A trip to the Loire valley

We've thought about it so often but there was never the right time. Finally yesterday, with the Shy persons, we headed off to the Loire valley. There was no fixed agenda. Just a couple of chateaux, wines, round it off in Tours and then back to fonty, this was the plan.
The day started around 8-30 am after a night of heavy pisco drinking with the Incas. I was amazed that we managed to get up! A beautifully sunny day. We were all gung ho about it and then somewhere around Bois de Bologne or something like that, the fog started rolling in. There was pin drop silence in the car as the four of us were simultaneously saying our prayers to ward the clouds away. Et voila! The first stop was Chambord and take a look at the sky. Walked around the grounds - pictures galore or as we say - pateling. Outside the chateau, their definition of cappuchino is a little different from what I am used to. You ask for a capu...and you get a cafe with a huge dollop of Chantilly. In fact, the cafe is constant. When you ask for cafe au lait, you get a cafe, then the milk carton comes out. Dont expect a boiling hot cup of coffee - in fact, a cuppa tea might be a little more pleasant. Coming back to the chateau, beautiful - as much for the architecture as for the rolling lawns and green grass all around. It is a white island in the middle of a green sea - isolated and standing tall.

In a distance is a nuclear center and the offices of the EDF. The clouds that you see against the blue sky aren't god's creation but man-made pollution.

Next stop Cheverny - the home of Captain Haddock and the imaginary Marlinspike. Its an excellent marketing gimmick. The ficitional copy has done full justice to the real chateau but you cant see it from the road. You end up buying tickets for 6 euros per head just for a dekko. And the insides are amazingly ordinary. The only interesting feature was a document signed by George Washington for one of the ancestors who fought with La Fayette and Rochembeau during the American war of Independence. People enjoy watching the dogs being fed....different pleasures. We moved on to Blois to feed ourselves. Pretty town. Cobblestone streets, lovely chateau again and a very pretty church. There were people praying and I didnt feel like using the camera. It had a very unusual altar - with a blue Mary. Missed the Museum of Magic - lack of time but Amboise more than made up for it. A small village with a fort like chateau, the christmas lights up. After walking all the way to the Clos Luce, we found the tickets cost 9 euros. Oh..oh...not paying that much for some IBM models. So we decided to just stroll around. The four of us in the explorer mould, climbed a hill and voila! A full view of the Loire valley, the river, the town and a setting sun. It was quite magical.
When we got back to the car park at the chateau, I got lucky. Happened to notice a wine tasting underway at one of the outlets. This was Plou et Fils. Lets give it a shot, was the instant thought. Of course, we were too self conscious to sit there and give our opinions on the wines. So we did the next best thing - asked specifically for what we were interested in. The chardonnay - strong nutty flavour and it left an aftertaste (a pleasant one) which lasted all the way to the car. Ended up buying the Chardonnay and Cremant de Loire...THANK YOU TWEEDLEDUM!!!!!

Post this, the drive along the river was fini. It was on to Chenonceaux - views from different angles, disappointments (no lights in the winter), pleasures (seeing the spires across the river) and then Tours. Its a huge city! I hadnt imagined it this big. Modern multistoreys juxtaposed with ancient statues, fountains in the river changing colours. There was a 'je ne sais quoi' in the air, I still cant identify it, but it reminded me of the sea front in Goa. Couldn't capture Hotel de Ville too well (photographer genius that I am) but it was a lovely sight especially with the Christmas tree and all the lights having been put up. Had coffee in a very nice cafe - Le Vaubray - suprise, suprise - an amazingly polite and sweet proprietor. In fact the proprietor of the restaurant where we had lunch was also a very friendly man. I think it was La Petite Pizzeria. He had a board which read - Prix net - Sourire compris. For the first time in France, I had coq au vin..in an Italian restaurant. And it was delicious. Exactly the way I imagine french cooking - thick, brown sauce to dip my bread into.
Anyway, post Tours, we were all ready for home. The plan was dinner in Melun and then home. None of us had any idea what time Supra closes but we decided to take a chance. Fortune favours the brave. 10-45pm - we got in just before he closed for the day. We were so touched that he decided to extend the time for us that we have actually got back a huge bunch of cards to put on the notice board. His food needs publicizing. Its good.

My head is still reeling

The pictures are from the Incas camera - the world is a better photographer than I am. He's even managed Daisy Duck!!

But the rest of the story of the day had absolutely nothing in common with Disney. Its the 'Heart of Europe' week on campus and yesterday was Oktoberfest!! The size of the beer mugs had to be seen to be believed - HUMONGEOUS!! I saw someone carrying one and practically ran to Tweedledum. We just had to have them. And we do...now!

So we wait till 7 and then we get to the bar....the atmosphere was a german bar revisited!! Everyone sitting at long tables banging their mugs calling for beer (some of them for The D-man who was to 'officially' open the kegs). Bretzels, sausages, what not, to eat and huge mugs of beer - I could have gone on all night. Hema M actually did a bottoms up on one of the beer mugs - which was a sight to remember forever! I still remember her coming home for the first time in January - she didn't drink, she didn't eat non-veg - what a transformation! Insead is really the seat of sin:-)

Anyway we couldn't stay forever - had to move across borders to Turkey and France - dinner invitation. I went feeling extremely conscious. Wasn't so sure that I was sober but we had a really pleasant evening. Homely folks, no pretensions plus a variety of food and drinks. Dinner was raclette, quite an experience. Slices of meat and a variety of cheese. You put it into the heating plate and then pour the melted cheese over your sausages. Really good!! and I was going to start dieting....tomorrow....

One of the new drinks was an apertif/ liquer which I had after dinner - Pineau de Charentes. Very interesting flavour. It was neither the typical sickly sweet taste of liquers nor the stomach burning volcano. Came back and searched for some information and found this:- http://www.toomanychefs.net/archives/001204.php

Should find bottles in UK.

A child's Amsterdam

I survived! And we had a great time. In the correct sequence of enjoyment - the hotel, the food, thunder mountain, pirates of the carribean and the wine. The hotel - lovely!! (this is the witch from the hotel lobby) After all the etaps and ibises, it was sublime pleasure to get back into the lap of luxury. Especially after Paimpol. We moved from a hotel room where I had to get into the loo, adjust myself and then call out to Tweedledum to come and close the door (lack of space, you see) to a room where there were two double beds, incase we couldn't sleep together....also, mickey mouse soaps and shampoos;-)
The food - aahhh!! Ate and ate and ate - had my fill of fine french cuisine. Now the dieting has to begin and this time seriously. Am getting sooo puffy. The best was, of course, buffet desserts. Yummy!!!
The rides - we went to Black Thunder mountain and Indiana Jones. The first was scary on day one but day two, I loved it! Indiana Jones - I screamed and screamed and screamed - in fact, I think I started screaming before the ride even began. Thats how psyched I was. Didn't think I could take it a second time - so didnt attempt it. As for Space Mountain, went all the way in but then chickened out. Just couldnt get myself to sit in the damn torture chamber. The darkness and the screams of people were petrifying. Why torture yourself? Pirates of the Carribean was an amazing ride - totally worth the wait of 45 minutes. The set up was so realistic - tried taking pics but they do no justice to the real thing, as usual. The other good ones - Peter Pan (caters to the child in me;-)), Cinemagic, Aerosmith.
What was amazing was that we were there for three days and I saw no kid cry! They all looked so happy. The funny moment was when all the cartoon characters came out for the parade - I was so excited to see Donald Duck that I was standing there mesmerised with my mouth open and then I looked around and found myself surrounded by 5 year olds with exactly the same expression. I think thats the beauty of Disneyland - it lets you be a kid once more.

We're going to Disneyland....

This has to be one of my rarer trips where the we're going to...is not followed by exclamation marks. I hope I survive. I must be one of the rare souls, or to be honest, one of the cowards, who doesnt enjoy disney rides. So the only song in my head right now is 'I will survive'....

Rubies, garnets, caramel and more...

How beautiful is this! Have been wanting to stop and photograph the forest for so long and finally today we got time on the way to school. While I feel that the peak of splendour is past, when we were gallavanting (how do you spell the word??) in Brittany, this isn't too bad either. There is a riot of colours as soon as you move out of Bourron Marlotte onto the highway. We call the Gulmohar the flame of the forest, here they are all flaming up the forest! Moreover, when we get back at night, on an average, we get to spot at least 4-5 boars. Though there is absolutely nothing exciting about the boar. Ugliest creature ever! The deer, on the other hand, is beautiful. Hope to catch one of them on camera. But ever since the hunting season has started the sightings of deer have dramatically dropped.

Saw a couple of houses for Kallol and family today and have recommended one of them. The only problem I perceive is that it is in one of the smaller villages. Still, all I can do is advice. The rest is up to them. Brave people though - they are coming with a five year old daughter. To uproot from home, wherever that may be, unless it is french speaking, and start schooling in France cannot possibly be an easy task.

Okonomiyaki

Just had an absolutely scintillating Japanese cooking class. If you have the ingredients (which I plan on stocking in the new house) it is very healthy cooking. We made Okonomiyaki with pork and assorted sea food and nyumen, which was japanese noodles. Before I get into the recipes, the learnings from today - Stirring, mixing, beating with chopsticks can be a very efficient method, since it won't stick on half as much as it does to the spatula. The second - buy a big, flat spoon like she had. Most useful for flipping okonomiyaki and can be used for omelettes, paranthas, dosas, spanish tortillas etc. And now for the recipes:

★OKONOMIYAKI★
Ingredients
・Okonomiyaki floor 100g (1 cup)
・1 egg
・100 cc water
・two or three pieces of cabbages (these were fistfulls)【Possible ingredients to put into/onto okonomiyaki】
・Pork (thinly sliced or ground) ！Beef is also good.
・Seafood (Picard mix seafood) ！Raw seafood is much better.
・Tenkasu (tempura crumbs)
・Katsuobushi (Dried , shaved bonito)
・Aonori (Green dried seaweed)
・Okonomiyaki sauce
・Mayonnaise
Preparation
1. Cut the cabbage into very thin slices without the hard, white core in this strings.
2. Mix the Okonomiyaki flour, eggs, water and cabbage
3. You may now add more ingredients to the dough. (ex. seafood, tenkasu )
4. Fry the dough like a pancake in a frying pan.
5. Before turning the Okonomiyaki over, and while the dough is still quite soft, you may put other ingredients on top of the dough (like the pork slices)
6.Turn the Okonomiyaki
7. When fried well, serve the Okonomiyaki with Okonomiyaki sauce, katsuobushi, aonori and mayonnaise.
☆General Information☆
Depending on the region of Japan, okonomiyaki is prepared in various different styles,In Japan, there are two areas where okonomiyaki is very popular; Osaka and Hiroshima.In Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki, chopped cabbage and yakisoba (fried noodles) are cooled on top of thinly spread dough.In Osaka-style okonomiyaki, chopped cabbage is mixed with the dough and cooked together.It might be easier for beginner to cook Osaka -style okonomiyaki than to cook Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki.

★Nyumen★
Nyumen is hot somen,Somen is kind of noodles. Its made of wheat.We usually eat hiyashi somen in hot summer. Hiyashi means cold.But in cold wether, we eat nyumen. Let's try cooking!【Ingredients】
・1 or 2 bunches of somen
・3 cups of water
・half pack of hondashi (powder of bonito)
・1.5 teaspoons of Soysause
・1.5 teaspoons of Mirin (this was rice wine)
・egg (as you like) (learning - dont break; keep the yolk ball)
Eat with...
・Nori (Dried seaweed)
・Yuzu kosho (Yuzu pepper)
・Wasabi
・Hichimi (this was mind blowing; great!; a lemony, peppery taste)

It was a lovely class and I'm waiting to try this out for Tweedledum. But Ill have to wait for London before I go buying the ingredients. Right now, I'm making a huge effort to finish the food stuff I aleady have before we leave for home.

What did I do?

Have no idea where the mess up is but cant seem to edit my Brittany blog. Cant write about oysters and mussels in Cancale, conquering the world at Pointe du Grouin, the pirate walk at Saint Malo or the shadiest hotel at Paimpol. It will stay in my memories.....
Also my package for Level 2 has arrived. Studies start once again.
But, in the meanwhile, since we have been on the Burgundy region, the last and final edition on the Chardonnay. These were some of the wines tasted at Christian's tastings:
CHAMPAGNE DELAMOTTE
A pale golden with straight line bubbles. They were interesting to look at. Lovely nose - tangy, green apple. As for the palate sweet, tangy, dryish. He introduced a new concept of the finish - Brut, with a little sugar. All in all - very interesting. Doubt I can buy it though - 33 euros.
CHABLIS-LAURENT TRIBUT (2004) - YONNE
Starwy colour with a sweet, fruity nose. A slight smell of sulphur though. On the palate orchardy fruits (I cant differentiate between the varous berries). A longish finish. recommended food - Cheese, oysters, sushi, white sauce. Affordable, I dont think so - 16 euros.
MACON SOLUTRE - CHATEAU DE BEAUREGARD (JOSEPH BURRIER - 2005)
Goldenish yellow, more viscous. I enjoyed the nose - peachy, spicy, smell of nutmeg and winter. It was a really smooth taste but not a long or a persisitent finish. Recommended food was salads or light chicken dishes. Down the curve at 14 euros. Christians input - 2005 was a great vintage. Should keep my eyes open for a deal.
ALAMOS CHARDONNAY - ARGENTINA
The last was most interesting. We had a french lady with us. She tasted it and went - this is great, very different. It was a darker yellow with the smell of moss, pine cones, pineapple and litchi. Of course, the taste was also sweeter, not too pleasant but it got better with some cheese. finish - not too long. The hit was 11 euros.
A recommended site was www.bbr.com and www.jancisrobinson.com

And on a final note, I desperately need a haircut. I think I will permanently keep a cap on these days. When the wind blows, I literally have a bald patch showing at the top of my head......not particularly appealing.

How much we walked!

Today morning started with grey skies. NO!!! But the weather report said sunshine - this cant be happening. We have our breakfast with one eye outside looking at the skies, waiting for the sun. Nothing...but we decided to risk it anyway. Maybe, just maybe it will get better. As we were leaving the hotel, the rainbow made its appearance and it followed us or rather we followed it all the way to the pier, where it transformed itself into two rainbows!! My recommendation for future travellers would be not to stay in Paimpol. There were loads of hotels on the way to L'Arcouest.
...And when we were buying our tickets, who do we see...the sun!!! The rest is history. The boatride, arriving at Ile de Brehat, the walks, the cobblestone paths. We felt like Robinson Crusoe and his Man Friday. Not a soul around! Total silence! We just kept wandering along the paths, chancing upon their relics or 'tourist attractions'. The Croix de Maudez from where we had a view of the island and the sea. The Moulin du Birlot - a small stone mill, at the edge of the sea. Chapelle Saint-Michel. And then after walking through the fields, the Phare du Paon, a lighthouse at the end of the northern island. What shades of blue! Merging with the pink limestone cliffs. For once, I dont think I can do justice with words. To the serenity of the place, the only sound being the cry of the seagulls.
But then we had to walk back. Oh god!! I know it was flat land but for some reason, it felt as tough as Triund. I guess we were not prepared for this amount of walking and moreover by now, we were famished. The breakfast had been baguette, butter and milk. Sausages and eggs would have been more like it. Btw, in case I forget this - eating breakfast is an art that the English have mastered certainly not the French. French bread - YES!!!! Completely french breaka - No!!
Anyway, so we encouraged each other, sang, talked, dragged ourselves along to reach the Point de Clos...only to find all restaurants closed! What now! Back to the Bourg...and we found a restaurant open (hallelujah!) Croque Monsieur for me, grilled pork for Tweedledum and the best french fries I have EVER had. Rejuvenated, we headed back to Point de clos, the boat, mainland and then.....home.
A beautiful holiday.......

Finally Brittany

Decided to go ahead with Britany plans. No point sitting at home and mourning when there is nothing you can do to help.
Issued the viamichelin map book so that we always have our coordinates no matter how lost we get. The plan was no deadlines, no hurry, just keep altering the plans as per the mood at the moment. First stop - Mont Saint Michel. It was almost evening by the time we neared our destination so we decided to check into our B&B. But when we got to Saint Marcan what do we find. N0one at home! Knocked and knocked - no reply. Oops!! What now - lets just drive on. On and on and on - till we got to MSM. I will never forget my first sight of the place. It is awesome!! You are driving along the road, still looking at the map, you look up and there in the distance is this structure which just seems to rise out of nothing.

No.....

Sad news. But HE went in peace without long drawn pain, surrounded by family and children. Tweedledum's birthday......

Helen's Burgundy

Too scared to write in the same blog. One wrong press of the key and that will be a lot of hard work down the drain.

So here goes...some of the wines from the region, that I have tasted:

2002 Premier CRU CHABLIS Vaucoupin - Producer: Jean-Marc Brocard
It was a pale like straw, good viscosity wine. Nose: Lemony, green apple, light wine. Taste: I enjoyed, oily but dry, slightly acidic/ citric taste. they said flinty taste - have no idea which one of the tastes was flinty. The grape was, of course, Chardonnay.
Food - Sea food, oysters, mussels, snails, coq au vin.
Hit - This, I believe, was 16e though a Chablis for 8-9 is a possibility.

2002 Mercurey - Chateau de Santenay
(This is an appellation Mercure Controllee. The cave is Bailley. However, Santenay, as you might well remember, was an award winning Cote D'Or)
Straw coloured. Nose: Burnt caramel, wood smoke - so may have been oaked. Taste: Acidic, nutty after taste. The grape, well, Chardonnay
Food - Shell fish, poultry, veal, cheeses.
Hit - 11e.

2003 Puligny Montrachet Producer - Reine Pedauque;
It had the Tastevinage coat of arms. Shows its an award winning Grand Vin de Burgundy.
Yellow gold. Nose: Nutty, I felt, honey, caramely too. Taste: Initially acidic, then smooth, nutty as in almondy, honey. I liked! Grape Chardonnay.
Food - Oysters, salmon, foie gras (because its a greasy wine), duck (slices on salad)
Hit - 21e. Ouch!!

2003 Bourgogne Haute-Cotes de Nuits (its up the hill from the villages)
Les Colombieres - Domaine Patrick Hudelot
Pale ruby red. Can be explained because Piot Noir is thin skinned. Nose: Gloves, rubber, nail polish. Taste: Too acidic, I didnt like.
Food: Beouf Bourgignon, Veal

2000 Santenay - Clos de Gatsulard (the name of the wineyard is written at half the size as the village name)
Domaine Raymond-Launay
Bricky red, aging. Nose: Spicy, pepper, cinnamon, fruity, rasberries, prunes. Taste: smooth, and then grippy on the sides of the mouth, then acidic. The taste stayed a little longer.
Food: Duck, rabbit, Deer, Coq au vin
Hit: 12e

2000 Gevrey-Chambertin (The AOC is G-C)
Producer: Frederic Magnien
Darker than the others. Pleasant nose, spicy, musk, peppery, cherries, blackcurrants. Taste: smooth, acidic, slightly sweet.
Food: Lamb, pates, strong cheeses
Hit: 24 e

Burgundy

Considering its the third Thursday of November and the night of the Beuajolais Nouveau, lets start with Burgundy wines.
A little bit of HISTORY- All the region confusion began post the French revolution when the huge aristocratic and church estates became extremely fragmented. The beginnings, however, were with the Romans and then further expansion of the vineyard area by the Church abbeys of Cluny, Citeaux and Pontigny. In the fifteenth century was founded the Hospice of Beaune.
The GRAPES are some of my favourites. In the whites, Chardonnay and Aligote (the giver of acidity to their wine) rule. In the reds, its the Pinot Noir and the Gamay.
The APPELLATIONS:
Au commencement, c'est Les GRAND Cru A.O.C. About 3% of both reds and whites grown in the region, the wines only mention the 'climat' or the vineyard site. 32 in the Cote d'or and 7 in Chablis (we'll talk the locations a little later).
Then follows the PREMIER Cru A.O.C. They are about 11% of the wines and situated in the best 'climats' of each village. The vineyard name is shown on the label in addition to the village name.
COMMUNAL A.O.C. is 30% of the wines produced around a village, with only the village name on their labels.
And finally the GENERIC A.O.C. which is 56% of the wine from anywhere within the Burgundy Appellations. They can be grouped by grape variety or by sub region - Macon Villages, Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Beaune etc.
That brings us to the LOCATIONS, which are various parts of the Burgundy region. I'll try and give some of the wines from each of these regions (affordable or not).
We start with my absolute favourite - CHABLIS and the YONNE
As I said before, there are 7 Grand CRUs - Blanchots, Burgos, Les Clos, Grenouilles, Les Preuses, Valmur and Vaudesir.
In the Premier CRU, there are 40 names climats e.g. Fourchaume, Vaucoupin.
Wines from specified parcels in 19 communes are called Chablis.
Anywhere else in the Chablis region is the Petit Chablis.
One of the reasons I want to drive down to Chablis before leaving is that the Caves Cooperative (La Chablisienne) produces one-third of all the wines, a large part of which is sold to the negociant elevers and the rest is bottled by the growers. I want to see this Cave - what is it?
Next we come to the COTE D'OR - which is the Cote de Nuits and the Cote de Beaune.
COTE DE NUITS produces full red wines with a great bouquet.
The relatively affordable ones are:
Maarsannay - with a deep red colour, tannic and supple. Their whites are long lasting, rich and...fat.
Fixin - Solid, dark reds, tannic structure and need time to age.
Morey-St-Denis - Reds. They have 5 Grand CRUs, several Premier CRUs and the wines age slowly, 5-10 years.
Nuits-Saint-Georges - This is the largest comune, with no grands but several Premiers, and a few whites too.
and then...
Chambole-Musigny - Red only with 2 Grands, 22 Premiers and a small amount of extremely rare whites.
Vougeot - The famous Grand CRU - Clos Vougeot. 3 Premiers of which one is a white.
Flagey-Echezeaux - 2 Grand CRUs. Super expensive.
Vosne-Romanee - Ahem! 5 Grands and 'THE' Romanee-Conti.
COTE DE BEAUNE specialises in lighter more delicate wines than the Cote de Nuits. In order of affordabillity:
Ladoix - Reds and whites. The Grand CRUs are CRU Corton-Charlemagne and Corton. In terms of aging, the whites need 3-6 years, reds 3-4 years or else after maturing 8-12 years.
Pernand-Vergelesses - Once again reds and whites. And these guys also share the Corton and the Corton-C status.
Savigny-Les Beaunes - Brilliant reds and whites. And no grands and premiers.
Chorey-Les-Beaune - Mainly reds, no premiers, to be drunk young.
Beaune - Largely red. To my eternal happiness, cheapest and most reliable of the Cote d'Or wines. Small amount of Premier white.
Monthelie - Red, whites, several Premiers. Good value for money whch means you cant afford it but it would be a good investment.
Auxey-Duresses - Reds, whites, 8 Premier vineyards. Whites 3-5 years, reds 5-10 years.
Saint Romain - Great value again. No Premiers.
Saint Aubin - as above but with some Premiers.
Santenay - Largely red, some Premier. Good value.
Maranges - AC status only in '89. Several red Premiers. Rich, well balanced whites which can be aged 6-8 years.
And then, those where you wont see the words excellent value for money. They leave the throat wet and the wallet dry.
Aloxe-Corton - Here half the hillside is planted with Pinot Noir giving the famous Grand CRU Corton and the other half is planted with Chardonnay producing the Grand CRU Corton-Charlemagne. Can you imagine the insurance premium paid for this hill!
Pommard - Reds, No grands, Can be drunk at 5-8 years, Vintages will be 20-25 years.
Volney - Reds, some premiers which age well.
Meursault - Enfin, mainly whites which are excellent when oak-aged. Reds are light in character. Both can be Premier CRU. The whites age slowly in about 8-15 years, the reds can be drunk well in 5-10 years.
Puligny-Montrachet - Mostly white again. 13 Premiers and 4 grands! Reds, good value. Whites peak at 6-8 years, good at 15. The Grands and Premiers at 10-15 years.
Chassagne-Montrachet - All grands are white, premiers covers reds and whites.
Pommard and Volnay are heavier and darker Cote D'Or wines, exceptions to the regular Burgundy wines.
I'm getting tired. Just a few more...
LA COTE CHALONNAISE
The AOC Controlee(s) are:
Regional-Bourgogne, Bourgogne Passetoutgrains, Bourgogne Aligote, Cremand de Bourgogne, Bourgogne Cotes Chalonnaise, Bourgogne Cotes du Couchois.
Commune-Bouzeron, Mercurey, Rully, Givry, Montagny
Premier CRU-The villages of Mercurey, Rully, Givry, Montagny
Rully - Several Premiers. Whites 3-12 years, Reds 5-12 years.
Mercurey - mainly red, several Premiers, reds 5-12 years, whites 3-12 years.
Givry - Red is rich and full-bodied, often compared to volnay. Whites improve with age.
Montagny - Only whites. Dry, delicate bouquet, 3-8 years.
MACONNAIS
The AOC Controlee(s) are:
Regional-Bourgogne, Bourgogne Aligote, Bourgogne Passetoutgrains, Macon, Macon Superior, Macon-Village, Macon+village name (Macon-Prisse, Macon-Vire). 43 villages can add their names to Macon.
Commune-Saint Veran, Pouilly-Fuisse, Pouilly-Vinzelles, Pouilly-Loche
GRAPE Varieties-Pinot Noir (Bourgogne Rouge), Gamay (Macon Rouge), Chardonnay
Saint Veran - Soft, quick maturing, white best at 3-8 years
Pouilly-Fuisse - White, if oak aged has characteristics of a good Meursault.
Pouilly-Vinzelles - White, delicate bouquet, develops over 5-12 years
Pouilly-Loche - White, dry, fruity to be drunk young or will develop over time
And then the reason why we are here today - BEAUJOLAIS
The AOC Controlee(s) are: Beaujolais, Beaujolais Superieur, Beaujolais villages - 39 villages can use this title.
Commune-CRU Beaujolais, the top 10 villages
GRAPE Varieties-Red is gamay, White is Chardonnay
CRU Villages
Brouilly - light wine matures to be drunk in 6 months to a year
Cote de Brouilly - fuller, fatter than Brouilly, to be drunk in 1-2 years
Regnie - good, easy, drink young
Morgon - traditional need several years to mature. lighter, quicker, maturing also made.
Chiroubles - light, fruity, easy drinking
Fleurie - popular CRU, quick maturing
Moulin-a-vent - Solid, strong, need 3-5 years for aging
Chenas - Can be drunk young but is tough, better to age
Julienas - Better young but not popular
Saint-Amour - Best when young
And finally the Beaujolais Nouveau........

Move your butt before it becomes immovable

After all the wine and cheese, this is 'THE' necessity in life.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzoJRpQhLwg - For just a wee bit of inspiration.

(a short while later)

Can things possibly get more embarrasing than this. I crossed the ultimate threshold of dumbness today (but, in my defense, how in the world would I think it possible). The story goes as follows - Met Tweedledum in the library and he informed me that he will not be using the laptop for another 45 minutes. On hearing of the availability of the laptop, I had this sudden urge to speak to my mother and I rushed to this infernal instrument of skype. Noone in the room. Excellent. I dial the number and I hear her voice. 'Hello, hello'...'Hello, Mummy, cant you hear me?'...Disconnect. Try again but for some reason she cant hear me. So after another two dozen helloings I give up. Now what? I have the comp . What should I do? How about some relaxation (as if i do anything else) - And I click on the link above and listen to some good music at an extremely good volume.

...A long long while later (and god knows how many people must have cussed me in the meantime) I just happen to look down at my hands and then to the left of my hands..and what do I see.....the earphones weren't plugged into the comp. OH MY GOD!!!! Dance music at full blast in a study cubicle while the world tries to study....i dont know when I can show my face around there again....

....and finally, in retrospect, I wish I had at least been playing some classy music.....;-)

Soft copies

I'm taking stock of the last year and have decided to start compiling some of the documentation accumalated over the last 11 months. And whats the best way to start but the notes of my wine classes.
So today we'll start with the general introduction to french wines and their classification system. Well, most french wines have an A.O.C., that is their Appellation D'Origin Controllee. About 50% of the wines produced are AOC graded, which means their quality is graded and they are named by their place of origin. All kinds of rules apply for AOC grading such as a stated grape variety grown within a specified area, with a maximum yield per hectare, obey a maximum alchohol strength of the appellation, keep the maximum density of the wines, follow the pruning methods laid down, use only permitted additives for acidifying, deacidifying and sugar content. since 1979, they must also pass a taste panel. Within AOC, of course, you can have higher levels like Grand, Premier etc.
Vin Delimite De Qualite Superieure (V.D.Q.S) - Similar rules, incentivising for maintaining good standards so that they can be upgraded.
Vin de Pays - About 14% of the production. Meant to give regional definition to wines. More grapes allowed with higher yields and minimum alchohol.
Vin de Table - All the others. If ever, urgent need to buy, stick to Languedoc-Roussillion.

Now the fun part. How can you crinkle up your nose and play the part of a wine afficiado. Some terminologies:
APPEARANCE
Clarity - Bright/ Clear/ Dull/ Hazy/ Cloudy
Colour - White: Green(?)/ Lemon/ Straw/ Gold/ Amber
Rose: Pink/ Salmon/ Orange/ Onion skin
Red: Purple/ Ruby/ Garnet/ Mahogany/ Tawny
Intensity - White: Water white/ pale/ Medium/ Deep
Rose: Pale/ Deep/ Medium
Red: Pale/ Medium/ Deep/ Opaque
Other things to see: Legs/ Bubbles/ Rim colour vs core/ Deposits (?)
NOSE
Condition - Clean/ Unclean
Intensity - Weak/ Medium/ Pronounced
Development - Youthful/ Grape Aromas/ Mature Bouquet/ Tired/ Oxidised
Ripeness - Green/ Ripe/ Over ripe/ Noble rot
Fruit character - Fruity/Floral/ Vegetal/ Spicy/ Woods/ Smokey/ animal/ Fermentation aromas
PALATE
Sweetness - Dry/ Off dry/ Medium dry/Medium sweet/ Sweet/ Luscious
Acidity - Flabby/ balanced/ crisp/ acidic
Tannin - Astringent/ hard/ balanced/ soft
Body - Thin/ light/ medium/ full/ heavy
Fruit Intensity - Weak/ medium/ pronounced
Fruit Character - Groups as for nose
Alchohol - Light/ Medium/ High
Length - Short/ Medium/ Long
CONCLUSIONS
Quality - Faulty/ poor/ acceptable/ good/ outstanding
Maturity - Immature/ youthful/ mature/ declining/ over-mature
Provenance - Location/ Grape variety

And here's something which can prove to be very useful - the tastes of various grapes.
Aligote - Acidic, apples, citric
Cabernet franc - Strawberries, green peppers, potato peeklings, blackcurrant, chocolate
Cabernet sauvignon - Blackcurrants, toffee-mint, cedar, lead pencils, green papper, dark chocolate, tobacco, olives
Carignane - Strawberries
Cinsault - Pepper, damsons
Chardonnay - Lemon, capsicums, musk, vanilla, wetwool, honey, toffee, minerals and flint, melon
Chenin Blanc - Honeysuckle, lemon, apples, apricots, nuts, honey
Gamay - Strawberry, cherry, ripe bananas, bubblegum, pears
Grenache - Rasberry, pepper, herbs
Gewurztraminer - Lychees, herbs, spices (ginger and cinnamon)
Gros Plant - Apples, pears, acidic
Malbec - Black-berried fruits
Merlot - Blackberries, blackcurrants, plums, roses, spice, fruit cake
Muscadet - Apples, lemon, yeast
Muscat - Honey, oranges and rose (Alsace), demerara sugar, raisins(fortified wine)
Pinot Gris - Spicy, perfumed
Pinot Noir - Rasberries, strawberries, cherries, game, compost, manure, boiled beetroot
Riesling - Elderflower, peach, pineapple, green apples, petrol, toast
Sauvignon Blanc - Freshly cut grass, basil, elderflower, gooseberries, stony, cats pee, tinned asparagus
Semillon - Apricots, grass, citrus, toast, honey
Sylvaner - flowers, perfume
Syrah - Pepper, thyme, raspberries, blackberries, tar, blackcurrants
Viognier - apricots, almonds, peaches, musk, lime blossom

...happy drinking!

Right and Wrong

Lots. Watched Munich last night. Tweedledum went off to sleep but I had to finish it since that is the only time I get the laptop. And I loved the movie. He's managed to play off both sides beautifully. The Arabs with their struggle for a home which has gotten snatched away. Creating mayhem but with no other alternative to gain world attention. And then the Israelis. The feeling of centuries of persecution, the sense of rejoicing because they now have a land where their rules prevail but also the sense of wrong-doing. The protagonist is trying to pep up his team and says that they cannot afford to be decent after the Munich killings and one of the team members turns around with - 'I don't think we were ever decent'. I never thought I would see this on the big scene. It was momentuous. To have come in, thrown out a race of people from their homeland and created your own country and then at the end of it, to claim to be the persecuted race - it had never made sense to me. And the movie brings up the questions in a very subtle way. His mother, in speaking of Israel, says that we had to take it because noone would give it to us. Do they realise that the people already living there were not camels or domesticated animals to be shooed away and then they say they have righteousness. I'm glad Tweedledum went to sleep. Can't even begin to imagine the arguments we would have ended up having if he had been watching. Somehow it bought back to mind my trip to Paris with Golda Meir. Dont remember the flow of the conversation, but I remember her saying Israel came about in 1946 (right date, I think) and then with this sad smile she continued - 'World events dictated it'. Felt like questionning with an innocent, straight face - 'So what existed there before this large scale migration and the modern day creation of a new state. Wasn't it someone else's?'

Enough said on the subject. I'll just end with the line attributed to Meir.

'Every civilization finds it necessary to negotiate compromises with its own values'.

Alchoholics Anonymous and Shy person were over for dinner yesterday. And we had a good time till we drove AA away by asking about first crushes. The minute the conversation turned in that direction and the three of us starting recounting our tales, he started putting on his shoes and jacket. It was actually quite funny. The faux-pas of the evening was talking about the Roos and mother-in-law. She does misbehave with the old lady in public but why the hell did I speak of it - to him. They are his friends. The only excuse is that it really must have been playing on my mind. Also, we tried Mama's Spanish wine yesterday and I really liked it. The experts might say too vinegary and all that jazz but I just love the tanginess of some white wines. Must remember to save the name.

Big town-Small town

I got all excited when we left home today morning. There was a rustling in the bushes and suddenly I saw a beautiful, furry, brown squirrel rush out and dash up the tree. Brown! I have never seen a brown squirrel! The grey ones with dark grey stripes, yes - brown, no. I practically hollered at Tweedledum - "Check that out! A brown squirrel! Isn't it gorgeous". His reaction was a quizzical face with a 'haven't you seen one before' look. Of course, when he saw my face fall, he realised I was actually seeing one for the first time. It seems they were all over the place when he was growing up and quite a nuisance too. Thats the difference. Around my city house, just seeing a squirrel was an event. But when he talks childhood animal events, they involve elephant (tuskers!) raiding, orphaned rhinos, snakes, killer frogs and the like. You can't possibly compete with that.

I think the first is the dude that I saw today. The European red Squirrel.

And right here is the dude I grew up with.

Laos

Today is dedicated to Laos. I hadn't signed up for the cooking class because I thought I would spend the day with Tweedledum. But then our man woke up at 12-00! Just wasn't up to sitting at home waiting for him to decide what he planned on doing for the day. Found a vacant spot in the cooking class and headed for some Tom Yum soup and Laotian salad. And I am so glad I did. I can look at the recipes online but seeing it cooked in front of me was a whole different ball game.

The process is simple enough but getting the ingredients ready will be a herculean task. The onions are cut really small (you can't use the blender because its not a paste you want), as is the garlic (tiny pieces!), lemon grass and chillis. The chicken has to be shredded, the coriander and mint leaves seperated. The chicken stock prepared. Whew!!

Tastings

It really was a day of tastings - cheese and wine. By the end of the day, I had 'tasted' 10 bottles of wine! I dont think I will ever break this record.

The afternoon session was focused on the Rhone valley. Noting down the names for posterity...
Saint-Marcellin aux Genes - Unpressed, uncooked goat/ cows milk. Its ripened with marc brandy and covered with the pressed grape stalks. Middle sized rounds, had with rye bread. This cheese was unavailable and therefore replaced with Tomme au marc which was a Savoie cheese, the rind covered with grape pressings, something I really liked. They were nice and crunchy. Tomme au marc is served with country bread. To be had with a Cotes-du-Rhone wine. Saint Marcellin Blanc - An unpressed, uncooked goat/ cow's milk cheese. Middle sized rounds which are best when they are a little runny. To be had with a crusty loaf and a light, fruity red wine. My opinion - a very safe, mild cheese.
Both of these cheeses were served with Perrin Nature (An interesting note from a website - The winemaking at Domaines Perrin conforms with organic criteria but as the grapes, with the exception of Perrin Nature, Chateau de Beaucastel and Coudoulet de Beaucastel, are not from accredited vineyards they cannot be sold as organic). The grape, I think, is Grenache. I liked the wine. It didnt leave behind the dry, tannic taste in the mouth.
Then came:
Rigotte de vache - As the name suggests, it was made of cows milk. It was supposed to have a honey aroma (?) A circular cheese slightly firmer. Preferred with a dry, fruity wine and with rye bread.
Briquette de la Dombes - Mild flavoured goat's milk cheese eaten during the grape harvest season. If I am not confused, I think, this was a soft, cylindrical cheese - not runny because the outside was slightly firmer, the center was softer but kept its place. Preferred with brown bread.
One of them was a nuttier taste and I think I liked the briquette better. The wine with these two was really good - a white, Jean Louis Denois. Why do I seem to recollect something about the wine having a dash of chardonnay?? (His 2002 Grande Cuvee rouge is highly recommended)
After this round, came the blues-
Blue de Sassenage - A summer cow's milk cheese to be had with a dark rye loaf. They say the texture is firmer than Roquefort. The taste is better too.
Picodon de L'Ardeche AOC - A spicy, floral cheese preserved in olive oil or white wine. It was a firm, homogenous cheese.
Both were with Cotes-du-Rhone wines and we had Chateauneuf du Pape.
As you can see by the writing, by the time we reached the end, I couldn't possibly eat anymore and really have no opinion on the last two. .
Camisard was goat's cheese wrapped in bacon, to be served when the bacon is crisp. Soft, flowing cheese.We had it with Le Pigoulet des Brunier de Vaucluse. The wine was 'ok', bit of a tannic bite.

The evening session was wines from Vanpolicella - the Italian region around Verona.

Us

The shittiest chicken that I have ever cooked has to have been yesterday. On a day when we were looking forward to a twosome evening, after such a long time. Fortunately the wine was good and the rajma very good...but just when we were warming up...Romania calls. They talked and talked and talked and talked. For some reason Tweedledum got really lucky and the signal stayed. Am glad - it had been playing on his mind for such a long time.

As for me, the whole day was spent making plans for the weekend which got cancelled at 7 in the evening. Too many assignments. Dont mind. Would much rather relax this weekend and then celebrate his birthday next weekend.

And now today morning. Dropped Tweedledum off to school. The plans were of a leisurely morning to be spent lazily at home. 9 o'clock and I realise there is no water!!!! No water - to drink, to bathe - damn it! to wash my butt!! The only solution - Emptied out the deodorant bottle on myself, carried my toothbrush and soap to school and used the loo in the library. So I am looking pretty clean (enough to fool the world) but no bathe for me today. This is the developed world.......and they call us developing......

And while I was cleaning up the photos, found this one. Beautiful juxtaposition of the two of us.

Mon Ange

I have just been reporting his successes and the greatest of them all went without mention. I wrote about Mc and Bain but never got around to writing about the greatest of them all and the one that he will finally be accepting....Lehman!!

This was on Sunday when we were in the process of deciding between the mammoths. After filling ourselves at L'As du Falafel (if you haven't eaten here, you might as well say you have never eaten falafel) we got to the station only to find that the next train to Fonty is after one and a half hours. While he carried the magic elixir aka caffeine, I busied myself with the camera....

But the big news of today is that France Telecom has finally reinstated our telephone line!!! Could do a jig in front of their magasin out of sheer joy. The internet will follow in another eight days....hopefully.

Paris, visa, party and falafel

Enfin, Finally, I made it to Paris for one of the free Sundays. The plan was Sainte Chappelle and the Conciergerie, pick up Tweedledum, drop him to the Louvre, then the Orangerie and the Musee Marmottan.
Yoga in the morning threw the plan just a little bit awry. Got into town at 10:30 and headed straight to church and I am so glad I did. The place is spectacular! When I entered, the view was as above and I was left wondering what happened to the altar. Where's the church, dude? But then, fortunately, I spotted some stairs in the corner. Headed up and what do I find...the church is on the first floor. No walls - only stained glass windows! Depicting the entire story of the bible. Genesis, Moses, Noah and well, of course, the Passion of the Christ. The story goes that Louis bought all the ancient relics from Constantinople and they were housed here - the crown of thorns, the cross and the rest....not the holy grail, of course.
As for the rest of the day, when I got to Tweedledum, found him in a bit of a fix because he had to head back to complete an assignment with Alchoholics Anonymous. No Louvre for him...and no Orangerie for me. Worked till late into the night..him on his assignment, me on my balance sheet. But I just wanted to be with him. There was no way I was going to stay home alone...

Monday wasn't together again. Brazilian birthday bash. Everyone - good fun! Netanyahu - such a drag:-/

And then today.
Winter is here, though I wonder when autumn crossed us by. I remember seeing the Eiffel from the Place de la Concorde in summer. It was a clear sight. This was the view today - it just floats into the clouds.
The visa process took a better part of the morning (and I hadn't carried anything to read - trust my luck). Finished and headed to La Defense. This was meant to be more of a tick off exercise, just to see the mall - Quatre Temps. You know - the 'been there, done that' bit.
Next stop-Hotel de Ville for a photo exhibition by Doisneau. The images were well captured, the displays were phenomenal. The best was 'La Maison des Locataires'. It was the picture of a facade of a building lifted off the wall (to give a three dimensional effect) wherein some of the houses were cut out and replaced by pictures of the insides of homes with people busy at their personal tasks. Didnt think I could capture it with my camera. Now, I regret not having tried. At least, I could have shown Tweedledum a little bit of it. What I did get back for him is something I thought he would appreciate a lot more. Its so much us. Me giving gyan on some aspect of history, or religion, or art and him having discovered true art;-)

Another beauty - Paris defined.... He captures the moment so exquisitely.

There was one of two boys gazing into a toy shop window. The desire, the longing - even the husband upstairs (at the art shop window) doesn't have it that bad.

Afternoon tea

Whenever Tweedledum has an interview I find getting through the day a real trial. It was the same case today. Left him at the station in the morning. He should be in London by 12. Got back home and went straight back to bed. Unfortunately, I had to get up because I had told Golda Meir I'll meet her for lunch. It must be my day because she called and wanted it moved up to a coffee which suited me just fine. I got the leisurely morning I had been looking forward to. Had breakfast while lazing in bed. Continued with the biography of Indira Gandhi that I have been struggling with....when will it get over. Around 12:30, finally moved my butt and went for a walk in the forest. It is still quite green. The leaves haven't fallen off yet to leave behind the barren winter look. I ran into the professor jogging once again, this time with his daughter. We seem to be making a habit of it though I am sure he doesn't know me from Adam. The man has started speaking to me in French.

And then we come to the second half of the day. Golda Meir and coffee in school and then on to the Aztecs place for a get together, which was really pleasant. New faces after a long time. Met the Incas Singapore friend. So easy to talk to. When it comes to debt, you have pre-approved loans. When it comes to friends, I am going to give Latin Americans, the pre-approved rating. They are fun! As for food - lemon pie, banana cake, chocolates, cookies - do I even know the 'D' of diet?!? If all that wasn't enough, I'd just got back to campus when Shy person called about dinner. Extremely thoughtful of him to include me in the plans. I had thought I would go back home to a lonely roti and dal by myself. But then together, we tried to trick Alchoholics Anonymous into shifting the menu from Turkish to Chinese. Got caught in the act:-/ but in the end we went with chinese. Our menu with the restaurant has to be the most constant factor of my life in Fontainebleau - Imperial chicken and Indonesian rice.

And now comes the ultimate. These guys actually came back with me to wait for Tweedledum. He was taking the late train back and they decide they would accompany me to the station since it would be close to midnight. I was floored. Though at the end of the day, it was all for naught. There were no trains to Melun after 11 and Tweedle had to take the cab back. AA suffered the most - he had come prepared to study. Don't think he got past the first paragraph.