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Sip by Sip

7/18/2014

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Most people who have never been to Paris imagine sitting in a café for hours at a time, sipping a glass of red wine.  It's a lovely thought but, in reality, somewhat of a fairytale.

Ask any Frenchman or woman you know and they'll raise an eyebrow at the thought of sipping a red wine in the middle of the day.  They're much more likely to order something different and save the red wine for lunch or dinner,
always pairing it with food.

Now that I've burst your bubble, should that ruin your
Audrey Hepburn moment in Paris?
Absolutely not!  Here's what you may consider drinking in place of that mythical red:
Pastis
Lillet
Kir or Kir Royale
Suze
Champagne
Beer
Cocktails: Sidecar, French 75 or Black Rose




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Love It or Hate It, Suze Has a Unique Taste
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Toulouse Lautrec Enjoyed a Glass or Two
Pastis is an anise flavored aperitif, served cold and made famous in the south of France.  In Paris, it has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity, particularly with bartenders who enjoy mixing it
into some pretty outrageous concoctions.
Ricard and Pernod are the most famous brands.  Drink it like a local by pouring some into a tall beverage glass (it's fairly clear), then add cold water (now it appears milky!).  Whatever you do, don't add ice, at least not until the pastis and water have already mixed.
If you like black licorice, you're going to love this drink.

Lillet hails from the Bordeaux region.  It comes in both white and red, the white being more available and popular as an aperitif. It's a mix of Bordeaux white, mysterious herbs and a variety of orange peels, both sweet and bitter.  Served cold, it's often accompanied by the peel of either an orange or a lime.  Sometimes served on ice in a short glass, other times it arrives in a wine glass.  Popular but sometimes hard to find in Paris.  Guess who else enjoys its honeyed flavors:  Hannibal Lector, James Bond and Carmela Soprano.  Draw your own conclusions!

Kir is white wine (usually chadonnay or chablis) mixed with creme de cassis (blackcurrant liquer) or occasionally with creme de mûre (blackberry), pêche (peach) or violet.  Named after Felix Kir, one-time mayor of Dijon, it became famous after WWII when the famous red Burgundies were in short supply due to the plundering Nazis, who collected thousands of bottles of the precious red nectar.  The bad guys left the whites behind for the most part so someone got enterprising and invented - ta-da - the Kir.  A kir royale substitutes champagne for the white wine.  Everyone pours this drink differently, sometimes it's a bit too sweet because of the ratio of liquer to wine. Light and refreshing plus easy to pronounce!

Suze is truly out of the ordinary.  At first startled by it's almost bitter taste, I grew into it, enjoying its slightly medicinal flavor.  Invented in Paris in the late 1800's, it was sometimes used as an herbal medicine to treat digestive problems. Gentian and bitters make up most of the unforgettable flavor.  You will probably love it or hate it so if you're into gambling, take a chance and give it a try.  Picasso must have had a taste for this abstract beverage. He featured it front and center in his collage Glass and a Bottle of Suze in 1912.

Champagne is synonymous with France, with wine, with sheer pleasure.  Any time of day is right to drink the bubbly and in Paris, you'll see it as the beverage of choice in many different situations.
When in doubt, just order une coupe de champagne.
  Stylish and delicious.

Beer just makes sense.  Both popular and spectacular, beer is the beverage of choice for many in Paris.  After all, the French embraced brasseries as their own creation.  The word brasserie doesn't just mean delicious food, it actually means brewery.  Some popular brands are Kronenbourg 1664, Jenlain Blonde, Stella Artois (from next-door neighbor Belgium) and many micro-brews.
  Are you thirsty yet?


Cocktails are on-trend right now.  They're everywhere and pretty much anything goes, especially with the younger crowd.  A Sidecar is classic Hollywood fare and includes cognac, Cointreau (a delicious orange liquer that hails from Angers, France) and lemon juice.  The French 75 (supposedly named after the kick you get from a French 75 gun) mixes gin, champagne, lemon and sugar in a lethal dose.  Beware!  I've seen several different recipes for a Black Rose which makes me wonder about its origin but most include grenadine syrup, cognac, and bitters with some muddled blackberries during the season.  I must also
mention Jack Daniels Whiskey from my home state of Tennessee.  Whenever French people ask about where I'm from, they always smile and either say Elvis or Jack.  That says a lot for their taste.
  But then we knew that.

Salut! 
Enjoy your wine but remember all the other choices out there.
Cheers to all of you and thanks for visiting my blog!
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1 Comment

Champagne for All!

7/6/2014

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PictureFilm Maker and Wine Expert Martine Saunier
Recently, I attended a preview party to view Martine Saunier's film
"A Year in Champagne". 


The film is the second in a series of three, all devoted to the celebration of wine and the people who populate that other-worldly universe.  It's an amazing achievement even for the likes of this legendary wine importer.  I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Saunier last summer during Nashville's premiere wine event, the annual
l'Eté du Vin hosted by The Nashville Wine Auction
(fund raising auction that supports numerous cancer charities in
Middle Tennessee).

Talk about a mover and a shaker!  Martine Saunier, the founder of Martine's Wines, Inc., is well known and loved in America as the go-to importer of fine French wines that were previously missing from our cellars.  She has personal relationships with growers, both large and small, in her home country and understands the process to bring it to our shores.  After selling her firm, she devoted time and energy to producing films that offer a real point-of-view into the character of those who bring us pleasure in a bottle.

Her champagne movie is quite an achievement.  "A Year in Champagne" offers a behind-the-scenes peek into the méthode champenoise from vine to bottle.  You feel the growers' pain when the weather nearly ruins the crop.  Watching this experience makes you realize that the best champagne, as glamorous and glorious as we think it is, is a crop and though we elevate our language referring to them as growers, these families are farmers, depending on hard work and luck of the weather gods much like the produce guys we know at Farmer's Market.  The magical film offers us a front row seat in lessons from the family farm as they toil and suffer through the unpredictable weather of the growing season.


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Lori & Rose Propose a Toast
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Girls Just Gotta Have Fun
Enjoying glass after glass of the bubbly alongside a memorable buffet piled high with delicious tastes of both France (fromage) and Nashville (banana pudding), this engaging group of fabulous, fun women had the good fortune to discover there's no reason to save champagne just for big celebrations. 
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I learned years ago not to hoard the good stuff.  It can and should be enjoyed year round.  For my 50th birthday, I enjoyed an incredible experience, spending two days with a small grower named Guy Charbaut.  Located in Mareil-sur-Ay in the heart of Champagne country not too distant from Epernay, Monsieur Charbaut, his wife and grown children run the small estate, producing about 500,000 bottles of wine annually.  We stayed in their family home which they have lovingly transformed into petite chambres d'hote of simple but fine character.  The highlight of the stay was sitting down to dinner with the family and a few other visitors* to enjoy the fruits of their labor.  The celebratory dinner included a different style of champagne with each memorable course.  As we sipped and tasted, I realized champagne should be served at the table just like you'd enjoy any fine wine.  Since then, we regularly consume champagne and unlike most Americans, who save it for New Years, weddings and anniversary celebrations, it's often on our shopping list. Worried about what wine to serve with dinner?  Champagne matches every food under the sun.

Back to Chez Charbaut, we enjoyed a fine dinner of squab (very pink pigeon) and other delicacies, ending in what looked at first like the lemon jello from my childhood elementary school nightmares.  I was aghast to see it served as the finish to a spectacular meal --- until I took my first bite and realized this was not your mother's jello.  In fact, I'm 100% certain there was not one tsp. of the fake chemicals and flavoring that go into that old goo we used to eat.  It was an inspired creation that included a healthy dose of champagne, delicious and surprising.  The next morning, we had a private tour of the champagne making facility, caves and fields led by the proud Monsieur Charbaut.  He was genial and fun and although he spoke very little English, we all managed to converse.
*There were a couple of Brits who chatted us up at dinner and then let me sit in their fabulous Morgan for a birthday pose.  They filled the whole vehicle from end to end with cases of champagne and then drove home the following day.  They return every time they run out, usually twice a year.  If only......

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"A Year in Champagne" is a wonderful way to spend 90 minutes in France, in the very real world of champagne.  Humor, drama and a dog named Bouchon (cork), the cutest chien to hit the big screen since Benji.  But before you view, I'll warn you, come prepared to drink some bubbly.
You're going to get very thirsty!
A Votre Santé!

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Michelle's Birthday Fantasy Come True
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Champagne Maker Guy Charbaut is 2nd From Right
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Don't Miss Nashville's Premiere Wine Auction
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    AUTHOR
    MICHELLE MOGGIO

    Thanks for visiting  my blog!

    I've been experiencing the joys of Paris since the ripe old age of eleven.
    As a big fan of duck fat, raw oysters and bad French movies, my long career in advertising helped pave the way for drinking at lunch. When not living la vie en rose, my husband Gary and I live in Brentwood, TN, where we stay busy planning our next travel adventure and offering unsolicited advice to our daughter.

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