Why Nice is Europe’s greatest city in winter

Anthony Peregrine, our Nice expert, offers a guide to the best things to see and do in the city this winter

Warmth, limpid light, wine, sparkling sea… Nice is wonderful in winter, as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been discovering. The couple embarked on a romantic New Year getaway to the French city – with reports suggesting they flew out on a BA flight on Sunday (and even opted for economy class).

To visit Nice in winter is to honour the traditions of rich and noble Britons. Our aristocratic forebears frequented the place through to April, and reinstating the practice seems entirely sensible. Here’s the Med without the summer squeeze, if a little nippy at the edges. One may eat outside at lunch, but it will probably be woollies by nightfall. No matter. France’s fifth city, throbbing with museums and galleries, also has the restaurants, bars and clubs to see you through cool nights [ . . . ]

More at source: Why Nice is Europe’s greatest city in winter

A fantastic French red for just $15 a bottle 

RECOMMENDED | It’s from the Anjou, a region not usually associated with quality, but it is great.

We usually don’t expect red wines from Anjou, a small subregion of France’s Loire Valley, to be any good, but here’s an example that will persuade even the most cynical wine skeptic to scour store shelves for obscure wines. I also recommend a refreshing New Zealand sauvignon blanc, a Tavel rosé to enjoy year-round, a lively California chardonnay and a second label from a popular Bordeaux chateau.

GREAT VALUE
Musset-Roullier Les Neuf Vingt “La Maturité de la Passion” Anjou Rouge 2014/2015

Loire Valley, France, $15

I’m on my soapbox here. There are some wines we simply refuse to believe in because they don’t come from high-profile regions with pedigrees and points. Anjou, in France’s Loire Valley, is known for light, insipid reds or rosés. But this wine should grab our attention. It’s 100 percent cabernet franc, the main red grape of the Loire, and yes, lighter in depth and body than more famous Loire appellations such as Chinon, Saumur or Bourgeuil. Aromatic with spicy white pepper and Bing cherry notes, it develops more complexity about 30 minutes after you pull the cork. The distributor is moving to the 2015 vintage; more stores, restaurants and wine bars should take a chance on it. ABV: 14 percent.

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More: A fantastic French red for just $15 a bottle – The Washington Post

Will Jain’s “Makeba” win Grammy tonight?

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With the crew #pre #grammys #medals #greg&lio

A post shared by JAIN (@jainmusic) on

The French-born singer Jain spent many formative years in Africa, and her song (a tribute to South African singer Miriam Makeba) is as infectious as the visuals, which combine animation and clever effects to simulate an environment – Africa – that is at one with the song’s beats.

Video directors: Lionel Hirle & Gregory Ohrel. Video producer: Yodelice.

Live the ‘douceur de vivre’ way of life in South of France

There is something immensely attractive about the French and their born idleness, particularly in the south of the country, where boozy lunches move effortlessly into café crème and cramped cheese boards.While the UK weathers a turbulent swirl of political mayhem, with pundits and politicians squabbling over Brexit negotiations, the French, comfortable in their indolence, applaud Macron while twirling their greased moustaches and pouring themselves another glass of Pernod. Now that’s a life [ . . . ]

Source: Live the ‘douceur de vivre’ way of life in South of France, Le Midi | Metro News

Chanson Du Jour: Mon Homme / My Man

Mistinguett was at one time the highest-paid female entertainer in the world. A performer at the legendary Moulin Rouge, her legs were insured for 500,000 francs in 1919. Though her well-insured gams were easy on the eyes, Jean Cocteau said her voice was” slightly off-key, (like) that of the Parisian street hawkers—the husky, trailing voice of the Paris people.”

Mistinguett (real name Jeanne Florentine Bourgeois) first recorded her signature song, “Mon Homme”, in 1916. It was popularised under its English title “My Man” by Fanny Brice and has become a jazz standard. Billie Holiday (video below) sang a beautiful, perhaps definitive version in her later years of performing.

Chanson Du Jour 11/7/2016: “Mon Homme” performed by Mistinguett 1938

Billie Holiday “My Man”