Isn't autumn wonderful...

The summer crops have been harvested and birds of prey hunt for small rodents

We drove off into deepest countryside last week to buy golf balls. Why? Well, Graham has taken up golf again and decided, with his loss rate, he needs more golf balls.

Thanks to the Angloinfo site (very helpful for anything you need to know about living here) he found an englishman living further south who had a few boxes to sell, so off we went.

You've been warned !

It was a cool hazy morning and eventually we found our way down ever more  narrow country lanes to the little house in the fields. Transaction concluded, 150 golf balls in the car, long chat about why were are all living in France, then back toward civilisation.

By now it was midday, and as everyone in France knows, that means lunch. We had been recommended a bar/restaurant in the nearby town of Issigeac. This is a beautiful little medieval village that holds the best sunday morning market all year round. We have often taken our australian visitors there and it's where we get our supply of vegemite from an englishwoman with a little van where she makes quite good egg and bacon baguettes.

This little piggy goes to all the markets

So into the Auberge du Café de France we went. The restaurant room,off the bar, is charming with stone walls, french country style wooden furniture and wicker light fittings. We were lucky to have a table by the window and in the sunshine. This is one of those country restaurants with a set menu for lunch and two choices for main and dessert.We started with a salad plate, simple and delicious. Then a choice of moules frites or coq au vin. Graham chose the moules cooked in wine and herbs and served with a bowl of excellent fries ( not as common here as one might expect) while I had the chicken. Uncomplicated food and very pleasant. Dessert was a choice of a selection of ice cream boules, or gâteau au poire . We both chose the pear cake - good choice. Served warm from the oven with custard, it was yum. The meal price included the 3 courses, a basket of freshly baked bread, water, a half litre of wine  ( a delicious rosé was our choice), and coffee - total cost €13.00/$A19.00 each. Can't complain.

As we left the village, we almost hit a large goose crossing the road, then we were surprised at the sight of a pair of deer grazing in a field beside the road. No hunters out today.

The countryside was looking at it's best with the sun shining, the leaves turning gold and red, and the grapevines, now that the fruit has been harvested, looking tired. Cépe mushrooms are appearing in the markets now, though expensive at around €20.00 a kilo, and of course, lots of pumpkins.

Decorative gourds at the markets

The first day of november is Toussaint, or All Saints Day. This is a public holiday and families all gather to visit family graves in cemeteries and  family plots all over the countryside. For the past month all sorts of shops , from supermarkets to hardwares, have been selling arrangements of plastic flowers for those who want something longlasting, and chrysanthemum plants for those with more traditional tastes. Unlike in Australia, here the chrysanthemum is the flower for the dead ! So saturday will be a quiet day with families spending it together first at the cemetery and then at home over a long lunch , naturally.

Bonne semaine mes amis

Another of those “only in France” stories…

Now here's a thought

I’ve recently taken up watercolour painting, partly as a way of practicing my french conversation with the mostly french class.

As I needed some paints, brushes and other paraphernalia, we sought out the only art supply shop in the region, at Bergerac.

It’s a two storey shop in the main street and is full of all sorts of goodies for your ‘leisure’ pursuits – painting, sculpture, handcrafts, books, et al.

So, while I was taking my time on the important job of choosing paint brushes and paint colours, the ever helpful assistant took pity on Graham and invited him to try the product in another department. Yes, they had a wine section – quite a large selection of the local produce.

So Graham was happily occupied while I made my choices.

It’s called…shopping à la française

Does this really sound like a good combination ?

Hope your week is full of interesting experiences....

Bon semaine mes amis

Le Bourru est arrivé

Le bourru,  I here you ask ??

It’s the pressed juice from the newly harvested grapes  tasted at this point to determine the quality of the new vintage.  Traditionally, it used to be tasted in the chai by the locals. Now that so many have moved away from the countryside into the towns and cities, it has become necessary to bottle this first tasting so they can still ‘assess’ the year’s harvest – can’t make an informed comment without having tasted le bourru . There is a limited amount available and the bottles must have perforated caps as the liquid is still fermenting . You can only buy it from the local co-operative and it keeps for just a few days.

ready for the picking 

a monster of a machine

The workers in the vineyards have been busy for the past two weeks picking grapes before the temperature drops too much more. We have also had a little rain, but not enough to cause any damage, not like in the Languedoc region ( around Montpelier and Nimes) where there has been extensive flooding. The word is that we have had rain and sunshine at just the right times this year in the Bordeaux region, so it should be a good vintage.

ready to share

There are lots of small boutique producers around here and the  aroma from the mountains of skins and pips left by the roadside for collection is amazing.

a small pile by the side of the road

collection point for the neighbourhood - taken from the car window so you get an idea of the size of the mountain

Because the supermarkets must clear their warehouses and make room to store last year’s vintage when it arrives , they all hold "les foires du vins" in October. This is the time to restock that cellar !

This is just one store and not part of the normal wine department ( it's still there at the back of the store), but a separate section of  around 60+  metres of wine specials.

early clementines at the marché

back to making clementine marmalade - and it goes so well with all that duck !

So, it’s mid autumn and we’ve picked the last of the fruit, made jams and pickles and covered the pool. The leaves are turning gold and red and dropping relentlessly, and we have started raking, pruning and digging over garden beds. Lots of visits to the dechetterie ahead. We still have a stock of firewood from last year as the winter was so mild, and the chillis are still ripening in the potager. Can’t understand why the french in the south west don’t use more chilli as it loves growing here.

We are just waiting for a call from our chauffagist ( heating guy) who is going to install a new boiler for the central heating, and we must organise to have the chimney swept. Then, all ready for winter.

You know it’s autumn because the local attractions are closing until spring. Our favourite spot for afternoon tea ( or a glass of wine in Graham’s case), Chateau Carbonneau , has closed the tearoom overlooking the vineyard. There are less stalls at the saturday market and less vide greniers and brocante fairs on the weekends. And the local golf course will close at the end of the month for the winter - something about doing maintenance.

It's time to get out the Le Creuset pot and start planning those casseroles - boeuf bourgogne, coq au vin, lapin au moutarde, confit de canard, and the rest. 

Chateau Carbonneau - one of our favourite places to visit

bonne semaine mes amis