Discovering Burgundy 2013

April 29th and 30th

This is our return to France.  It has been 19 years and we can’t wait.  We (Neil and Ellen)  are travelling with Joe and Shelley and John and Trisha.

Today we flew to Toronto and then on to Paris overnight.  Thanks to the Maple Leaf lounge for making our time in Toronto airport enjoyable.   We stayed up all night watching movies and listening to music.  Oh yeah, we had some wine while some us were sitting in the cramped seats on our flight.  We landed in Paris at 9:45 am on the 30th and rented our Mercedes E series.  We headed south on the Autoroute du Soliel to the Burgundy region of France and more specifically to Meursault.  Once we arrived in the village of Meursault and to our place for the next 5 nights, we ran around like little kids discovering every nook and cranny on this beautifully restored barn/house.  Joe and Shelley and Neil and I are in house 2 and John and Trisha are in house 1.  We needed to get the key to open the gate to park the vehicles.  Opening the gate reminds me of having to jump out of the back of the truck and open the gate to the pasture for Dad when I was a kid.  40 years later,  it wears out quick.

We walked our two blocks to downtown Meursault to discover some French culture.  Architecture, wine, boulangerie, wine, charcuterie and of course, more wine.  We bought terrines, escargot, pastries, batons du fromage (which becomes a daily thing), baguette, butter and meats.  Of course,  we stopped at a cafe and  had a few glasses of wine.  And then we checked out a tasting cellar and bought 2 magnums.

We finished  the night consuming the wine and food we purchased at John and Trisha’s.  After 31 hours we all finally crash.

May Day (a bank holiday in France)

Joe and Shelley, Neil and I walked the 2 minutes to downtown Meursault for our fresh baguette and croissants for the day.  Other nibblies included  chocolate, Foie Gras and duck confit.  Then we continue to walk around town and discover its’ beauty – the old mill across the vineyard that we all want to purchase and turn into a cooking school/bed and breakfast.  Every corner we take is another ooohhh  and aaahhhh – the doors, the wrought iron gates, the courtyards, the narrow cobble streets and the vineyards. Beautiful and peaceful!  The church bells bring us back to our days in England.  We walked to the edge of town and then wander back to our house.  We are in the heart of Cote de Beaune 16 villages!  The wines are made from Chardonnay or Pinot Noir grapes.

We head off to Chateau Chassagne- Montrachet 4 km away to a flea market (50’s retro), fois gras, chocolates, wine tasting, cave tour, and art expo.  Incredible! Hey Shelley – Who the hell is the pirate?

Then we were off for a 3 hour lunch at Puligny-Montrachet at Le Montrachet.  5 courses and several bottles of wine later………  purchased a case of wine for consumption at the house over the next few days (at least we hope it lasts that long).

Then it was back at the house to soak up some sun on the deck.

Since we were so full from lunch we enjoyed just hanging around the house in the evening.  More wine and food …… …. along with a Burgundy quiz.

May 2nd Meet up with Thierry Coulon

We are enjoying the ritual each morning of walking to centreville to purchase our baguette, croissants, baton du fromage or pastries for the day.  Why would one ever need to bake bread or make dessert?  It is all right here…… fresh and delicious looking and tasting!

Today we drove ( how many anglais does it take to set a French GPS?) to La Chapelle de- Guinchay  (south of Macon) to visit Thierry Coulon of Paul Sapin wines.  We met Thierry through the Opimian Club du Vin.  He is an incredibly busy man and yet he took the time to spend a day with us.  We appreciated the opportunity so much.  Thierry tours us around the Paul Sapin plant – we see vats of wine and the incredibly flexible bottling plant.  Paul Sapin handle a broad variety of small bottles and up to 750 ml bottles , glass and PET, for markets around the world.  We learn about the Maconnais area and more specifically the Cru area of Beaujolais.  Grapes are Chardonnay and Gamay.

We enjoy a lunch at La Courtille de Solutre in Solutre-Pouilly.  Delicious …. with a variety  of regional foods.

Now we were off to Domaine Luquet Roger in the village of Fuisse.  We are greeted by Patrick and Christine (brother and sister) who tour us around the Chateau finishing with a wine tasting.

Now we follow Thierry through the villages and vineyards.  The villages are quaint, each with a very prominent church in the center.  We could live (and want to ) in any of them.  Solutre, Pouilly, Fuisse, Vinzelles, Julienas, Fleurie, Chiroubles, Lancie, Romaneche-Thorins.  When we left Fuisse, we stopped on the hillside overlooking Fuisse and the vineyards.  Gorgeous.

We end up at the top of a hill overlooking Fleurie and the Saone valley.  On a clear day you would be able to see Geneva and the Alps.  We have a haze so can’t quite see that far.

We leave Thierry at the original Paul Sapin location.  We really appreciated the time that Thierry took to show us around.  We head back to Meursault.  We go out for supper at Hotel du Centre Alain Billard.  Had escargot and a fabulous plate of pasta with fresh morels and fresh asparagus.

May 3rd Wabbit and Wine

Today it is still raining out.  Boo hoo!  So just to brighten the day we start the morning with the bottle of crémant that the landlord Susan left us with orange juice, accompanied by eggs and toast.  Great way to start the day.

Shelley and Joe, Neil and I head to centreville to get…….. what else? another baguette and croissants! And maybe Batons du Fromage??  Joe is carrying the wine bottles for recycle since we figured we needed to clear the house of recycling glass in stages.  We walk up the hill to the shops and can’t find the recycling area.  Shelley and I dart into the restaurant where we were last night to ask.  We really do need to learn to parlez en francais!  We are asking about recycling and they are asking us about a credit card.  What we have to pay to recycle???  They then ask Monsieur Joe?  credit card? and then she goes to get Joe’s wallet!  WTH.  Yep, Monsier Joe had left his wallet last night.  Oh yeah, we also find out where the recycle place is.  Shelley and I come out of the restaurant laughing and Joe and Neil think we are crazy.

John and Trisha head off to Geneva today.  Market day today so we poke around to get inspired for supper ingredients.  Everything looks so fresh and local and well displayed.  It all looks sooooooo good.  Why can’t markets in Saskatchewan display their goods this way?  Neil checks out the the butcher and Viola! he is inspired to cook for the night.  Le Lapine (rabbit) will be on the plate tonight.  We run around getting the various ingredients to make our supper.  Of course, we grab another tray of escargot for an appetizer.

We decide to go to Chateau Pommard.  What an incredible Chateau.  We book a tour of the caves and have a half hour to wander.  We check out the old kitchen and then the art gallery.  Absolutely fabulous……… with original works of art from Dali, Picasso, Andy Warhol and Matisse along with some Moulin Rouge type motif sculptures.

We go on the tour of the caves with our private guide who speaks pretty good english.  Incredible history and incredible caves……. and then we do a tasting. That was our first mistake 🙂 Tasting was great!

We now have 2 cases of Pommard being delivered to Canada in 2014.  2007 and a 2009.  Visa moment!!!!!   The tour guide gave us complimentary wine with our order – a  bottle of Ratafia de Bourgogne du Chateau de Pommard, Vin de Liqueur and 5 bottles of Pommard chardonnay.  Great afternoon so we head back to the house to prepare our supper but decide to stop for one more tasting.  We stop at Les Terrasses de Citeaux.  Good tasting and we purchased more wine to go with the rabbit tonight.  We learn that in Burgundy many producers may only own 2 or 3 rows in a vineyard rather than the whole field. Now we head back to the house for a relaxing evening of good wine and escargot and rabbit. Neil may have chased Shelley around the kitchen with the rabbit head while they were preparing supper. Joe and I were working on the blog.

Since we have had escargot everyday (when in Burgundy do as the burgundians do!), I thought I needed to have a cute little snail for our kitchen. We learn today that there are snail farms in Burgundy…….. demand is high especially when we are in the country.

May 4th Beaune

We have a relaxing morning and yes! we went and picked up our baguette for the day to have with our espresso. And Batons du Fromage.

Today, we head off to Beaune.  It is market day.  The market is huge and so French.  Love it!   Of course, both Shelley and I buy scarfs.  Of course, Neil buys Morel mushrooms.  We find a very cool store that has all things “wine” and purchase maps and quizzes of the Burgundy area.  By 2 pm, the market disappeared and it was time for lunch.  We found a table in the sun and had a wonderful lunch with truffles, scallops and …….  you guessed it wine!  We spend the rest of the afternoon poking around the shops and then toured the famous Hospice de Beaune.  Incredible building and history.  On the way back to the house we drove into Volnay to check out the narrow streets.  At one point, we thought the car was not going to fit down one of the streets.  It did, but barely – about 2 inches on either side of the car. Then it was back to the house to soak up some rays on the patio and prepare supper.  Escargot and leftover rabbit are on the menu and more wine.  We have so much wine to work our way through because we don’t want to be carrying it once we get to Paris so we are on a mission.  At least that is what we keep telling ourselves.  We finish the night in the hot tub and then sat outside smoking cigars under the stars  ……  not all of us were smoking cigars! Just sayin…..

This house has been wonderful to stay at.  It has been a wonderful base in the heart of Cote de Beaune.  Meursault is also a wonderful town with lots of character.   The church bells ring everyday.  We could sooooo get into this lifestyle just with a little less wine drinking 🙂

May 5th Champagne

It is Sunday morning, sunny and the church bells are peeling.  Neil walked to centreville to get our baguettes and croissants for the day so we can have a picnic on the way to the Champagne region.  I suspect we will be have wine with our picnic.  I on the other hand, am busy blogging.  Damn! this takes a lot of time.  We pack up and head back down to the Boulangerie for our daily batons du fromage.  The woman is getting to know us because sometimes we have been in there twice just to check for cheese sticks.  They are so good.  Anyway, Joe has been in there the most and we think he has developed a relationship with the lady behind the counter.  At first, we were pointing and saying the number en francais, then we got better by asking for the number en francais and saying fromage sticks.  But we have now advanced to baton du fromage (could be totally wrong) with the number en francais and s’il te plait.  We think we were doing pretty good.  The cheese sticks are magnifique and are devoured almost immediately.

As we travel north we see more and more yellow fields.  We all think this is mustard but it is canola.  You could be driving in Saskatchewan.  We also see several large wind turbines just like Saskatchewan.  The major highways have toll booths unlike Saskatchewan.  There is lots of flooding just like Saskatchewan.

Shelley and I are quite cramped in the backseat with a suitcase between us and carry on bags on our laps.   Obviously, we need to control our shopping in Paris.

We get off the toll highway and take a smaller road to see the country side.  We stop at an old cemetery.   It was all crypts above ground.

We find our picnic spot at Lac de Der.  Nothing spectacular but the wine, cheese and baguette made the picnic very special.  As we didn’t have wine glasses with us Neil even made himself a special wine glass out of an empty water bottle – he said he needed a stem.

On we went to Epernay and checked into the Jean Moët Hotel. Very small quaint hotel.   Then it was off to tour Moët & Chandon just around the corner.  BTW pronounced Mo’ett . While it’s common in French for a final “T” to be silent, Moët is an exception. In this case, the “T” is pronounced. We had an awesome tour.  Neil and I had done this tour 19 years ago but I don’t think we really appreciated as much as we did today.   We got to see lots of bottles in the tunnels and riddling racks.  (like the one in our living room)  Champagne is made with pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay grapes.

We finished off with a tasting of course.  Then we walked around checking out the architecture of the town and then to an outdoor cafe for a beer ( yes ,that is what I said) and then champagne.  We completed the day with a bottle of champagne in our hotel lounge.

May 6th on the road to Paris

Trying to fit luggage in the car…….it is getting increasingly difficult with every stop we make as we seem to be continually collecting more stuff and more wines to drink in our remaining days in France.

Left Epernay in the morning and headed for Reims to tour some more champagne houses.  Stopped at the cathedral in downtown Reims.  Incredible.

Lit a candle for my Dad and my sister.

To kill time before the Tattinger Champagne house, we went looking for lunch.  Ended up in an Italian restaurant with a wood fired oven – we came out smelling like we had been out camping with the Gossards at Cabri Regional Park :).  A very nice Italian couple were our hosts.  Food was excellent – they made our day (and we think we made their day).

Toured Tattinger champagne house which was impressive and very different from Moet & Chandon.  Caves were incredible.

Drove to Paris and got rid of the car at Charles de Gaulle airport.  We took a taxi into Paris (50 euros).  Got settled into our hotel and then set out to explore.  Been here twice before but there is still lots to see. Didn’t get too far and ended up at a sidewalk cafe for wine and snacks.  Spent the rest of the evening poking around checking out the lights and sights along the river Seine.  The Effifel tower looks amazing as ever.

May 7th Vespa day

What a fun day getting lost in Paris.  We got our vespa delivered to the hotel at 9:45 am.  The guy offered us a GPS but we declined it because we had maps.  We did the same thing in Rome and had no issues so how bad could it be?  We quickly set off on the Vespa in search of a suitable sidewalk cafe for petit dejeuner!

We then headed off to du Pere la Chaise cemetery to visit Jim Morrison, Chopin and Oscar Wilde.  We got lost several times on the way .  Unbelievable!  We would stop to look at the map and then get it all figured out and head off and then the road we planned to take turned into a different road, a one way or there was construction.   We did eventually get there.  WoW!

Oscar Wilde

Jim Morrison.  The crypt next to Morrison is covered in graffiti.  Terrible for the family of the crypt but neat for Morrison fans, I guess.

Chopin

Victor Noir…. who the hell was he?

As we continue to walk down another path we see people gathered around a tomb.  Thinking it may be one of the ones that we were looking for, we walk up to it.  It is a horizontal bronze of a guy.  However, while the bronze statue is an aged green patina his lips and his groin are polished brightly.  His name is Victor Noir.  Not knowing anything about him we looked him up when we got back to the hotel.  He has become a fertility symbol for women.  There are even stories of women hiding in the cemetery at night to get close and personal with Victor!  He has become far more famous (and desirable) in death than in life. (and is 2nd to Jim Morrison of visits in that cemetery)

After the cemetery, we enjoy another French lunch and then it is off to the other sights of Paris. 

We found ourselves circling the Arc de Triomphe more times than we could count, weaving through a wild tangle of cars, trucks, and Vespas with absolutely no lanes to guide us. It was sheer chaos—equal parts thrilling and terrifying!

We scooted over to the famous kitchen shop, Dehillerin—copper pots gleaming, whisks of every imaginable size, knives lining the walls. It had that wonderfully old-school vibe, like a hardware store that’s been around forever and somehow carries absolutely everything. No wonder Anthony Bourdain came here hunting for a duck press!

Next, we popped by Frenchie, the restaurant featured on Anthony Bourdain’s Food Network show. We didn’t eat—just scoped it out. Tucked into a very unassuming neighborhood down a narrow, not-so-pleasant-smelling alley, it only does two seatings a night and books months in advance. Definitely exclusive.

In the evening, we met up with Joe and Shelley and checked out the Buddha Bar. The interior was stunning, but a little pretentious—so we just had wine and skipped dinner. Later, we headed to Harry’s Bar to meet John and Trisha. And when at Harry’s Bar, a Bellini is mandatory—so naturally, I had one.

By now it was getting late, and we needed some supper, so we strolled down Boulevard des Capucines and stopped at Chez Clément. Unfortunately, it turned out to be the first truly disappointing meal we’d had in France. We even complained, but they couldn’t have cared less. Tripadvisor, here I come! Oh well—tomorrow is a new day, and new food memories await.

May 8th Shopping in Paris

Today was all about shopping at Galeries Lafayette. With clouds and rain putting sightseeing on hold, we figured—why fight it? As Neil said, “It’s all about Ellen!” …and yes, that meant buying yet another suitcase.

The building itself is a showstopper. From the stained-glass dome to the gilded balconies, it’s absolutely stunning. Plus, there’s a viewing area on the 7th floor that gives you another incredible perspective of this picturesque city. Definitely worth braving the crowds.

We decide to do a side by side tasting of vintage champagne in Joe and  Shelley’s room.

Moët & Chandon 2004 versus Taittinger 2004. Moët & Chandon a remporté la dégustation comparative. Bravo!

La Bistro Paul Bert pour ce soir!

And then we checked out La Bistrot Paul Bert—quel repas fantastique! We started with la Maison du Vin Rouge et Blanc and continued on to a few more bouteilles. The highlight? A tiny little door—maybe four feet high—that was the entrance to the wine cellar. Très, très cool!

May 9th Photo Shoot in Paris

This morning, we met with Pierre Torset (http://www.paris-photographer.net/), a photographer we booked for a special shoot to celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary. We started with shots around the Louvre, then continued at Le Nemours, ideally located between the Louvre and the Palais-Royal Gardens. This Parisian institution has a magical terrace tucked under the columns of Place Colette. The perfect spot for a espresso and a few candid shots. We finished on the Pont Alexandre III, with the Eiffel Tower as our backdrop.

At first, we were a bit stiff, but by the end, we were really getting into it. Pierre wasn’t yelling “Work it, work it!”—he gave us plenty of gentle direction, which made the whole experience fun and relaxed. We get some amazing photos! What a great experience!

We spent the afternoon exploring—and walking, and walking, and walking. At times, we really wished we had that Vespa again!

By evening, the sun came out, the temperature hit a lovely +16°C, and it was perfect for sidewalk cafés and people-watching. We wandered through the Saint-Germain area and the Latin Quarter—the neighborhoods we’d stayed in on our last two trips. Compared to the Madeleine area (more upscale) where our hotel is this time, it has a totally different vibe: bustling streets full of shops and street performers, and countless restaurants. A wonderful way to spend our final night in Paris!

May 10th England side trip

Today,  we leave our Regina friends.  John and Trisha are staying one more night in Paris and Joe and Shelley are off to Barcelona for their Mediterranean cruise to Italy and the south of France.  So if you have been following them through me………. you will need to tell them to get their own damn blog 🙂

We are packing up and leaving Paris today.  We will take the fast train through the Chunnel to London. Interesting fact – SaskTel from Saskatchewan, Canada was involved in setting up the communications for the Chunnel early 90s. This is when we got to tour the museum that showed the boring machine and how the Chunnel was built. We grab a cab over to Paddington train station and then the fast train out to Reading.  Our friend, Chris, will pick us up in Reading.  Paddington is the station that we are familiar with since this is where we would come into London from Maidenhead when we lived in England.

So this afternoon,  we will be on a farm at Bix just outside Henley on Thames.  Neil will likely look for any opportunity to take over Chris and Viv’s kitchen as he is missing cooking – too many days of restaurants combined with weeks of not having a kitchen at home (currently going through an extensive rennovation).

Oh yeah, today is mon anniversaire so who knows what fun things will happen!

So as expected, our friends have planned an awesome evening of wine and food.  We started off with a 2005 Hospices de Beaune , Joseph Drouhin.  2 barrels were bought and bottled for Chris and Viv.

Had a tour around the grounds, barns and of course, the wine cellar.

May 11th A ramble and Memories

We started the day with a egg for breakfast from the farm and then a ramble in the public woods next to Chris and Viv’s woods with the dogs to see the bluebells in full bloom.  The forest has many beech and holly trees.  So peaceful.

We went for a drive to Maidenhead and specifically Kilchurn Cottage where we used to live near Boulters Lock on the Thames.  Through villages – Cookham, Beaconsfield, Wargrave (past the pub that we took Scott to when he was 2 years old), Windsor (past the castle), Bray (Fat Duck restaurant where we ate in 2007), Waltham St. Lawrence and several others.  Stop at the Windsor Farm shop to buy some goodies to have with a very special port later……..

May 12th Back to Paris!

Today we returned to Paris by train (160 km/hr inside and then 300 km/hr outside) through the Chunnel from visiting our friends in England.  It is the last night of our trip before returning home tomorrow and back to reality – how will we cope?  It has been a very fun and a very decadent 2 weeks and fitting back into our regular routine will definitely take some adjustment.  We have enjoyed every minute of our trip – exploring new sights, revisiting old sights, gastronomique foods and wines with our friends Joe, Shelley, John and Trisha from Regina, and having the opportunity to reunite and hang out with our friends Chris and Viv in England.

The blog has been hard work (although I was writing while drinking wine  :)) but now it provides us with a bit of a diary to ensure our memories of this fantastic trip don’t fade.  Hope you enjoyed the daily events but now it is time for you to move on and for us to get back to our real life.  Cheers and Salut!

Ellen and Neil