Left Bank and Lentils – French #Winophiles
French #Winophiles Visit Storied Left Bank Bordeaux Our French #Winophiles group will be hanging out in Bordeaux for the next few months (if it could only be real!). This month, we are focusing our efforts on the Medoc and Haut-Medoc AOC communities. You can link to all our posts farther down the page. The AOC … Continue reading
Can You Taste Dirt? Soils & Sancerre
Tasting the Dirt There’s lots of discussion in print and online these days about terroir, soils and location vs. winemaker and who or what is more important. Do flinty, seashell filled soils produce mineral wines? I can assure you there are no actual stones in your wine. Here’s the important question: Can a regular person … Continue reading
The Red-Headed Stepchild of Sancerre #winophiles
The End of the Road for the French Winophiles Loire Valley Tour All good things must come to an end, but what a finish! Our virtual tour of the Loire Valley has taken us inland all the way to the towns of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume. The climate here is fully continental, with no moderating influence … Continue reading
Paris Oyster
Paris Oyster Julie’s cousin, Kay, an American who married a (wonderful) French Banker has explained French Culture to us as an iceberg: 10% visible, 90% invisible, as we are learning, so true. Your first step to understanding French culture can be gained by a delicious visit to a tiny restaurant in Paris. Now, let’s visit … Continue reading
My Love-Hate Relationship with Loire Whites – French #Winophiles
Warning: This is a rant, but it does have a happy ending. I hope you’ll read on. One-Two Punch Knocked Me Out In preparing for our French Winophiles virtual visit to Touraine in the Loire, I was hit by a double dose of love-hate for Loire Valley whites. First, I must say two things: I’m … Continue reading
Easy Spring Dinner with Pommes Gratin and Chinon – French #Winophiles
French Winophiles Take Touraine by Storm Continuing our virtual cruise up the Loire river, we’re picturing those fairytale castles as well as all the vineyards we’d like to visit. Moving inland, the main wine grapes remain Chenin Blanc for white and Cabernet Franc for red. However, we also start to see Sauvignon Blanc coming into … Continue reading
Seafood Brochettes with the Wines of Anjou & Saumur – French #Winophiles
French #Winophiles Cruise the Loire, Part 2 In our four session virtual cruise up the Loire river, we have left the Pays Nantais and the coast behind and have entered the Anjou-Saumur region. The Melon de Bourgogne grape is gone. Now we have Chenin Blanc grapes for white wines, and Cabernet Franc for reds. Anjou … Continue reading
Rabbit & Rhône #WinePW
Spring in the Southern Rhône Our Wine Pairing Weekend group (#WinePW on twitter) is celebrating spring by creating and sharing wine pairing recipes featuring wines from the Southern Rhône. Lapin = Rabbit, Good Luck Finding One One of the things I envy about cooks in Europe is the wider variety of fresh products. They may … Continue reading
Mussels & Muscadet in our Imaginary Nantes Bistro #Winophiles
#Winophiles Dive Deep into the Loire Region After our initial cruise through the main wine regions of France, our French Winophiles blogging group is going back to spend some serious time in each region. Our first deep dive will the the Loire. We’re taking a slow virtual cruise up the Loire river from the Atlantic ocean … Continue reading
Choucroute Garni: Fancy French Kielbasa & Sauerkraut #Winophiles
French Winophiles (Virtually) Invade Alsace Alsace is in the far eastern part of France, right on the border with Germany. The region sits between two possible natural borders, the Vosges mountains and the Rhine river. As such, this little region has flip-flopped several times between being claimed by France and by Germany. As you can … Continue reading
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