FrenchDuck UK - Latest

Apparently there is a type of pain d’epices (spice cake, rather like gingerbread) made with honey which is designed to go with Foie Gras (Goose Liver)! So I learn from specialist French food importers Its French! I have yet to try this, but when you think that digestive biscuits work well with Stilton, then maybe it is not too far-fetched an idea!

Duck casseroles and confit, Duck breast stuffed with foie gras, Snail confit, Escargotine (snail pate), Snails in a spicy Catalan sauce, Organic Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil, Organic peanuts, Haricot Beans and Green Lentils - just some items from an evocative list of fine stuff from small specialist producers in South West France - this is what Its French have on offer.

Based in Ashbourne, the company was set up by a husband and wife team just over a year ago. Simon and Carolyn now split their time between their homes in Derbyshire and Gascony (in Marciac (32 Gers, Midi-Pyrenees) with their French base providing the perfect platform for sourcing the finest of locally produced food direct from small artisan producers.

The It’s French! range is wholly sourced from small artisan producers, many of whom have inherited and continued the business of their parents and grandparents. All of them are passionate about their products, from conception through to distribution - so these are not mass-produced factory packed items.

It’s French! is committed to providing high quality products, not available in supermarkets in France or the UK, to people passionate about food. All the It’s French! selection is free from artificial colourings and preservatives.

Some new products have recently been launched which are sledom found in the UK (nor readiuly available in much of France) including snails sucarelle (in their shells in a rich wine and tomato sauce), a range of 7 different honeys (flower, acacia, lime and others) and a French version of gingercake made from honey and spices with orange or chocolate or apples and Calvados.

So you now have a source of some really interesting quality foods - and through the website at www.itsfrench.co.uk you can also read up about the small farmers/producers who make/grow/rear the products.

It’s French! 24 rue de juillac , MARCIAC, 32230
Tel: (UK) 01335 348452 Email: itsfrench@btinternet.com

The Telegraph (19 Aug 08) includes a boat trip up the Rhone Valley as one of its top 10 river cruises:

Navigating France’s mightiest river is a favourite for wine aficionados and foodies. A cruise through Burgundy and Provence gives you the chance to visit vineyards (think Côtes du Rhône and Châteauneuf-du-Pape), explore Lyon – the gourmet capital of France – and enjoy historic towns such as the fortified city of Avignon and the Roman ruins in Arles. The countryside is equally superb: its fields of lavender and sunflowers were an inspiration for artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, and as the river drains into the Mediterranean you’ll see the famous white horses of the Camargue.

The route includes many worthwhile stops for visits to suit all tastes, but it is also remarkably rich in potential wine visits as you’ll pass through appellations such as Costieres de Nimes, Cotes du Rhone (north and south), Lirac, Tavel, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, St Joseph and Hermitage - and if you branch onto the River Saone north of Lyon you can explore Beuajolais and southern Burgundy!

It should come as little surprise that rivers and canals tend to offer good access to good vineyards - vines often grow best on the steep valley sides with their good drainage and aspect to the sun.

A more modest trip than the Rhone, could be a canal trip from Auxerre (89 Yonne, Burgundy) close to Chablis and down the Canal de Bourgogne to Dijon and the Burgundy vineyards; or a trip down the Canal Lateral de la Loire for Sancerre AC, Pouilly-Fumé and Coteaux Giennois. By using the Canal du Nivernais and the Canal de Briare you could even manage a circular route via Auxerre.

Of course, Rick Stein’s French Odyssey was based on a canal trip along the Canal du Midi and the Canal Lateral de la Garonne and included the vineyards of Bordeaux, Cotes du Marmandais, Buzet, Fronton, Minervois, Corbieres and the Coteaux du Languedoc.

For another set of options try Hilary Wright’s book Water into Wine: A Wine Lover’s Journey Through The Waterways of France which also includes itineraries in the lower Loire. Cognac, Alsace, Lorraiine and the Lot.

For more info on the canals of France see the website for VNF (Voies Navigable de la France) now much improved and in English!

There’s a new free map and guide available from InterLoire (the official wine body for the region) to the vineyards of the Loire Valley available to download and in English:-

The light glistening on the river and its tributaries is a wonderful sight. The cellars carved into white limestone, magical châteaux, magnificent gardens, hillsides covered in vines ; hundreds of sights that still hold the memory of kings, queens, princes and artists like Rabelais, Ronsard, Balzac, Leonardo da Vinci, and Joachim du Bellay… The Loire vineyards offer charm, grace and surprise around every corner. It is a region for good living, a valley of abundance, a source of flavourful wines and generous aromas,and we would like to share all that with you.

This wine region (which does not include other appellations which are nevertheless close to the River Loire such as Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé, Quincy, Menetou-Salon etc - these are all classified as “Vins du Centre” ) does cover the Loire from the Atlantic to Orleans and includes 68 separate appellations and has more than 7,000 wine producers making it France’s third most important vineyard.

For each winemaker there is a comprehensive entry - e.g. for one of our favourites, the Domaine Leduc-Frouin in Anjou:-

Domaine Leduc-Frouin
The Leduc-Frouin estate invites you to discover its wines in a guided tasting session. Guided tours upon request. Groups: tours and wine tastings, reservations necessary for meals.
Monday - Friday: 9 am -12 pm / 2 pm - 6 pm, Saturday: 2 pm - 6 pm, and mornings by appointment only.
AOC Anjou Blanc ; Anjou Gamay ; Anjou Rouge ; Anjou Villages ; Cabernet d’Anjou ; Coteaux du Layon ; Rosé d’Anjou ; Rosé de Loire ; Saumur Brut.
Antoine et Nathalie LEDUC La Seigneurie – Sousigné
T:02 41 59 42 83
info@leduc-frouin.com
www.leduc-frouin.com

This is an invaluable guide to wine touring in the region, which does offer many delights for the wine and food enthusiast and others.

Download the map and guide
For more on Domaine Leduc-Frouin see www.frenchduck.co.uk

The Lascaux Cave at Montignac (24 Dordogne, Aquitaine) is rightly considered the most spectacular example of pre-historic cave painting in the World. Its fame and popularity led to the creation of a facsimile cave (Lascaux II opened in 1983) nearby to avoid further damage to the fragile environment of the original cave and paintings which had remained undisturbed for centuries until discovered in 1940. Two areas have been painstakingly and faithfully reproduced - the Great Hall of the Bulls and the Painted Gallery.
However, even the facsimile Lascaux II is now facing the need to close for 2-3 months each winter for the next few years for essential maintenance - perhaps it was too good a copy!
The key thing to remember is that you do really need to book in advance if you want to visit - numbers are limited and it is probably one of the most popular tourist sights in France.
For more info see www.culture.gouv.fr

Caen (14, Calvados, Normandy) is a major French port and a cross-channel ferry port - but, of course, the Ferry docks at Ouistreham which is on the coast, whilst the city of Caen is 10 miles inland - but is nevertheless a major port in its own right, by virtue of the Caen canal which links the city to the sea. Large ocean-going ships use the canal, which also has another claim to fame, i.e. Pegasus Bridge at Benouville - a bascule bridge which enables ships to pass, but is also the site of the first encounter between the Allies and the Germans on D-Day in 1944, and the beginning of the Normandy landings.

So, just to clarify - the Brittany Ferry route from Portsmouth to Caen actually terminates at Ouitreham, whilst Caen, which is 10 miles inland is a major shipping port. (see map)

So to celebrate its maritime heritage, the city of Caen holds its Fete du Port (Harbour Festival) on 13-14 September 2008 with visits onboard boats and ships, a maritime parade, boat trips, stands selling marine and other items, music and dancing, a collection of historic boats and a canoe-kayak water polo competition!

For more info see www.ville-caen.fr

I am a great fan of the Lot département (46 Midi-Pyrenees), initially from wine-hunting around the town of Cahors, and more recently further upstream on the Rivers Lot and Célé, where the landscapes get even more enticing. A recent trip was greatly enhanced by having Helen Martin’s book Lot: Travels Through a Limestone Landscape in SouthWest France, which tells the story of the landscape and people of this region of South West France.
It was her recommendation which led us to the stunning view at Reilhaguet (46 Lot) (see above) which she accurately describes as “the view to end all views, a roof of the world view, a heart-stopping, aching, yearning view” (about 25km north of Cahors just east of the N20).
But one of the undoubted joys of the region has to be its gastronomy and the richness of its markets, and with Helen’s permission we can share an extract from her chapter on “Food and Drink in the Lot”

Eating and drinking in the Lot is not so much gastronomy, it is more a way of life. Simple pleasures like early-morning mushrooming results in gastronomic treats at meal times.
The food used to revolve around the polyculture practised by the small propriétaires, less so today. But fruits are still bottled, geese are still stuffed, pigs are fattened, påtés are tinned, ducks are turned into hunks of confit, and yellow chickens, dotted with oil and butter and legs akimbo, are forced into ovens to emerge an hour or so later, tasting simply sensational. It is a day-in, day-out, year-long occupation. Tout es bou per sa sason ‘To everything there is a season’ takes on new meaning. ©Helen Martin

Helen Martin writes more about the Lot in her blog at http://lotbook.blogspot.com/

To read more about Food and Wine in the Lot see……… Read more on this…

Birmingham Wine School is offering an single evening wine course entitled “A Grand Tour of France” on 2nd December 2008:-

Inspired by the recent BBC 6-part series - Oz & James’s Big Wine Adventure - this is a chance to join us as we taste our way around the major wine regions of France (Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Loire Valley, Rhone, Languedoc, & Roussillon). We will commence the trip with a stunning Grand Cru Champagne, progressing southwards through Burgundy (delicious Pinot Noir and Chardonnay), and the Loire (lively aromatic Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc) towards the soft warm climate of the Mediterranean for some ripe Syrah/Grenache. We will end the evening with some elegant, classy Bordeaux and decadent dessert wine from Roussillon on the French/Spanish border. It will be a hugely entertaining evening and you will also pick up a fascinating array of information and wine tips along the way.

Sounds like a good way to prepare either for your next trip to France, or to select your wines for the festive season. A little knowledge can greatly enhance your pleasure of the wine, and of the vineyard and tastings.
The Birmingham Wine School is also developing Wine Schools in Leeds, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and Edinburgh, so it may be worth checking thier web site for other offerings.
See Birmingham Wine School

The Independent (2 Aug 08) has another of its “50 Best…” series, this time on Railway Journeys - and includes 2 French ones.

Clermont Ferrand-Beziers

The less well-used of the two lines from Clermont Ferrand through the Massif Central (the other goes to Nimes), this switchback route traverses some of the wildest country in France. Near St Flour the line crosses Eiffel’s Garabit Viaduct and follows the Lot and Tarn rivers to reach Millau and Norman Foster’s viaduct, the world’s highest road bridge.

The journey takes 5 hours and costs about €50. It has to be said that the road journey is pretty spectacular too, whether you opt for the new autoroute A75 or quieter side roads as the route crosses the Auvergne and the Causses before descending to the Languedoc (see www.frenchduck.co.uk/travel)

Eurostar London - Paris

Okay, most of the scenery between London and Paris or Brussels isn’t going to inspire a modern-day Edward Thomas, but the pleasure of using the magnificently restored station at St Pancras and the blissful ease of Eurostar makes it a great experience. Treat yourself to first class and enjoy champagne and a pretty respectable meal at 186mph.

Personally I would also recommend the route from Brive-la-Gaillarde to Montauban via Gourdon and Cahors - it cuts through the dramatic limestone landscapes and valleys of South West France offering unmatchable views of the countryside, the Lot River and the town of Cahors. Time: about 2 hrs, cost about €25.
With RailEurope you can book your rail journey to any destination within France, including Eurostar services, TGV and local trains

See the FrenchDuck article on Tourist Trains in France

Biodynamic wine comes to the fore (or Four!) in September with a new series on making wine biodynamically in southern France.

A biodynamic wine is essentially an organic wine, avoiding pesticides and fertilisers in the vineyard and (as far as possible) any artifical chemicals in the winemaking process. But there is also an added “cosmic” dimension which determines key stages in the winemaking process from vine to bottle which are influenced by the phases of the moon and alignment of the planets.

Other examples of Biodynamic vineyards are Domaine Leflaive and Domaine Leroy in Burgundy, Domaine Huet in Vouvray and Coulée de Serrant in the small Loire appellation of Savennieres.

Few are convinced that this approach is more than just a little bizarre, or that it produces distinctly better wines, although each of the established vineyards listed do have an excellent reputation.

Channel 4 will be showing a 6-part series about an Englishman’s quest to create a biodynamic wine in the Roussillon in the south of France starting on 4 September 2008 with Chateau Monty

Top wine critic and author, Monty Waldin, has decided to put his money where his opinionated mouth is and pack it all in to make wine biodynamically in rural France. He has just over a year to turn 5.4 acres into top selling organic wine. Renovating an old cabin on his vineyard so he can babysit his vines 24/7, his only company will be his donkey and occasionally his high maintenance girlfriend Silvana when she jets in from Italy. Regarded by peers as a bit loopy because of his views about Biodynamics, and even as the enfant terrible of the wine world (he’s upset the establishment for his harsh criticisms of the wine industry), Monty’s nonetheless forged a successful career and written several award-winning books…But now he’s abandoning life behind the laptop for a new one making his own wine in the French Pyrenees.

As always there is a book to accompany the series - Chateau Montyand respected wine merchant Adnams is stocking the wine - Monty’s Red 2007, Vin de Pays des Cotes Catalanes - “The aromas of young, herby red fruits and a lively, juicy mouthful of charmingly rustic hedgrow flavours.”
If you want to know more about Biodynamic wines, here is our list of suggested reading:-
Nicolas Joly (owner of Coulée de Serrant) - Biodynamic Wine, Demystified
Monty Waldin (of Chateau Monty) - Biodynamic Wines
George Andrews and Nicolas Joly’s Wine from Sky to Earth: Growing & Appreciating Biodynamic Wine
Wendy E Cook’s The Biodynamic Food and Cookbook: Real Nutrition That Doesn’t Cost the Earth

UPDATE:-
Jamie Goode, writing in the Sunday Express (17 Aug 08) adds: Think of biodynamic wines as “supercharged version of organic,” he says. Work in the vineyard is fitted in around the alignment of the moon and the planets, and growers claim it has improved the quality of their wine. Some of his recommendations include:-

• 2006 Chapoutier Organic Côtes du Rhône, France (£7.99, Waitrose)
• 2005 Bertie Collection Syrah, Minervois, France (£7.99, Oddbins)
• 2004 Didier Barral Faugeres “Jadis”, France (£17.30, Les Caves de Pyrene)

LD Lines has announced that it will start a new roll-on roll-off cross-channel ferry service between Dover and Boulogne-sur-Mer (62 Pas de Calais, Nord-Pas-de-Calais) from 1 July 2009 - offering 4 return crossings a day for cars, freight and foot passengers with a crossing time of 105 minutes. This complements the existing SpeedFerries service from Dover to Boulogne which takes just 50 minutes but has limited capacity.

Boulogne is in many ways a pleasanter entry point into France than Calais - and a good short stay destination. The ferry port is very close to the town centre and beaches, and the town has a good selection of restaurants and shops.

Book LDLines ferry to Dieppe or Le Havre
Book Speedferries Dover-Boulogne

WARNING TRIANGLES AND REFLECTIVE JACKETS REQUIRED

A few weeks ago we reported that the French road traffic laws were changing to make it compulsory for motorists to carry both a warning triangle and a reflective jacket in the vehicle at all times (and a set of bulbs). Now the AA reports:-

A law concerning the compulsory carrying of a reflective jacket (EN471) and a warning triangle (ECE R27) in France came into force on 1st July 2008. However, this regulation will not be enforceable with on-the-spot fines until 1st October 2008, when the fine will be between €90 and €135.
The French Road Safety Department has today confirmed that:
From 1st October 2008 all drivers in France, including drivers of vehicles registered outside of France, must have one warning triangle and one reflective jacket in their vehicle.

We have arranged with RAYMAC a special offer of a WARNING TRIANGLE + A HI-VISIBILITY VEST FOR JUST £9.99 PLUS VAT AND DELIVERY (usual price for the Warning Triangle alone is over £10) - CLICK HERE FOR THIS SPECIAL OFFER