Caseophile

Grandpa Louis and cheese in 4D

Imagine my amazement on reading in a local business journal – le Mag'Eco – that €300,000 have been invested by a cheese dairy in Le Tholy (in the Vosges) to make a film in 4D (3D + olfactory effects) about its history. My congratulations.

And it's not the work of a major local cheese maker, but an initiative of a small farmhouse producer of Munster!!

Catherine and Bernard Louis decided to try something really new. Putting aside the idea of including nettles (yes, nettles, one of the favoured culinary ingredients of their part of the world), and forgetting about printed guides and mundane tours of their domain... it's all now about showing a 50 minute film in four dimensions, called "Au temps de Papy Louis" (In the days of Grandpa Louis), all about the everyday life of the peasants of the Vosges.

I find it a very original idea, and good sense. Cheese is a lot about that 4^th dimension! So if you are anywhere near Le Tholy and can get to see (and hear and smell!) the show, do tell me about it.

A tour of my store – L’Epicerie du Goût in Nancy (Lorraine)

It's been a great pleasure for me and my delicatessen in Nancy – L'Epicerie du Goût - to be featured just recently in a major local fortnightly economic journal – Les Tablettes Lorraines.

As I've always hoped that any reader of this blog who happens to visiting Nancy (a truly charming historic town, it's worth reminding you) might call in to see us, I thought it worth not only attaching the article but adding a full translation.

Just one point however – my translator found it is not that easy to fully translate the name of our store. A dictionary will tell you that "Epicerie" is the general world for grocery, but it can have, as in our case, more the sense of "delicatessen". "Goût" you can translate simply as taste, but it will not surprise you that in a gastronomic country like France, without an adjective it tends to mean "good taste".

So here's the article entitiled "L'Epicerie du Goût ne manque pas de saveurs", even more difficult to translate. But here is a rather literal effort: "The Delicatessen of Good Taste is not short of flavoursome food".

Not quite there?! May he therefore ask any bilingual readers to offer a better solution, if they have one!

The text, written by Clémence Grassi, runs as follows:

L'Epicerie du Goût... a name that's a good description of the store, quite sumptuous and with products which are on offer to you by Marie de Metz Noblat, the lady of the house. Wines, groceries, cheeses, jams, sweet delights, you'll find everything on the well-stocked shelves of her boutique. A feast for the eyes and the taste buds.

Since April 2010, Marie de Metz Noblat and her niece Bénédicte have been welcoming gourmands and gourmets to Place Vaudémont (in the heart of Nancy). Marie de Metz Noblat loves her products and knows them well. 25 years in the marketing of foods, in cheeses to be more precise, have whetted her appetite and allowed her to build up a unique network.

"The idea of opening a delicatessen had been around inside my head for 15 years. In 2006 I got a university diploma in both sensorial analysis and in Provence wine tasting, and I was off".

On the menu, you find inescapable local products from Lorraine of course, mirabelles, bergamot oranges and macaroons – but not just those! There are 1300 items in total, but all with one thing in common: quality.

"Generally speaking, I favour small producers and brands which are not yet well known".

In this way, her choice of wines is inspired by what's in her own cellar and new products keep arriving in the store every week.

"I go along with what I fall for, the latest being Aixterra which makes mouth-watering melon creams and rose creams too, delicious!"

Products from monasteries and abbeys are also well displayed.

" It's through religious conviction, but also because of the quality of these products: confectionery, cheeses, jams, fresh eggs..."

In this case, gourmandise can't really be called a sin, since it helps to support their congregations.

L'Epicerie du Goût also supports local products, the Meuse countryside to be precise, having been the first store outside of the Meuse department to gain the Meuse&Merveilles seal of approval. And its clientele knows what's good for them. From tourists, who can't resist Mirabelle calissons, to gourmets looking for ingredients for molecular gastronomy, to say nothing of gourmands in the quest for something short and sweet.

"It's all going well - that's true. I've even been questioned about setting up a franchise, but I've refused. Let's see if we're still around in 3 years time" Marie de Metz Noblat tells us calmly.

And since good taste is something you work at and learn about, every month Marie shares her knowledge at her three-hour tasting workshops around the country, in which she reveals how well wines and cheeses go together. A convivial and tasteful discovery as one would expect from this lady of the house.

Where to take cookery lessons in Orleans?

This is about an imaginative colleague of mine. I could have entitled this note "where to buy your wine and spices in Orleans" but I prefer to tell you about his great speciality: his "cookery course" centre.

Patrick Gedoux founded "Le Panier se crée" several years ago when taking over a wine cellar … in particular some magnificent vaulted cellars in the heart of the town of Orleans. He then built up a fine "classical" delicatessen (including regional products), a "gourmand" basket service for businesses and finally set up with a number of chefs cookery courses in a vast bright space up on the first floor.

It's a busy programme! You can check in at his internet site (in French) to find a date and a theme to your liking.

Le Panier se crée, 6 rue Ducerceau 45000 Orleans – tel 02 38 62 96 79

The name roughly means "the basket fills itself" but it is also a "jeu de mots" - a play on words - as it sounds the same as "le panier secret" – the secret basket.

A “House of Butter and Cream” to be opened in St Lô

It's not surprising to find such a shop, with all those cows in Normandy. Nor, in particular, since it is the homeland of the popular "Elle et Vire" brand which was launched in 1947 and which joined the Bongrain group in 1992.

The first stage in this project will be set up around Condé sur Vire, but a 500 sq. metre facility near St Lô will be built with the aim of welcoming "a store aiming to sell Elle et Vire products to a clientele of both professionals and gourmets and to be a professional culinary training establishment for creating new products, servicing well-known professionals, offering advice and new product recipes, organising the launch of information campaigns..."

Say it with flowers... made from chocolate

About a year ago there opened in my town, Nancy, a delicious boutique – Hors des Sentiers Battus (= "Off The Beaten Track"). A name that needs some explaining, even if it suggests something unusual. From the street you think it looks like a florist. But once inside it's something else – wow!

Looked at close up, these attractive bouquets turn out not to be real flowers, but chocolate dragées (sugared almonds) wrapped in different coloured cellophane to look like flowers.

HSB (yes, even we French love acronyms) was set up in 1995 in Paris and now has 6 stores in France, including the one in Nancy. Catherine who runs it will advise you with delicacy on a suitable bouquet for any special occasion. 

I personally got a big laugh by once presenting a male friend with a kit of chocolate tools from there ... so you'll get a shock to discover a pair of plimsolls made from chocolate, or more classic assortments of chocolates with different tastes and flavours... or a huge chocolate cockerel, majestically in the window for Easter!

Hors des Sentiers Battus

91 Grande rue – 54000 Nancy – tel: 03 83 20 91 50

Open Tues to Sat 10am - 7pm

Sun morning 10.30am – 1pm

Where to eat (well) in Charleville Mézières?

Let me take you to North East France, near the Belgian border, to Belval, right next door to Charleville Mézières. Just follow the signs for the airport. At the roundabout just before you get there, follow the road sign for Belval. On the church square you'll find it – "Le Chat Botté" (= Puss in Boots!)

I won't go into detail about this pleasant place. I'll just say you are most warmly welcomed! I spent a long very enjoyable time there, talking about chocolate. Mine host showed me a fine set of photos of dishes he had made – very interesting and creative!

Certainly worth a trip. Particularly if I tell you he has been chosen by the epicureans in the "Club des Bons Vivants" !!

Where to eat in Bourgoin Jallieu (near Lyon)?

I came across this address quite by chance and hasten to recommend it: La Commanderie de Champarey , an old bourgeois house in a very 70s (to my mind) part of town of Bourgoin Jallieu, near Lyon

An ideal place to stop if you are heading down the A23 to Chambéry or Val d'Isère. It's rather surrounded by blocks of flats but has such a convivial ambiance. You'll be warmly welcomed by the Ruels and their daughter, 3^rd and 4^th generation restaurateurs. The 5^th generation already accustomed to the surroundings of this establishment, will certainly take over in due time... but maybe it's a little too early to know.

And just like any of the numerous "Logis de France", the fine reputation of the establishment persists thanks to the quality of the menu it offers, managed enthusiastically and creatively by Julie, the professional sommelier...

I'll say no more, except to persuade you to pay them a call whenever you are in the Lyon area. Personally I can't wait to go back to savour the charms of its shady terrace. Remember to make a booking:

Hôtel** Restaurant La Commanderie de Champarey

Julie, Sylvie et Christian RUEL

7 Boulevard de Champarey – 38300 Bourgoin Jallieu

Tel : 04 74 93 04 26

info@la-commanderie.com

Where to have a drink in Nancy?

Go to 4 place Vaudémont

And I do not mean to my newly opened delicatessen "L'Epicerie du Goût", I'm not allowed to serve you a drink... for that, you need to go next door to "Le Vaudémont" brasserie, whose walls inside are adorned with the names of illustrious personalities from Lorraine ... just try to pick out the intruder!

Le Vaudémont reopened its doors after being closed for several months (the previous owner had some business problems) during which its interior was totally transformed. It's run by a man with a great deal of experience, having run the "Os à Moelle" not far away.

But what I really fell for is their "cavern" where thirty or so folk can gather to listen to music, celebrate a birthday or enjoy a stag or a hen party. A fun place - very cosy - thanks to its old stonework and huge fireplace.

So come to Nancy (a quick train from Paris) and pay us all a call!

Especially when it's too hot to stay even under a parasol on the terrace of the place Vaudémont (it's easy to find – just by the statue of Jacques Callot, a famous son of Lorraine!)

Yes this attractive square is particularly popular in summer with its four restaurants: Le Vaudémont, Le Régent, L'Arrosoir and L'Arbre du Voyageur (for its fruit juices).

Now's the time to drop by and enjoy our little part of the world!

Hamming it up in the Ardennes

Have you ever heard of the famous dry ham from the Ardennes?

A couple of weeks ago I went along to a fascinating place: not many people know that in Charleville Mézières, close to Sedan and the Belgian border, there is in fact a "cooked ham museum"?

I obviously went along there to test out the famous trio: ham + cheese + wine. And thereby I discovered a business run by a dynamic and talented man: Didier Villemin and his company "Aux Saveurs d'Ardennes" A man who is always on the go, is full of ideas and who speaks warmly about his products and the services he provides (in particular as a caterer), always prepared to represent his region around all corners of France and beyond.

Also you will be able to find you can order a giant frying pan (or a cauldron??) of "cacasse à cul_nu" (bare-bottomed business)  to light up your events, or a pig to be roasted in front of your guests... or he can organise evening gatherings in the magnificent reception room of the cooked ham museum.            

You won't be disappointed!

L’Ecole du Goût (The School of Taste) is in St Malo

I have often spoken here of Jean-Yves Bordier, a cheese and butter producer from St Malo. To accompany those cheeses you buy from him (his shop, La Fromagée, is to be found at 9 rue de l'Orme and at 6 avenue du RP Umbricht), there's an obvious choice. Your wine!

Go to the cellar of the Abbaye Saint Jean or to the abbey's outlets, one inside the town walls – 7 rue des Cordiers and the other not far from the Thermal Baths ... at 8 avenue du RP Umbricht, not surprisingly next door to the cheese shop. Wine and cheese in unison!

Yannick Heude is the wine man, a pro who loves to share his know-how and does it well. Just like Jean-Yves Bordier.

To such a point that both have set up "The School of Taste" in St Malo. A place where you can learn how to sample wine. The simplest thing to do is to contact them for a calendar of the wine tasting programme whenever you are in the area, as there are many such sessions. To have a glimpse and learn about their particular areas of expertise, look at the Yannick Heude website. Don't hesitate, go along – you won't regret it.

Some gastronomic weekends for the month of May?

Is Spring really on its way after all this snow and rain? The optimist in me makes me think of brighter weekends away in May. And what better than to plan them already!

A reader of this blog of mine has sent me an interesting address – a "buron" (a shepherd's cottage) close to Aurillac – le buron de Niercombe. I've never been there but the photos look attractive and when you're there you can discover the difference between Salers and Cantal cheeses. The Salers had the same effect on me as the madeleine in Proust's famous novel – a joy to a native of Lorraine like me, brought up on genuine madeleines, those from Commercy of course! I still remember that floral taste bursting in my mouth, that cheese-like texture I had never tasted before my 7^th birthday. Or more or less then.

Which brings me to my second proposal – an urban spot in Lorraine: give a thought to the opening of the Centre Pompidou in Metz. An architectural achievement inviting you inside (here are a few pictures from the lorrainedecoeur.com website)... and also allowing you to discover the gastronomy of Lorraine. Have a look at this folder about Les Tables de Rabelais which brings together the activities of both food and restaurant in Metz... And if you are up to it, pay a visit to Nancy and its "gourmand" street (la rue des Maréchaux) for a surprise that I'll be letting you know about in a week or two...

Finally I think you'd find very worthwhile a little tour to la Ferme des Essarts not far from St Paul lès Romans, where Brigitte Rollet organises shows and wine tasting evenings. Then a little further South, what could be better than a wine tasting course at the Université du Vin where you can stay with another Brigitte who will welcome you in and invite you to her restaurant – Aux Aiguières, an old staging post in the heart of the village just below the chateau.

An invitation to … chez moi

There's a new tasteful address to which you are warmly welcome if ever you are in Nancy. It's L'Epicerie du Goût at 4 place Vaudémont – 54000 NANCY (two steps away from the place Stanislas at the bottom of the "rue gourmande" – la rue des Maréchaux, with its many restaurants).

And it's due to open in a week's time - on Tuesday 27^th April 2010.

There's so much to delight your taste buds... an eclectic choice of wines, cheeses, charcuterie, preserves, chocolates, sauces etc... from the four corners of the world. A particular attraction is a broad range of monastic products, made by nuns and monks. As well as products from my Lorraine region.

All carefully chosen by ... Marie de Metz Noblat herself - and the person who will advise and serve you there is ... Bénédicte de Metz Noblat.

So you'll understand why I am run off my feet at the moment.

Yummy addresses in Orleans

I begin this with a friendly wave to a Normandy friend who settled down in his beloved Sologne and who opened some years ago "L'Epicerie Normande". He scours the region's delicatessens for goodies … a superb selection or regional products from Normandy, among which you'll find "milk jelly" (=milk + ½ sugar, brief boiling of the mixture and several hours of cooking over low heat),... and cheeses.

Go and visit his website and you'll discover some fun tee-shirts! (yes, I have bought a ouple of these)

Thanks to Yannick, I headed off two weeks ago into the centre of Orleans, the town of the "Maid", which is close to my heart and where I spent two years at the start of my career. How it has changed in 25 years (yes time does literally fly!) Impossible to recognize some of its streets in the centre. Well at least the cathedral has not moved - and it was there that we arranged to meet.

Then, taking a narrow street close to the place du Châtelet, going along the rue de Bourgogne, to discover an appetising looking shop called "le panier se crée" (roughly "the basketful") which inaugurated cookery classes some time ago - with one floor devoted to just that activity … but what I did particularly notice was something I had not known about when I lived here : its network of cellars, on two levels!

Then my guide took me along to the rue d'Avignon to continue our chat over a lunch composed solely of the day's market produce in "La Galinette". As its name suggests, there were plenty of different sorts of chicken there and it's well worth a visit (but only open at lunchtime). And as it was chilly that day, I opted for tartiflette and salad … how could I resist it?

So there you have a very brief and very partisan selection of "gourmand" locations in Orleans. But if any of you readers want to add to these, don't hesitate to let me know!

How about going to Domremy?

First, pronunciation: You don't pronounce this famous spot "doh-ray-me" – as in a music lesson. There's no "é" accent in the name – so you must say "doh-ruh-me".

I don't know of any cheese producer in Jeanne d'Arc's birthplace, close to the Vosges mountains and the river Meuse (this has its source 60 kilometres to the South and is quite narrow at this point, dividing the village peacefully into two – before continuing another 900 km to flow into the North Sea). To the west, the area is called the Barrois Mouvant (so it's in Lorraine) and to the east, it's in the Champagne region! But it's worth a mention nonetheless.

Two good addresses in Domremy:

L'Accueil du Pélerin (The Pilgrim's welcome), right next to the Bois Chenu basilica, built around the same time as the Sacré Coeur in Paris. This is an inn run by the Travailleuses Missionnaires (Lady Missionary workers), a lay community linked to the Carmelites, coming from all around the world and whose menu reflects this diversity!

Le Clos Domremy with its 3 gîtes and two rooms to let, all in a ravishing property from the 19^th century.

And above all, do try to discover the gastronomic specialities of this part of the world, including "jeannettes" from the Tommasi bakery in Vaucouleurs (chocolate, hazelnuts, honey..) … and also the brimbelle (bilberry) tarts from Neufchâteau!

An Auvergnat in Paris: Café Justine in rue Oberkampf

He's certainly not the first man from the Auvergne to come and make his name in Paris by taking on a bar… but I know him from his father with whom I worked for several years and whom I bumped into with pleasure some days ago.

"Café Justine" is the name and you will indeed find good Auvergne cheese there … and a terrific ambiance.

(96 rue Oberkampf – 75011 Paris Tel: 01 43 57 44 03)

 

 

Home made cheese?

After all, you can make your own bread at home (quite in fashion at the present time) or your yoghourt or fromage frais, or even your beer (yes, you can get the kit in packs to which you simply add water – non-chlorinated of course). So why not home-made cheese?

And if you live in Switzerland it couldn’t be easier.

I’ve just discovered an article about it in the Swiss weekly publication Agrihebdo…

The Museum Shops company (in the Appenzeller cheese demonstration group in Stein) and the Switzerland Cheese Marketing concern launched this Christmas a “domestic cheese operation”! A unique experience for children, that is on sale in various cheese demonstration outlets in Gruyère-Pringy (Fribourg), Affoltern in Emmental (Berne) and Stein (Appenzell) … or by direct mail (check here)

In the course of this activity, which should take at least two weeks, a child can learn how milk changes from liquid into solid and is transformed into cheese and can observe the gradual transformation of the product during its maturing time. The home-made cheese kit contains all you need to make cheese: the description of every stage in the process, a thermometer to check the temperature of the milk, a tablet of rennet containing an enzyme to make the milk curdle, a cutter, as well as a mould which allows the whey to run and gives the cheese its final shape.

I don’t think this idea exists in France (and Great Britain ?) as something for the general public. It could just make the younger generation want to actually make their cheese, when they grow up?    

Le Bistral (Paris 17e)

Now here’s an address whose reputation extends well beyond its neighbourhood. I went there once some 2 years ago and again last week to meet up with one of my friends.

We gave the restaurant owner “carte blanche” (a rather facile play on words – we were after white wine) and so we kicked off with a wine from Sologne (from a Romorantin vine) as an aperitif. Which reminded me of an excellent evening recently spent in Blois!!! Then we had a St Joseph with our main course (a brochette of St Jacques with black sausage).

And to finish, over dessert we went for an astounding red wine… dry, but high in alcohol. It left both of us perplexed and trying to remember it from the past. Lots of forest fruit flavours, ripe ones. Could it be then a “wine” from blackberries?  Well we gave up in the end!

And here’s the answer:

A “mistelle” wine (made from grape must where fermentation has been stopped with the addition of alcohol, similar to the process used for liqueurs and vermouths). *** Marie, tu permets cette explication??? The patron was surprised I had heard of it. This had been made in Sologne by Claude Coutrois, called “Les Cailloux du Paradis”. From an unknown vine and treated with marc brandy and eau de vie.

But be careful! This drink has 17° alcohol – so drink in the greatest moderation! But what a delight! …

More info on the website: vins-etonnants.com

Where to have lunch in Lyon?

Tartufo

37 rue Hélène

69002 Lyon

Tel +33 478 37 22 42

A genuine Italian resto along the quais…

 Marco Asti knows all about a great reception… His welcome is very warm and his dishes vary according to what’s in today’s market… and the day I was there it was saddle of rabbit stewed with plenty of tasty things and accompanied with polenta.

Clearly after the antipasta and this dish, dessert for me was cheese. A good and creamy Gorgonzola, lightly sugary as good Gorgonzolas are.

 And as an accompaniment?

 For the wine, we started the antipasta with a Sicilian white wine, Rapitala, made from Catarrato and Chardonnay. And going on to the main course, a red wine from Apulia, Salice Salentino.

Drunk in moderation, of course.

Discovering Lorraine : the Meuse

This is to tempt you to discover what some people dare to refer to as a “green desert full of shell holes” - dixit Philippe Delestre, a cartoonist on the Est Républicain newspaper.

 

Let’s therefore begin in the high part of the town of Bar le Duc and the place St Pierre .

 

Then “go up” to Verdun and visit the factory making sugared almonds then make the pilgrimage to the ossuary monument at Douaumont (making sure you read the information panel describing the battle of Verdun and you go to the top of the monument), then stop for refreshment at the Abri du Pélerin close by, come back down by the Calonne trench and Les Eparges, where they found, not long ago, the remains of the writer Alain-Fournier, continuing as far as St Maurice below the ridges where vines are sometimes planted among the mirabelle (cherry-plum) trees (bad news, this year, the crop will be pretty poor – there were frosts at the time of flowering), then to Hattonchâtel with its 20^th century chateau, thanks to an American, Miss Belle Skinner who had part of this village rebuilt after the First World War, but above all see its reredos, attributed to Ligier-Richier (16^th century), then … continue over the Montsec Rise (an American monument), to St Mihiel and its 17^th century mansions – as well as its statues by Ligier-Richer, and go down the Meuse valley through Commercy (for its madeleines), Void (for its chateau in the shadow of which you’ll find my favourite shop – Clair de Lorraine), Gombervaux (an amazing castle keep downwards from the road!) Vaucouleurs – the township which provided Joan of Arc with weapons, a detour into the

Vosges

to Domremy (no accent on the “e” if you please!), Neufchâteau (you don’t pronounce the “f”) and an extraordinary tomb in the St Nicolas church, then make your way back via Grand with its amphitheatre and Gallo-Roman mosaic, the Ornain valley and the little towns of Gondrecourt le Château and Ligny en Barrois, before coming back to your starting point, Bar-le-Duc.

 

Well, why wait any longer? I’m not! Especially if I can call in as well at Triconville and its cheese shop (for direct sales of whole Brie de Meaux cheeses on Fridays and Saturdays – try and get their exact opening hours).

 

I’ve taken it all in one breath… but do allow several days for the whole trip!

An artistic display in St Malo

Yes, cheeses really are works of art… and in St Malo you can buy them with your eyes closed from J Y Bordier. Two addresses inside the town walls, in the rue de l’Orme (the shop was completly renewed this spring) and also not far from the Thermal Baths, in Avenue du RP Umbrecht,

But today I wanted to talk to you about other works of art. Unique ones. Created for the most part by Breton artists or inspired by the sea…and displayed on June 11^th at the inauguration of the Border Line Gallery (website soon) set up by one of my friends who is dynamic and creative – Françoise COUDRIN. Welcome to the business founders’ club, Françoise! And all success to Border Line…

 Do go along and see her. Her shop is easy to find: make your way into the walled town by the St Vincent's Gate(he’s the patron saint of wine growers) and on your left take the street parallel to the main street.

Stop at 5 rue Sainte Marguerite. I’m sure you’ll be delighted by the artistic and decorative treasures chosen by Françoise with great taste.

Then if you go along a little further, just stop in the rue des Merciers where another creative artist Irene Svenson runs “Vue sur Mer” …

See you soon!

Where to stay in Strasbourg ?

A charming address in the shadow of the cathedral: The Hôtel Suisse 2-4 rue de la Râpe… don’t miss it if you are going via Strasbourg as you’ll be warmly welcomed there (Thanks, Edith!) …and it has a very cosy “stub” as well. Website: www.hotel-suisse.com Just look at this photo of the cathedral taken from my bedroom…

And I can’t leave Strasbourg without letting you see my usual photo of a sign… well this one’s not that usual!!

An unusual but fun place to visit in Strasbourg

 There are certainly plenty of fun places in Strasbourg but I’ve come across a quite charming spot that’s magic … and floating!

Eric and Ludovic have a barge they have totally restored, named “Charles Frey” which they dock, when requested, at the landing stage of the Council of Europe – or elsewhere.

Their company is called “Les Bateaux Rouges” and I am most pleased to invite you to get to know their brochure via the internet: charlesfrey_pdf. If you’re planning a seminar or have an evening party to organise in Strasbourg this wintertime, their view of the majestic floodlighting of the European Parliament is quite spectacular. In summertime too, you can take advantage of the charm of the river Ill !

And to add to this, our two boatmen are true amateurs of matured cheeses. So get in touch:

Les bateaux rouges
Quai des Pêcheurs
67000 Strasbourg
Contact : 06 63 28 07 08 FAX 03 88 41 19 27 Email : le-charles-frey@orange.fr