France: tracking down treasure…

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

We set out from Saintes to find a Pineau maker extraordinare… we have our TomTom satellite navigation gadget with us, a learning curve for us using it on our first big trip. It’s invaluable as we weave though small winding roads that cut through fields of vines, branch suddenly into two, and seemingly weave back on themselves now and again. We find the village of Chaniers without problem… but of course The Pineau makers are never found in the centre of the village, so although the Tom Toms self satisfied assurance that ” you have reached your destination” is technically  correct, it is not quite the full truth. Hubby learnt his French in this area and after spotting several locals on their leisurely walk back home from an unseen bakery, bagettes in hand, he makes inquiries if they might know of a Monsieur Quéré. The first asks if we are seeking Monsieur Quéré the butcher… oops no, sorry… the second inquiry yields the required results with a smile and a fistful of directions.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

We set out with a long list of tout doits, à gauche, and à doits…. and are relieved to see a few avertisment signs for “Clos de Nancrevant”, leading us up the final winding road and to the door. Officially they are closed at this hour of the day but we can at least ask if they are interested in letting us buy some Pineau. The worst that can happen is that we might get a polite “no”. We knock and ask politely and are greeted with a warm smile and an invitation inside. A degustation follows (for me at least) and my joy of last evening is confirmed…. Even better, we may indeed buy some to take with us, I whip out cash before the kind Monsieur Quéré can change his mind. I try both red and white Pineau’s and both young and old… I like the white but adore the reds. Now, with the knowledge that I have found a treasure and that it will be the first Pineau house that we return to next trip, we prepare to leave the Charentes Maritime.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

Monsieur M. & C. Quéré-Jelineau can be found at: 75, Chemin de Nancrevant, 17610 Chaniers.

Tel: 05.46.91.09.34

email:closdenancrevant@club-internet.fr

Ouvert tous les samedis de 14h à 19h, Juillet/Août: du lundi au samedi de 10h à 19h.

(Translation): Opening times are: Every Saturday between 14.00 – 19.00 hours, July/August: Monday to Saturday between 10.00-19.00 hours.

“www.closdenancrevant.com” is the website listed on their card but that only seemed to lead me to a very long list of Cognac suppliers and their web addresses… I eventually found them at this web address: ” http://closdenancrevant.over-blog.com/”

A little searching in the advert on the right hand side of the page will give you some photos and a small amount of general information (in French).

Directions that we got on the card (after we found it) were ” A Saintes, prendre la RN141 dir Cognac, puis la D138 dir St. Césaire et suivre le fléchage “Clos de Nancrevant”

(Direction translation): From Saintes take Route number 141 direction Cognac, then route D138 direction St. Césaire and follow the indication [signs] leading to “Clos de Nancrevant”.

France: Sunflowers !

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

Late July when we are in France and the sunflowers are at the end of their best… but the display is still stunning enough to stop and try and whip off a few photographs. The sunflower field runs along the road, it’s hard to take photographs at a good angle, but we stop at several different fields and I try…sunflowers turn out to be more difficult to photograph than I first thought, since they are so tall. I’m not short by any means, but I could have done better if there had been a step ladder in the vicinity, unhandily enough I had not thought to pack this item in my suitcase so in the end I resorted to a bit of trial and error, holding the camera in my hands stretched as far above my head as I could reach, pointing to the spot I thought might do the trick and pressing the stutter. OK, not perfect by any means, but a decent enough result to satisfy my sunflower photo fix for the day.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

Harvesting grapes by machine…

Today, most if not all of the grapes for Cognac and Pineau production are harvested by machines but the strict rules for the production of both are still followed and the ratios for grape juice to Cognac are tightly controlled. The year on the bottle of Pineau will be the designation of the eau de vie and not the year that the fresh grape juice was added, and the act of mixing the two is called “ assemblage” (“assembly” or “blending”) This blending stops the fermentation of the grape though a process called “ mutage”.

Now that hand picking of grapes in the Charentes Maritime is fairly well a thing of the past, how is it then done today? Well, with specialized machines like this one:

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

First the bottom part of the machine gently shake the vines so that the bunches of grapes drop off.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

As the grapes fall they land onto a moving conveyor belt at the bottom of the machine that whisks them up to a hopper at the top.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

From the hopper they will be transferred to the juicer (a separate machine) where they will be pressed and the fresh juice captured and added to the eau de vie on the same day as it was pressed.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

Later it will be stored in oak barrels for at least 15 months but more usually years or decades.

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

Himself and Pineau…

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

It all started when Himself and a school friend had just completed a 10 month travel adventure where he hitchhiked from The Netherlands to Turkey and then finding public transport cheap enough for their meager budget, they took buses etc all though Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as well as side trips to Sri Lanka and Nepal. Upon his return to Europe he found it hard to settle into a regular routine and so contacted an agency who suggested maybe a stint of grape picking in France. The agency sent him to The Dordogne and he picked grapes there for three weeks, whilst there he met a young man from Scotland and they got on well.

When the Scot mentioned that he was leaving to pick grapes in the Charentes Maritime and that the farmer was one picker short, the offer was made for Hubby to go with them. He was hesitant at first because it would involve traveling there on their one designated “day off” and beginning work as soon as they got there, but fortunately he accepted the offer and the first massive welcoming French meal served by the farmer’s wife assured him that he had made a good decision. He arrived the first time with school textbook French and since the farmer and his wife knew no English and rather naturally no Dutch, he quickly adapted and came away speaking the French that is typical of the Charentes.

He returned to the hard work of picking grapes by hand to the same farmer and farmer’s wife for the next eight years, received always with open arms, wide smiles and exceedingly large meals. It was French Law that every grape picker was entitled to 3 liters pf wine per person per day (fortunately it was a light wine of 8-9%) but Hubby never managed to remotely achieve anywhere near the allocation in any of the years he picked grapes there. And thus Hubby was introduced to the secret of Pineau de Charentes…. and that this particular region of France formed a very special place in his heart.

Breakfast in France: Saint-Jean d’Angély

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

Last evening’s meal, a long day driving and a pineau nightcap mean that we sleep well in this very simple but acceptible hotel. Breakfast is basic and typically French. The Hotel is called ” Hôtel Sweet Hôtel” is cheap, has parking, is very basic and clean… we needed nothing more. We get ready for the day, find the breakfast room and sit to eat….

then I notice the photos on the walls that have been taken in the town, they echo the same ancient buildings but have been taken in a different era, I adore things like this, I think I’m a secret History buff because I love to see what changes in an area or what endures in it’s original form.

I wonder about the reasons that some are gone and imagine the history of what has go on inside these walls, down these streets and how people lived and did business.

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

France:Restaurant Review:Saint Jean d’ Angely,Restaurant le Mareyeur

With a few bottles of Pineau des Charentes sampled via a “degustation” and percured minutes before the shop’s closing time, our thoughts now turn to dinner. It’s late in the day, we have traveled far and the bar up the street with the drunken patrons isn’t an inviting prospect. There’s a place on the opposite side of the square that looks rather touristy, but it will do.

Restaurant le Mareyeur is indeed a tourist trap, and even speaking my best French, my accent was quickly detected and without a word an English language menu was placed before me. Not what I personally prefer since the aim of any trip to France is to increase my French and not reduce it… but oh well. I made the waitress smile when later when after reading the menu in English I ordered the items in French… she treated me more French after that which I appreciated. Himself was driving, so had one wine with his meal… happy to not be behind the wheel, I indulged in a Pineau…

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

Hubby ordered salmon appetizer and then Mussels cooked in white wine and I ordered Salmon with Pineau Sauce,

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

Dessert for me was what the menu painfully called “ turned apple pie” but was in fact a very French “ Tarte Tartin” …

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

Hubby went for his firm favourite ”Mousse au Chocolat (Chocolate Mousse).

All in all a very good meal indeed. The staff were friendly and the food was well cooked and well presented. For what I had considered as a not so good choice because of it’s very touristic looks, turned out far better than expected and it was a very nice surprise. We left happy and replete, and stomachs satisfied, would have no problems to eat here again.

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

France: Saint-Jean d’Angély, still more…

(photo kiwidutch)

Saint-Jean d’Angély has many wonderful old medieval buildings in the town center, some of which date back to the 15th and 16th Century. Near the Place du Pilori there is a 16th century fountain, there is the Abby and other surrounding buildings associated with Les Chemins de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle. There is also a clock tower “Tour de l’Horloge” that dates from 1406. It’s well worth taking the time to walk the narrow streets and enjoy the sights. There is so much to see… take a camera to remember it all !

(photo kiwidutch)

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Closing up the fruit and vegetable shop for the day…

Old building…

..seriously old building…

Beautiful old building…

Tour de l’Horloge….

Here’s an idea… let’s send the Removal Truck Company down here with the GPS…. or maybe not?

Pineau des Charentes is NOT Pinot Noir wine… but it IS….

(photo © kiwidutch)

Not to be confused with Pinot Noir wine, which has a vaguely similar sounding name, Pineau des Charentes, is a delightful gem of a drink that is a little known secret, not only outside of France but also in other regions of France outside the Charentes Maritime. Basically, Pineau des Charentes is made by taking the very first pressing of the grapes and mixing that juice with Cognac. The grape juice must be made the same day as the grapes are picked. The result is similar to Port, a mellow semi sweet drink that like Port, can deal a decent punch if too much is drunk at once since it’s more alcoholic than it tastes. Even if you find Cognac too strong and too fiery, if you like Port then it’s fairly certain that you will love Pineau. If you are asking for it in English then it comes in “White” or “Red,” but the French call the same thing “Blanc” or “Rose”. Don’t ask me why, because No, it’s not pink. Many places that sell it might also have the possibility of “ degustation” which is a small taste test sample of that they have. It’s worth asking for the possibilities of a “degustation” because there are subtle differences between young and aged Pineau’s and between the young and aged Red and Whites. Be careful if you are driving though, many small “samples” will add up and quickly put you well over the legal limit. If you are in the Charentes, Do try and sample Pineau’s from more than one maker, and in different price ranges because just as with wine tastings, there are slight and sometimes surprising differences between them all and once accustomed to the taste you will quickly form distinct preferences. Over the years we have enjoyed Pineau’s both dirt cheap and more expensive of excellent and sometimes not so excellent quality so don’t only go on price alone. I will be reviewing various Pineau’s in this blog from time to time but of course naturally I will rate them according to my tastes. A small few Pineau’s are not particularly good tasting at all … a taste test will eliminate the possibility that you buy one of the few bad Pineau’s. A little (and especially a lot) French language skill will go a long long long way with small village Pineau makers too and if you buy a box of six bottles or twelve then often a small reduction in price can often be smilingly arranged. Brush off your language skills and be prepared for a treat !

The Shop where I bought some Pineau…

France: Saint Jean d’ Angély, around the Town centre…

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

It’s getting rather late in the day and the visitors center is about to close, the staff are very helpful indeed but it’s the high season and there are a lot of tourists in town so available accommodation is suddenly scarce. We look at B&B’s , pensions and almost every option but it seems that the motel close to the motorway might be our only option at this late hour. They phone and we have a bed… I want to take some photographs since light is fading fast, Hubby wants to drop our bags off at the motel and confirm our booking, so he heads out of town to do that whilst I start to meander the streets of Saint Jean d’ Angély . It begins to rain softly, but thin enough that I can still take some photos in the light drizzle. There are a few bars open but nothing that looks really French and traditional, and there are a few rather inebriated English tourists hanging out at the biggest one, so I bypass it quickly. As I walk the next half hour the rain starts to become a little steadier so I head back to where I’ve arranged to meet hubby and take shelter in a small wine shop. Of course this is the Pineau des Charentes and Cognac region of France so it’s not just wine they are selling. First let me show you around a small section of Saint Jean d’ Angély before I tell you about the specialties in this shop (and this area) that are the reason for our trip here.

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

France: Saint Jean d’ Angély

(Photo © Kiwidutch)

We have arrived in the French Departements of the “Charentes” and the “Charentes Maritime”. It’s a section of France that is along the famed pilgrimage of the Santiagio de Compostelle.

The distance from Paris to Saint-Jacques de Compostelle is about 1300 kms . Pilgrims did it on foot, sometimes on horseback or on a boat covered about 30 kms per day if all was going well.

The origins of the Compostelle, the history and the legend…

In the 9^th Century AD on the western tip of the Cantabrian Coast, in the kingdom of Galatia, a hermit named Peleyo and Theodormir, a local Bishop from Iria Flavia in north-west Spain, discovered three sarcophagi: that of the apostle James and that of his disciples Athanasins and Theodore of whom all recollection had been lost.

The king of Asturia, Alphonso II, immediately ordered a church to be built over the tombs. And so it was that from the tenth century onwards the first pilgrims, full of religious fervour, began to arrive in Galicia.

The epic tale of Saint James had become part of History…

Who was this man who was known as Saint James the Greater?

The son of Zebedee and Mary Salome and brother of John of Evangelist, James has been called “ James Major” or “ James the Greater” because he was the longest standing of Christ’s apostles. In 44AD James was beheaded by order of Herod Agrippa I, king of Judaea. After his execution two of his disciples recovered his remains and placed them in a small boat. The craft was carried across the sea by a divine wind and finally washed up on the Galician coast.

The small town of Saint Jean d Angély is one of the stopping points along the route and this evening they are having an outdoor celebration by the ruined Abby… live music is being preformed and people in beautiful historical costumes are busy going from one building nearby to another. In the fading daylight of the evening, I manage to get some photographs…

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

Some very impressive battlements? a major shoring up of a subsidence problem? All the surrounding buildings have “normal” walls, this one went for the walls on steroids look… this ” fortification” continues all around the inside of the open courtyard.

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

a string quartet play and people get ready for some kind of concert and performance…

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

History and tradition of Saint-Jean (Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)

(Photos © Kiwidutch)