Posts Tagged “France”
More Than Art and History. We love to travel. A cruise is nice. Perhaps a week on a tropical Island. But in reality our travel is mostly a city break. 111 Museums in Paris That You Shouldn’t Miss enables us to get the very best out of a short break in this fascinating European capital….
Champagne: Wine of Kings and the King of Wines by Tom Bruce-Gardyne introduces the reader to the colourful story of how this delicious sparkling wine became the centrepiece of any smart party or event, and almost anywhere in the world. Champagne has universal appeal. This impressive tome looks at the essential and celebrated method of…
A modern-day adventure in step with today’s tastes, cycling tourism is the latest thing in travel. In order to welcome an ever-growing number of enthusiasts, Burgundy-Franche-Comté has put the wheels in motion in an attempt to reinvigorate its vast network of cycling trails and dream up some new itineraries. This is true for the Voie…
La Taillerie – the Gemstone Shop Although precious stones are not found naturally anywhere in the Jura mountains, the cutting and polishing of imported stones played a significant role in the economy of this region for three centuries. There are still traces of those traditional skills to be found if you look for them. Start…
In the beautiful Jura mountains of Eastern France, in the small town of Morez, there is a big museum. It’s dedicated to a rarely-seen industry that’s staring you in the face, and whose products change our view of the world. Spectacles, of course! Metal-working trades began to develop in the 16th century along the banks…
You, dear reader, will be unusual to say the least if you own one; your father probably didn’t have one, either; more likely your grandfather might have had one … or two or three. Take a look in your old family photo album and chances are there will be someone smoking a pipe and looking…
This is a charming museum, and it seems to encompass most of the original Bonnet silk factory in Jujurieux, a small town in the department of Ain. The hub of the silk-production industry was Lyon. C J Bonnet founded a company in that city in 1810 and established this factory at Jujurieux in 1835. The…
Originally produced in the Val-de-Travers region in Switzerland and in Pontarlier, France, Absinthe is a distilled anise-flavoured spirit made from herbs including the flowers and leaves of the plant Artemisia Absinthium, also called Wormwood. It’s the same botanical as used in Vermouth. Although it is sometimes termed a liqueur, absinthe has no added sugar and…
The Wines and Winemakers of the Heart of Burgundy The name Côte d’Or might not be well known but it is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution. It was formed from part of the former province of Burgundy. This is not only a beautiful part of France but a celebrated…
Les Grands Chais de France Group is a company based in the Northern Vosges region of France. It’s run by the Helfrich family. When Joseph Helfrich founded the winery in 1979 he made the decision to sell Cognac and brandy around the world – wine followed soon after. Les Grands Chais de France Group is…
It will soon be summer. We start to muse over al fresco dining and lighter fare. Ingredients with colour and freshness will take centre stage and we look toward the Mediterranean for inspiration, and perhaps to a French chef for some help. We need Flavors from the French Mediterranean. Three-star Michelin Chef Gérald Passedat was…
History is everywhere in Rennes but it’s actually considered by thoroughly modern folks to be one of the most liveable cities in France. That’s a hard juggling act. Rennes had been in existence for centuries before the Romans and in 57 BC the local inhabitants joined the Gaulish coalition against Rome. That didn’t work and…
It’s inevitable that the first thing people think of when you mention Bayeux is the tapestry. Though it’s not actually a tapestry but a very fine embroidery. The Bayeux Tapestry is now on permanent display in a bespoke museum in the city of Bayeux in Normandy, France. It’s unique and huge and merits a home…
Reims is a beautiful and historic city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France. It is only 130 km from Paris with easy access by train. Excursions to nearby Chalons are a must and there will be not only the delightfully ubiquitous champagne to taste but also the champagne truffles which are so celebrated here. The…
The Champagne house Vilmart & Cie was founded in 1890 by Désiré Vilmart and is considered by many an authority to be perhaps the leading producer of quality Champagne in the region of Northern France which bears the same name as this celebratory beverage. It’s an area of many fine bottles but some consider Vilmart…
What a grand title for a barge! Luckily the lady lived up to her name and our expectations, which she did actually exceed in every way. A barge, even a big one, presents the very real prospect of tight accommodations, iffy facilities and, still worse, the likelihood of mediocre food cooked by a well-meaning hobbyist…
One is spoilt for restaurants in London. Highend Michelin-starred, white-tableclothed establishments abound. The weather becomes warmer. We dream of those balmy days and longer evenings with friends. The picture might include floral frocks, a bowl of salad, a platter of salmon and, of course, a bottle of champagne. It is, for those gatherings, the dot…
It’s a very French company and has an equally Gallic director general in the guise of the suave and genuinely charming Geoffroy d’Anglejan-Chatillon. He has a lifetime of chocolate appreciation, and has made that a delicious career for almost a couple of decades. M. d’Anglejan-Chatillon explains in a rich accent that would have any red-blooded…
It’s not just a story of a table but, in fact, a whole guest house. That guest house being in the Tarn region of South West France where the author, Orlando Murrin, and his partner Peter Steggall have made their home. More accurately, Orlando and Peter have turned an old property into a guest house,…
This small restaurant (only 36 covers) is tucked away up a side street and is (if you are lucky) easily missed. I couldn’t say it’s like a corner of old Beirut, but Le Lys du Liban has a rustic charm and some of the biggest wooden ceiling beams I have ever seen – and they…