fevrier 2015

View from my kitchen- love the dog!
The work it takes to cut back all the vines by hand.
Vines at the back of our house named "Craite Paille"

Febuary 2015 and Gevrey and stuff

I thought this month I would write about my town Gevrey-Chambertin and some of the area around here.
Gevery-Chambertin is a wine village with 5,235 inhabitants. The pinot noir grape variety from here makes one of the famous red wines of the world. In Gevrey, there is only pinot noir. Napoleon always drank Chambertin and took it on his campaigns (imagine what it took to keep him in wine while fighting a war).

Chambertin is the name given to the grand cru vines, and Gevrey is the name of the village. Gevrey was the first village to join the village name with the famous vineyards. Others followed: Morey-Saint-Denis, Nuits-Saint-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny.

The last two weeks I have walked around with my camera taking various photos. I will start with vineyards (note that some of there are in the middle of the village). The vineyards have names (lieu-dit), and I noted the names of some of the vineyards below with my photos.
This month many vignerons are cutting last years growth off the vines and burning these branches (sarments). This cutting is done by hand, vine by vine.

These small plots of vines are also called "climats". The area called the "Côte", (côte de Nuits-Saint- Georges and côte-de-Beaune) have applied to UNESCO so this area could be classified as a UNESCO site. This has been called "Climats de Bourgogne". This year the decision will be made, I think this June. The UNESCO committee was visiting last week. Stay tuned.....

Vineyard in Gevrey "Combe du bas"

Working in "Combes du Bas"

Going up - looking south over Gevrey " Petite Cazetiers"
This is on a hillside..

Walking  not far from our house - vines are "Les Crais"
Flat side of the village.

Late afternoon I walked up the hill. This vineyard has been
taken up and is now ready to be planted with new vines
" Combe aux Moines"

In Gevrey, I am standing next to the church looking west..
" Clos de St Jacques" in the distance 
and " Clos de Chapître" in the foreground

Just south of Gevrey "Aux Etelois" (I think) . See the smoke from
burning, and the barrel lower left used for burning

Up on the hillside "Ruchottes"

Again on the hillside in Gevrey
looking north, "Fonteny"

OK this is in Brochon with the wall of the Chateau
Vineyard "Le Creot"

I find even in winter there is a beauty in the vineyards and especially the light.

Other sites within my village that I happened to photograph last week (I have hundreds of photos of Gevrey, these are all recent):

This was the school (similar to grade school) in the village.
All classes have been moved to the new school down on our side
of highway D974. This building is now under construction and will be the
Mayors office and a few other government offices. This will be
accessible...the current office is up 2 flights of stairs.

Just an old building. An old door stoned in and
new door added, I presume. All the alterations so visible

Courtyard on an old building in the village
"Jobert de Chambertin"

Art representing Gevrey; seasons, vines-
from 2000 (not that old)

Michelin (the tire company) had erected these road signs around France.
Now they are slightly beaten up...narrow roads and 
large trucks making deliveries

Chateau ( env XII century)  and vines "Chesaux" by the Chateau and
foreground " Combes du Dessus"

The church St Aignan  XII century

Center of the village, a small grocer

I have heard that the Burgundians are hard to get to know. It is true, they are closed. You can be a like a vacationer, or decide to live here and get to know people. Once you decide that you want to integrate, the Burgundians are as welcoming as any other people in the world.

So now ..more photos. In my photo club we have photos themes every so often. This week the theme is "Chemin ou sentier" (dirt road or small path). Here are the photos I am presenting...always more photos.

Photo Feb 2013..out for a walk in the hills

At the ponds of Gevrey- March 2014

Feb 20 2015 _ tacot path at Gevrey
Nice place for a walk

And more photos from my walks of the last couple of weeks. February has been a productive month (for photos, other things-  not so much).

I love all the dry stone walls that are all around. The texture
of the stone, and the various sizes, and yet a symmetry to it all.

This wall is in Brochon, it was late afternoon so it has a golden glow

Ah yes, Brochon again. This is an éolienne.
Eolienne is a wind mill, and a moulin is
a water mill

Gevrey train station- looking south
Liked the graphics

Signs of Spring - Hellébore Fétide

more spring flowers popping up

even a daffodil...yes spring is coming

The winter days are fading. The sun does not set until 6:15pm now..woo hoo!! The winters are damp and cold (not Minnesota cold, but cold none the less). Actually this winter has been mild. We had one week where the day temperatures were below freezing. Lately we have had a couple of gorgeous days tossed in between the cold days. That is why I have had so many walks, the days were warm and sunny. I can not resists those sunny days of 60 degrees.

We do enjoy our life here. Never thought I would like living in a small town again (when I was 18 yrs old), but here we are. We enjoy our village, our friends, the wine, the food and the close proximity of so many things. We can take a train to Italy, or Spain, or Germany or Denmark, or Belgium....it is so easy to see so much.

We have integrated ourselves into our new life, and maybe picked up some of the good things from our new culture. We now enjoy "Slow meals" and a meal with friends can take 6 hours -no problem. Dinner with the two of us takes at least an hour. We taste our food more, use fresh food more and food in season. We walk more (or ride the bike). Keith does grocery shopping by bike; we walk or bike to mail letters. We recycle more, since it is so easy.  We are more polite..."bonjour, s'il vous plait, merci, bonne journée"..are used all the time. We savor the new pace of our lives.

Just a couple of other things I wanted to mention this month (kind of bouncing all over!). New regulations in France this year. First is accessibility : Public places in France must be accessible.
Of course there have been some exceptions and will be more. There are some extensions to complete the work, such as the mayors office in Gevrey moving into the old school building. It is not ready yet, so I think Gevrey has an extension. But it is at least being reviewed, and it is a issue that has attention. Sidewalks and Bus Stops have been changed for accessibility - here in Gevrey.

Then another new regulation effective this year-where the heart of France is concerned, food. It was  said that some restaurants were using frozen food products, or buying prepared food ( even high class restaurants).
Now this year, restaurants must display this symbol 
that tells the customer that the food was made at the restaurant  (fait à maison). Not sure exactly when it is mandatory, but I have seen this already on some menus, but not all.

Have to continue with the food theme for a sidetrack note. We just had lunch at a bistro near Beaune (feb 24). A bistro is usually a working "persons" lunch place. There is a set menu for a set price. Here in Gevrey, the restaurant near us is open for lunch Monday through Friday. For 14.30€ you get and entre (starter), main plate, cheese course, dessert, wine and coffee. The food is not fancy, but very filling since it often is serving people who do manual labor.
Today at the Beaune restaurant, lunch was only 12.50€, but wine is not included.
A bistro may have only the "plate du jour" (plate of the day) and others may have a menu with salads, sandwiches and omelets too.

To finish off the Blog for this month - I continue to play with some still life photos. I am enjoying trying to take these photos -something new to explore.

Clemetines

This is where I will stop for this month.

Recipe of the Month

PANAIS, panais, panais  (or parsnips) Mashed 

For whatever reason, parsnips had not been part of my life. I think I tasted them once, and there was a bitter taste. So I ignored them. I have now tried parsnips...wow, I love them.
First I cut them up in large cubes along with potatoes, and carrots, tossed with oil and roasted them. For valentines day, I made a purée as a bed for a couple of scallops. Purée or mashed are easy, just like potatoes.

For 2 or 3 people

INGREDIENTS
3 medium parsnips (should be firm)
2- 3 Tablespoons butter (depending on your butter quota)
1/3 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
Salt and Pepper (white) to taste

PREPARATIONS

1. Peel the panais and then cut into pieces
2. Put into boiling water and let boil for about 15-20 minutes (depends on size of pieces) check that pieces are soft and will mash easily
3. Drain
4. Mash the parsnips, butter and sour cream together until smooth. Use any method that you use for potatoes
5. Salt and pepper to taste.

VOILA....excellent side dish

Janvier 2015

Jan 2015

"Bonne année, bonne santé" or "Meilleurs vœux" (Good year, good health and  Best Wishes).
These are the regular greetings throughout January (only the first time you see the person after the new year ) .

It has been a bit of a roller coaster month. It all started Jan 7th with the shootings at the Charlie Hebdo head quarters. The magazine is low humor (we have never bought one), but here in France, people were upset because of the cold blooded murders (face to face) and the main issue as "FREEDOM". Freedom of the press, freedom to speak, the basic freedoms of the french culture were attacked. " Je suis Charlie" was a symbol that "you attacked ME and MY freedom". It was a very emotional week and there was the sense that the french were united against terrorism, terrorism that starts to take away our rights.
The french national motto is "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité" ( Freedom, Equality and Fraternity [brotherhood]) , much the same as the American saying "Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness". 

We did not live in the US at the time of 911, I assume it must of been the same emotion of coming together at a time of tragedy.

And although the 3 men were caught and shot, this new reign of terrorism probably has just started, and it will be worldwide.

Keith and I went into Dijon where estimates of 35,000 -50,000 people gathered (estimates varied!).

Dijon Jan 11, 2015

Now to a lighter topics.

It has been a month of fog, mist, rain and a little snow. I have walked my 2 miles a couple of days in light rain (and was soaked), but did not go out the last 2 days when it really rained all day.

One day there was a little frost. I am working on using a macro lens, results not perfect yet, still lots to learn.

This morning there was a little snow, we have not had much yet this year. I went out and took a couple of photos before it all melted!

vines behind our house- with a snow flake on the lens

snow on the pines

another angle of the vines behind our house

The big event for the month of January is the St. Vincent celebration. This year the BIG one was held at Gilly-Vougeot. It is not that far from Gevrey. So I decided I would go on Saturday and take photos of the parade (the statues of St. Vincent for each village are paraded through the village before the mass and after the mass). I vacillated between arriving  at 7am or 10:30am. Finally I looked at the weather, transportation options.... and picked the after mass parade at 10:30am. There was not a convient train to Gilly at the time I wanted, so Keith dropped me off a Chambolle at 10am. I walked the 3.5 km into Gilly (Keith was taking the car to Bligny). I bought a train ticket to return to Gevrey.

The walk through the vineyards was chilly! First I arrived in Vougeot and then walked over to Gilly. The two villages are divided by the highway (which was closed for the weekend). Unfortunately, I had my camera on a delayed photo!! so it took a double image and ruined most of my photos. Some of the still ones were better, since the subject did not moved when the camera did the second exposure. All in all I had a fun morning and met many people I knew while walking around. It started to snow and the temperature dropped so I jumped on the noon train back to Gevrey. Here a some of my photos. The theme for this year was "Sur le chemin des moines" (On the route of the monks)...the monks worked the vines 900 years ago -therefore some scenes here and there with monks (cistercienne).

Monks - Vougeot

panels that were along the road

another panel- made with paper flowers

last panel photo

Monks- the cheese at the monastery Citeaux if well known

at the round about -main highway

many houses put up some decoration

monks working the vines..some of the people were dressed in
costumes

she was walking around....

another house with a little decoration for the occasion

and the perfect way to go on a picnic

Gevrey's statue of St Vincent

Pretty good photo of Messanges's statue

Villages have banners too in addition
to the statues- note all those behind,
still in line for the parade

another statue for Savigny

He is from the "confrérie des chevaliers du tastevin"
at Clos Vougeot, who are part of this celebration.
(this one a bit fuzzy...and a little of the person who kept stepping i
in front of me when I was taking photos!)

Gilly - a little garden

a cabot made with ceps -Gilly

Sharing a bottle of wine after mass- Church in Gilly

Gilly - monks praying

the major of the band

and then the drums

another banner

banners for the villages hung around the village

a band dressed in costumes playing as I walked
across the bridge (train tracks below) to go to the
train station

I know, even though I ruined my photos, I stuck 25 on the site! Also, our friend Tom took some great photos. He started at Clos de Vougeot at 7am! His photos are on his site at :http://www.thehungrycyclist.com/blog/2015/1/27/saint-vincent-tournante-2015-photography-word.  Tom worked with Keith as a guide for DuVine. He is putting the finishing touches on his Bed and Breakfast the next two months ( The Hungry Cyclist Lodge). Wonderful place in Auxey-Duress if you are looking for a bike tour, wine tour, gourmet tour... http://www.thehungrycyclist.com/lodge/ .

As I said, playing with photos lately. Trying some indoor photos since there is so much rain!

Making boeuf bourgogne, so I had the
mushrooms

Also with PhotoClub, I am putting the final touches on the 2 photos for the May exposition. Have to submit the photos in two weeks.

Walking, yes I am still walking (missed a couple days when it was raining hard). Have not been on many walks in the woods due to the weather, but have just a couple photos of a cold day.

Stairs and setting sun

2 friends

trees on the horizon

Late afternoon and Flipper leading the way

Flipper

Checking out the ducks

Setting sun on icy pond

Egret standing guard

In pottery, I am working with raku and some ideas. Have to see how some of these ideas work. Trying  some glass in the piece, or I am going to try copper too. I have a final piece in mind that I want to make, but have to see what effects I get first.

And so the month of January closes.

Recipe of the Month
Italian Chicken
Easy recipe and light also. Give it a try.

INGREDIENTS
1 pound boned chicken breast ( I used without skin-see note below)
1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary
pinch salt
pinch fresh ground pepper
1 cup fat free or low fat chicken broth (low salt too if possible)
       -OR 1/2 cup broth, 1/2 cup white wine
1 16 ounce can white beans ( cannellini ), drained
3-4 Tablespoons chopped sun dried tomatoes (be generous)
Olive oil or olive oil spray

PREPARATION

1. Put skillet on medium heat
2. Add about TBS of Olive oil or spray pan
3. Add chicken, rosemary salt and pepper 
4. Saute for 2-3 minutes
5. Add broth, beans, dried tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low medium and let simmer....maybe 8 minutes -UNCOVERED
6. Check that chicken is done
7. If still to much broth, remove chicken and bean mixture to the serving bowl and reduce the broth. This should be not be soupy, just a minimum of broth to make the dinner creamy.

NOTE: I used chicken without skin and chopped into bite size pieces. I wanted to make sure it cooked through. The chicken can get dry, so be careful not to cook too long. FOLLOW -UP
Tried again and cooked the beans with everything except chicken on low so all the flavors could mix. Left it to cook on low for about 1 hour. Then browned the chicken pieces and added to the bean mixture. To the heat up to cook chicken and reduce any liquid that was still left. - worked a treat.