 heartiest French dishes to get you through winter – with recipes”
Pas De Merde 