Cadillac and the Garonne valley

Château de Cadillac

No, not the car, but the town on the Garonne river. The sun came out for just one day this week so we took the hint and hit the road. We did a loop through the Entre Deux Mers region (" between two waters" ) and followed the Garonne from Bordeaux down to Cadillac.  We hadn’t visited this town for many years but remembered that it had an attractive château overlooking the centre ville.

one of the old gateways into the centre ville

We parked outside the château entrance, but the place is undergoing  some restauration and is surrounded by cyclone fencing so we couldn’t re-visit.

the second gateway

We strolled down the hill into town.

the church of Saint Blaise is opposite the château on top of the hill

Cadillac is a bastide town founded in 1280. That means it is built on a grid with the market hall at the centre. It is a pleasant village on the riverbank surrounding a traditional open market hall made of the local stone with commune offices above.

The open market hall with it's high arches 

Across the river is the town of Sauternes and Château d’Yquem where they produce a Premier Cru Supérieur wine, one of the finest white wines in the world. It is said that, with proper  care, a bottle of Château d’Yquem can keep for a hundred years.

Château d'Yquem

Nearby is the Château Malromé. This was the home of Toulouse Lautrec’s mother and the place where he died in 1901. You can visit and see some of the public rooms in the house. It’s in a beautiful setting in the countryside and , while not a grande château, it is a large country home surrounded by vineyards.

Château de Malromé

We also visited the medieval chateau at Langoiran. This is now in ruins but has a caretaker living on site so for just €3.00 each we could clamber about to our heart's content. The chateau is on a hillside overlooking the valley of the Garonne river. You can see why this was considered an advantageous position for spotting an approaching enemy.

the entrance across the moat - a rider would have to get off and walk his horse through this gateway

16th century accomodation buildings

The chateau was mentioned in documents in the 11th century but the current fortifications date from the 13th. The dungeon was added in the 14th  and more buildings in the 16th and 17th centuries. 

There is always a chapel for use by all those who lived in the chateau.

modern painting in medieval style over the altar

windows in the chapel with family crest - what a view !

There are wooden pews in this room as though it is still used for worship.

the family crest on the stone altar

a sunny seat by the window - bring your own cushion

very steep and shallow staircase - difficult for an attacker to fight his way up here

We climbed the staircase from the lower courtyard to the upper where the family would have lived.

steep walls everywhere

no floors left in the donjon (tower) 

see how thick these walls are in the dungeon - no tunnelling out of here

Mostly the work that continues here appears to be just to stop any further degredation.

  

and you think you have cracks in your walls !

the one room that has received some restoration in the family apartments

The view from the top is magnificent...

south across the Garonne river valley and the chateau's vineyards

The pictures are a little hazy as this was still a winter’s day and the vines are bare, but you can see how beautiful this area can be in summer.

This little stone man was perched on the roof of the chapel looking like an early version of ‘The Thinker”.

Hope you have enjoyed our day out.....

Bonne semaine mes amis

A winter’s day….

nothing much beats French Onion Soup 

We’ve hit the zero degree days and all this morning we have had a gentle sleet falling. It melts as soon as it hits the ground so the temperature is not quite cold enough for a photo opportunity.

This is just the weather for staying inside and cooking. We’ve tried a few new recipes as well as the traditional. Lot's of soups like carrot and coriander, chicken and corn, minestrone, thai vegetable, and of course, french onion.

We've also discovered a local dish called potée . The supermarket sells the vegetables in packs and separately a mixture of the meats - sausage and pork. You just throw them all in a large pot with stock and cook long and slow. It is delicious on a cold day.

Potée ingredients

One of the most common ingredients in this region is duck. It's reasonably priced and very easy to find in it's various forms. In summer we pan fry aiguillettes ( duck tenderloin) and serve with a marmalade and whisky sauce. But in winter one of the best ways to eat it is confit. The duck legs are cooked very slowly in duck fat until almost falling apart, then they are pan fried to crisp up the skin. It's not hard to do as the duck is sold at the supermarket already cooked and in a layer of fat ready to fry. Served with potatoes also cooked in the duck fat and this is a favourite dish. And we are told that duck and goose fat ( also popular here) are good for you !

confit de canard aux frites

I've been making Tarte Tatin for years in Australia and even brought my favourite pan with me so that there is no problem  making them here.

a simple apple tarte tatin

But I've also learned to make madeleines. These are a lovely small cake made in a fluted mould and dusted with sugar or often drizzled with honey.

Yum !

With the weather the way it is and the Six Nations Rugby competition starting tonight,  we will be hibernating for the weekend. So, I have just baked a fruit cake and I'll be making meat pies for saturday night.  A pity Australia isn't playing.

can you get anymore french than this ?

Bon week-end mes amis

Australia Day is an excuse for a party here….

Naturally, we took our flag with us to France

The weather is grey and depressing so we thought  “why not have a party for Australia Day ?” We invited about 20 of our nearest and dearest friends here, mostly English of course, and stocked up the wine cellar. They arrived around 4.00pm on Sunday (already Australia Day in Oz if you take into account the time difference) and showed great enthusiasm for the celebration. Some even kindly made lamingtons , coconut cake and anzac biscuits – all very popular. 

mini lamington's were a hit

and  we loved the anzac biscuits and coconut cake

It all lasted well into the night , but perhaps they were just reluctant to venture back outside ( below zero after dark).

around 'the bar'

We were only able to buy  three australian wines locally to share which were much commented on.  I told the story of the arrival of Le Comte de Laperouse at Botany Bay on 26^th January , too late to claim the land for France but just in time to join the First Fleet for a little R&R for a few days as they moved on to Port Jackson. Since we were almost french instead of english it seemed appropriate to celebrate with french wines.

the chilli prawns were considered unusual - but they all disappeared

We had mini pizzas, smoked salmon pinwheels, barbecued chilli prawns and lots more and , in truly australian tradition , the men tended to congregate around the booze supply.

Sorry there aren't more photos, but I was busy with the food and Graham was busy being a 'good host'. Typical australian party.

*************

for those who didn't see the new car on Facebook - it's a Ford Kuga

The weather forecast is for rain for the rest of the week, so on Tuesday we decided to take a drive in the new car before the bad weather arrives. We headed south east to Villeneuve-sur-Lot about 80 kms away because we haven’t been into the town before though we have often driven past.

one of the 'gates' to the old town

Despite the grey skies and the cold, we enjoyed a walk around the town centre. There are two main town squares where the weekly market is held. The church of St Catherine  takes up much of one square and is on the site of an earlier church that was in too poor a state to restore. It’s built of pink bricks just like the cathedral at Albi and the centre of Toulouse.

eglise St Catherine

pink bricks just like at Albi and Toulouse

built in the Romanesque-Byzantine style last century
to replace a much older church on the site

The other square, Place Lafayette, is surrounded by  colonnades in the traditional style and some beautiful old buildings. We enjoyed a simple lunch at a cozy café – rognons d’agneau for Graham and an omelette for me, all with excellent frites and a glass of rosé, then back out into the ‘crisp’ air.

they were packing up from the weekly market when we arrived at Place Lafayette

the christmas lights are still up

the january sales are still on 

There are a surprising number of good looking restaurants and cafes, and a grand theatre for public performances.

someone living ON the river

house for sale overhanging the river - not a bad position

there are three bridges crossing the river Lot

I’m sure this is a beautiful place in the spring and summer when the trees are in leaf and the sun shining and we shall return. 

Bon weekend mes amis

A visit to the Marché aux Truffes

For many years we have been reading about french truffles, but never have we been in France at the right time of year to try them .

A friend told us about a great truffle market at Sainte Alvère in the Perigord region not far from us, so we decided to take a look. The market is held every Monday morning in winter in the village hall.

a bit frosty along the roadside

We left home early for the one hour drive into the hills toward Perigueux. Despite the sun shining, as we travelled higher the temperature dropped to -3 deg and the fields and vines were still covered in a heavy frost – at 10.00am !

everyone had arrived by 10.00am opening time

the local park was also a little chilly

the Office de Tourisme - isn't it pretty ?

We had to park on the edge of town, along with everyone else,  and walk in to  the hall. It wasn’t hard to find as there was a crowd huddled around the closed door waiting for opening time. Monday is market day in the square at Sainte Alvère so there were stalls with fresh fruit and vegetables, walnuts and oils, cheeses, rotisseried chickens, gourmet coffee and teas, and even vin chaud ( hot mulled wine) to keep away the chill. Apart from the wine, no-one was particularly interested in anything but truffles.

As truffles are sold by weight , it  has been known for sellers to leave dirt attached, or to insert shotgun pellets to increase their value. Some buyers have also found that, instead of the prized black truffle of the Perigord, they have bought  a lesser quality white truffle that has been dyed with tea.

certificates at the ready and waiting patiently for buyers to decide

To ensure customer confidence all the truffles at this market must be checked by the ‘commissionaires de qualité’ appointed by the commune and graded and issued with a certificate of compliance. This year the prices varied from €600 to  €800 per kilo (AUD 870 to AUD 1160) , depending on the quality, so there is a lot at stake.

waiting patiently for the doors to open

a bit of a crush inside

The doors opened and we were overwhelmed by the not unpleasant aroma of fresh truffle. As everyone surged forward we let the crowd drag us into the hall. It was a small space with tables arranged around the walls and each seller with his finds displayed for all to see and smell. We tried a few and eventually chose one just big enough for a couple of meals for the two of us at 51g  for €40 – a bargain.

51 grams for €40.00 - yes that's €800.00 per kilo !

We are storing it in a container filled with risotto rice and eggs. The idea is that the truffle will infuse these with it’s perfume and will add to the flavour of the dishes we make with them – we had decided on an omelette and a risotto. We’ll let you know the results.

Bonne dégustation mes amis