Après plusieurs voyages en Champagne, le nom de cette région évoque non seulement la boisson riche en bulles mais aussi l’hospitalité, la diversité des paysages, le patrimoine historique, l’authenticité, le goût du beau et du bon.
Roger, une légende du village m'a accueilli avec quatre bises et un verre de champagne. Au cours des six prochains mois, j’aurai le privilège d'entendre ses histoires.//Roger, a village legend, welcomed me with four kisses and a glass of champagne. Over the course of the next six months I would be privileged to hear his stories.
An autumn forest is like stopping for lunch at a decrepit café at an Autoroute exit, only to find Joël Robuchon in the kitchen and views of Lake Lucerne from the terrace – the promise of little yet the offer of a reality infinitely more pleasurable.
Rewiew:New York Times bestseller The Widow Clicquot: The story of a champagne empire and the woman who ruled it by Tilar J. Mazzeo traces the history of how champagne became a symbol of glamour and celebration, first in Europe’s royal courts then in the rising middle class. It is also the story of Barbe-Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin, the woman who played a pivotal role in champagne's success.
The sky above is azure, but fog lingers low in the Marne Vallée. It is 7am and the workers, some lodging with friends or family, others staying with the vineyard's manager or owner, have risen early, perhaps woken by the sounds of tractors noisily making their way through the tight streets, disturbing the usual morning tranquillity of the small villages of the Champagne region.
Is it two kisses or four? Starting on the left cheek or the right? Is there any way to read the body language so as to give me a heads up? My conclusion on this is that it is an intrinsically Gallic quality, one that I can neither learn nor acquire. I resort, instead, to making a list in a notebook...
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