A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle

40189Mon ami, Jan was surprised I had not read  A Year In Provence after she visited our new/old farmhouse in the Kettle Moraine region of southeast Wisconsin. Chronicling the first year which author Peter Mayle and wife Jennie owned and restored a rustic, two hundred year mas (farmhouse) in Provence, you’ll be treated to a colorful and quietly detailed vision of  the new homeowner’s trials and joys.  Situated at the foot of the Luberon Mountains between the villages of Menerbes and Bonnieux and within the boundaries of a 247,000 acre national park, the property offered the Mayles a bold lifestyle change from their native England.  It was both sanctuary and a work in progress on six acres of vineyards.

From crowded, clogged roads in summer, with hilarious descriptions of French driving technique, to depictions of wine-enfused games of boules, to a detailed account of a Grande Course de Chevres (Great Goat Race) through the streets of Bonnieux.

So apropos to my view of the typical NYE scene, the author begins his tale,

“The year began with lunch.  We have always found that New Year’s Eve, with its eleventh-hour excesses and doomed resolutions, is a dismal occasion for all the forced jollity and midnight toasts and kisses.  And so, when we heard that over in the vilage of Lacoste, a few miles away, the proprietor of Le Simiane was offering a six course lunch with pink champagne to his amiable clientele, it seemed like a much more cheerful way to start the next twelve months.”

Food & Restaurants

  • Lacoste – Le Simiane, New Year’s Eve lunch
  • Lambesc in a converted mill with an 80 year old female chef
  • Auberge de la Loube – an ancient Mairie, Buoux
  • Deux Garcons, Aix
  • Old Station Cafe, Bonnieux
  • Bistro du Paradou, Massane
  • Markets in Cavaillon, Apt, Isle-sur-la-Sorgue and Coustellet
  • Food guide: Gault-Millau, L’expert gourmand

Vineyards/Caves

  • Gigondas and Beaumes-de-Venise
  • Chateauneuf-du-Pape
  • Vacqueyras

People

  • Faustin, the neighbor/farmer
  • Antoine Massot, the old mountain man
  • Monsieur Menicucci,  the plumber
  • Ramon, the plasterer
  • Bernard,The pisciniste (pool man)

The Year’s highlights

  • January:  The Mistral – winter winds,  Frozen water pipes;
  • February:  The kitchen is gutted, the cold continues;
  • March:  Planting new vines, Truffle hunting;
  • April:  Cherry blossoms and the house guests arrive;
  • May: Cycling in the countryside;
  • June: More house guests;
  • July: a trip to Saint-Tropez;
  • August: Grande Course de Chevres;
  • September: Tourists leave, Hunting Season begins, Grape harvest;
  • October:  Les Champignons
  • November:  Chevaliers’ dinner in Burgundy, a visit to an olive oil mill -Cooperative Oleicole de la Vallee des Baux, Maussane
  • December: The wiles of the wife, the ways of the worker and the job gets done!

And so the Mayle’s year closes and I fret that I may be approaching the same feelings as I look around our place.

“There comes a time in the restoration of an old house when the desire to see it finished threatens all of those noble aesthetic intentions to see it finished properly.”

Bonne Année mes amis!

The Paris Wife

by Paula McLain
This author has the ability to draw us into the sweetly sad story of Hadley & Ernest from Chapter One.  Elizabeth Hadley Richardson was the first love and first wife of Ernest Hemingway.  She was, in truth, The Paris Wife. Hadley_Richardson_Hemingway Real, not overworked dialogue between two people can’t be very easy, and Ms. McLain brings it to life with a smoothness that many historical fiction writers don’t accomplish.  Schruns, Pamplona and the Riviera are a few of the stylishly chic backdrops where this couple worked and played.  This account of the now famous couple’s travels and circle of artistic friends is fascinating!

By the way readers,  I’m in my official “French Phase”, and so this was absolument parfait! (I wish I hadn’t had to use Google translate just there ; )  Stay tuned for “A Year in Provence”.

ErnestHemingwayHadley1922 (1)


	


	







	

		
		
White Fang by Jack London
	


	
	
	

		
200px-JackLondonwhitefang1I grabbed this book as I was about to go out of town with nothing to read.  My father had read Jack London and I tend to like wilderness adventure tales, so that’s all it took.  If  Mr. London does not have you hooked in the first 3 chapters, I’d be surprised~ I. The Trail of Meat; II. The She-Wolf; III. The Hunger Cry. Two men, and six dogs, sledding across the Arctic, transporting a corpse in a coffin, when daylight comes and goes in a brief 6 hours. Oh, and they only have 3 cartridges for the rifles.  A lot can go wrong quickly~


London then gently transitions into part anthropomorphic narrator and finds a way to bring us into the world of Kiche the she-wolf whom the native Indians had once tamed.  She bears White Fang,  her only offspring to survive that spring’s litter, and he takes us along on first hunts, first terrors, and many encounters with humans, or “man-gods” as London calls them.


You won’t look at your own sweet pup in the same way~

	


	





	

		
		
Florent and a walk in the Gaslamp Quarter
	


	
	
	

		
image
 Fifth Avenue in San Diego. The beating heart of tourism in a city with a siren’s call to tourists and conventioneers. First time staying in SD, first time eating there. Sunday night found us walking up 5th. Sights, sounds, and yes smells. Some delicious, some not so much. The lack of rain may be to blame for a distinctly pungent aroma in doorways and vestibules where the street folk and the colorful play.  Ask Mark about his idea for street sanitation. There’s a patent in the works.


Lovely and inviting nonetheless, we walk up one side of the street checking out menus and being invited in to a table by hosts and hostesses as the early dining crowd saunters along. Italian? Too heavy and traditional. Can you say “Spagetti Factory?” Irish? Yeh, so have a pint and something fried.
 Florent was a standout in the crowd. Clean fresh decor. Light modern menu. Could this be the one? No, its early. Its only Sunday night and there are so many sirens calling.
 We cross 5th and start down the street. This time, we mean it. Searsucker was a standout. Clean rustic decor. Light modern menu. This was the one. And it was very good.
 But this review is about Florent.


Fast forward to Friday. Hotel check-out but flight isn’t until 7 and its a sunny, mild day in San Diego! Feeling peckish long after a delicious breakfast at Cafe 222 – but this review is about Florent!
 One last walk in the Gaslamp District. The lovely, fresh decor, the light modern menu. The siren’s call can’t be ignored. We drop in at the silvery, sleek, stylish bar and feel at ease. Our bartender (see a prior epr post “Always listen to a good bartender”), chats about the Del Mar races which are opening that week, and about his east-coast roots. Oh and food. It’s 3:30 and there is some confusion about what time happy hour starts, what time the dinner specials start. What’s going on here? “Oh this place just opened last week.”, he says. “It was a soft opening.” “The Chef is Rich Sweeney, he was on Top Chef. And, oh by the way, he’s here, if you’d like to meet him.”


We are excited. Top Chef is one of my guilty pleasures. Except I’m not guilty because if I’ve ever cooked or prepared any food for you in the last 5 years, you’ve benefited from my watching Top Chef.  I’ll confess to being a little guilty that I now might actually use the term “cheftestant.”
 Rich Sweeney was gracious, engaging and proud of his new venture, Florent. It’s open air, flirty vibe upstairs contrasts with the club jailhouse decor downstairs. The 3 p.m. scene is certainly not going to be the same as the 3 a.m. scene. Let’s let that be someone else’s review. So what did we order off the Happy Hour Menu?


Jicama Sticks – togarashi sea salt, micro cilantro, sriracha aioli – my only recommendation – thinner jicama please!
 Vanilla Bourbon Pork Belly Salad – crispy pork belly, argula, vanilla bourbon vinaigrette, gorgonzola, chorizo cornbread croutons, grilled corn, citrus segments
 Boudin Blanc – celery root puree, plum buerre blanc, micro celery – I confess I had no idea this a weisswurst!  I ordered based on the celery root, plum buerre blanc alone!
 Crispy Brussels Sprouts – spanish cured chorizo, asian chili sauce, micro cilantro
 Blood Orange Panna Cotta – gone in a flash of two competing spoons. Sometimes sharing the dessert is just dumb.


And what’s a little ironic? The chef at Searsucker, Brian Malarkey, also a Top Cheftestant!
 Can we pick ’em or what?

	


	





	

		
		
Mark reviews (and lives), ‘We Wanted A Farm’ by M.G. Kains
	


	
	
	

		
	

		
we wanted a farmA first hand account of a couple starting a garden in the city, then renting a home in the suburbs, and finally taking the plunge to buy their own farm. Originally published in 1941, some of the prices obviously seem quite dated.


Kaines has good recommendations for seed varieties which should be heirloom quality in the present day, as well as good tips on how to prepare your soil and how not to buy manure from a local farmer! Good tips on pruning perennial fruits and vegetables for max yield, how to mail order and store plants for the coming season.


His food was so fresh and of high quality that visitors from the city became a problem which was solved by a well placed sign on his driveway.


Intro on how to use dynamite – I’m not going there even if we could buy it today!

Funny comments on his hired help which were the cause for more work than help!


After reading this I now see that farming is a year round activity with plenty of hard work, but the bounty of fresh food brings pleasure year round.

	


	





	

		
		
I’m going on a trip, and in my suitcase I need to pack a book. What should I bring?
	


	
	
	

		
Here we are finally in full summer and that means we are all hopefully digging into some good “summer reads”.  Time for a “What are you reading?” post to pull all sorts of good recommendations out of you epr followers.  


So? New? or not new but a favorite?  Or, just share your favorite summer reading memories! Mine might have to be reading a creepy book called The Other by Thomas Tyrone or maybe The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough.the other thorn birds