On to Alsace!

Saturday, September 26 -- Our stay in Pommard had come to an end.  We were obligated to clean the apartment and leave things in good order.  Fortunately, we had met the owner a couple days earlier and discussed the countertop with the red streaks in the surface.  Thank goodness it turned out those were part of the natural stone from the area (something I suspected from examining the floors in the Dijon's Dukes of Burgundy).  Also, we did not want to leave anything behind, so there several careful sweeps of the place while Dick and I placed the suitcases in the car which had a considerable capacity.  Parking the car in the alleyway next to our front door made the process easier.

Eguisheim

Livestock water tank

The drive north took us mainly on super highways, paying tolls every once in a while.  Because our apartment in Riquewihr would not be available until late afternoon, we chose to take in the new wine festival in Eguisheim, an Alsatian village said to be the most beautiful village in France.  At least,  in 2013 it was voted the "Village préféré des Français" (Favorite Village of the French), an annual distinction that passes from town to town throughout France.  I have to admit, that even as lovely as Burgundy was, we were bowled over by Eguisheim's quaint charm, abundant flowers, and picturesque cobbled streets.

New wine and tarte flamb

As we had not eaten, our first stop was the town square where the festival was just getting under way.  We quickly figured out that we could have white wine and tarte flambée, the Alsatian flatbread topped with fromage blanc (a fresh, tart, spreadable cheese), thinly sliced raw onions and bacon.  It is as Franco-Germanic in flavor as can be. (Someone else said that “If a pizza and a crepe had a baby, it would be a tarte flambée!” )

We found a pleasant sunny spot at one of the tables where we could watch the local people enjoying the festival.  Even a wedding party came by on their way -- on foot -- to the church where vows would soon be exchanged.



A band played beside the city water tank and quite a few people danced. After sampling the regular white wine (Riesling) , we got glasses of the new white wine for which the festival was named (Fête du vin nouveau).  It's kind of cloudy white in color, comes in a green bottle with no label, and tastes okay, but it is not something we'll go seeking out on a regular basis.


Flowers cascaded like waterfalls from every window box, old planter, and front step.  We began to  assume that the garden center business must boom all year in the Haut Rhin region.  This storybook village also proudly stands as the birthplace of winegrowing in the region. 

Note the stork's nest

 

 The drive to Riquewihr was not long, but it did curve around many small villages and vineyards.  We passed apple orchards  as well where "pick your own" schemes seemed to be popular.

Driving in Riquewihr was just about as challenging as Valerie, the real estate agent had warned.

We circled the walled city twice before finding a temporary parking spot and walked up to her office. She showed us the way first to the apartment, and then to the parking lot.  That required yet another circumnavigation of the city walls as well as some careful winding through narrow tourist-choked, cobbled streets and alleyways.

Of course, on the way back from the parking lot to our new abode, laden with suitcases, Dick and I got lost and could not find the apartment again.  Just when we were about to give up and go seek out Valerie again, we heard Marcia and Faye talking and they opened a door -- the only one we had not tried.

Faye and Dick with Valerie

 The two bedroom, two bath apartment on the third floor is quite nice.  It has a spacious with a view over the rooftops and into the courtyard below.  The decor is sort of "Alsatian rustic" in natural wood with the odd hunting trophy on the wall and occasional horns here and there. (Marcia noticed that a few items of Christmas decoration seem to still be hanging about, but they are colorful.) The television does work, but it seems to receive only one English language news program, one of the British channels.

Living Room and Television

The other odd bit is the coffee maker, one of those Nespresso machines which do better making very small cups of strong coffee.  We brought some Nespresso pods with us from the U.S., but the coffee maker died on the second or third day. After that, we simply brewed drip coffee the old-fashioned way.

By the time we got all the bags up the stairs and somewhat settled, it was time to think about dinner.

Marcia and Brian's room

Of course, this was a Saturday night in the height of the fall tourist season, a weekend when France was enjoying wonderful weather. We had Faye make the telephone call because she could switch to German if necessary; but, it turned out everyone wanted to speak English.

The first few restaurants had no space at all, even when we tried the more expensive, upscale places which usually have room. The answer everywhere was "complet."


Finally we found a bar/brassiere in old Riquewihr, a short walk, Le Grognard, that could take us.  I especially remember being adventurous and ordering the kangaroo -- it was a little chewy, but okay.

So, this has been a long day with some travel, some pictures, some inexpensive wine, some flowers, and some new views.  There's a green hillside vineyard outside our bathroom window that gets bathed in sunshine every morning.

I think we'll like Alsace.

Vineyard view outside our bathroom window

A Three Star Lunch, Plus Some Wine...

Friday, September 25 -- We had long ago made a reservation for lunch at one of the signature restaurants in the region, Maison Lameloise.

Years ago Marcia's brother declared this to be his favorite French restaurant, one he and Margot discovered  during their travels in this region.  The small restaurant is located in a 16-room Relais et Chateau hotel.

Founded in 1921 just a few steps from the train station in Chagny, Maison Lameloise retains its three Michelin stars.  It is the only restaurant at that level in Burgundy.  Chef Éric Pras creates subtle dishes and classic staples based on foods from the local Côte-d'Or region.

Lunch was pretty fantastic.  I was not permitted to take photographs throughout lunch, so there are few pictures except those snapped surreptitiously on smart phones.




I should probably let Marcia's own Trip Advisor review of the restaurant and our luncheon there speak for it all.

The 3-course luncheon menu was excellent, and the experience was punctuated by vast array of delightful extras: six appetizers, an amuse bouche, a pre-dessert, and five different mini-cookies. with coffee.

Each course was presented with a perfectly clear and well enunciated description, which could be enlarged upon if you asked a question. 

Between lunch in Chagny and Pommard lies the village of Chassagne-Montrachet and the eponymous Chateaux Chassagne-Montrachet. Now, Rick Steve's France guidebook gives this high marks for the "elegant mansion" and the "informative tour" through the gorgeous cellars that date from the 11th century.  Well, as they say, "your mileage may vary."

There were no tours of the mansion or the cellars because the fermentation was already underway.  (You might wonder why the grapes -- fermenting nearby in stainless steel vats with no visible intervention by the staff -- prevents a tour?)

Well, we were there and thought we might as well try the wines.  that too was a less than stellar experience.  They put us in the hands of a young intern who managed our tasting experience.  I don't think he had done many however. He had trouble finding the glasses and his pours were very small, There was no water offered to rinse a glass between wines.

The good news was that he was reasonably knowledgeable about the wines and the  growing and harvesting aspects of the process.  He answered Dick's incisive "agricultural attache" questions pretty well.

And the wine itself was pretty good.  I would have to agree with Rick Steve that Michel Picard makes some pretty good product.  We even bought some to take home, in addition to paying for the tasting experience.

Fresh off that experience, we thought we would try again in Pommard.  We had seen the tasting room in the village belonging to Domaine Patrick Clemencet but it was closed before. Seeing it open, we thought we'd give it a try. 

Delphine at her best

There we were warmly welcomed by Delphine, whose enthusiasm and expertise made up for her somewhat limited English.  When you're talking wine, language is not too much of a problem.

Now, this was more of a wine store than a dégustation opportunity, at least when we were there.  We asked her to recommend a wine we could drink now, rather than one to lay down and save for future years.

This was where I began to appreciate that Pommard, and perhaps many of these small villages in Burgundy, produce very small quantities of highly valued wines.  They will never reach the U.S. marketplace, and in many cases are bought up by connoisseurs long before the wine distributors can get them either. Also, bad weather diminished the harvest in the years 2011-13.

In part, this reflects the fact that these vineyards have produced top rated wine for generations. Each time a distinguished vigneron passes away, the vineyard get smaller and smaller because it is divided among the heirs. 
Detailed maps show where the premier cru and reserve wines come from.

Pommard from the vineyards

We also learned that a clos is the term for a small walled section of a vineyard.

Dijon and Chocolat

Thursday, September 24 -- We're off to the big city, the one Rick Steves does not recommend at all.  But a good friend has signaled that there are some especially good things to see and do in Dijon.  We are not surprised to see a well decorated calliope driving through the streets.

But we soon walked into the surprisingly grand and pleasant Place de la Libération, clearly the center of the historic city. This is a hemisphere shaped plaza with the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon in part of the Ducal Palace at the east side of the plaza.  We immediately noted that Dijon architecture is distinguished by, among other things, toits bourguignons (Burgundian polychrome roofs) made of tiles glazed in terracotta, green, yellow and black and arranged in geometric patterns.  Dijon was a major city in Europe, a seat of parliament, and a center of  wealth, religion, and education from the 11th to the 15th centuries.  Today, it is a pleasant surprise.

At 11 o'clock on a warm fall morning, the sunny tables of the cafes circling the Place de la Libération were already beginning to do a good business.  Originally called Place Royale, it was designed  by the architect of Versailles.  We looked around a little but our objective was the Musée des Beaux-Arts in the the Palais des Ducs et des États de Bourgogne.  The main attraction for us were the tombs of the Dukes of Burgundy: Philip the Bold, John the Fearless and Margaret of Bavaria with their mourners from the Chartreuse of Champmol, a Carthusian monastery on the outskirts of Dijon.

I'm still thanking Ed McBride for having encouraged us to see the Dukes of Burgundy in Dijon.  What a magnificent surprise to walk into the Salle des Gardes and see the tomb of Philip the Bold.

He lies there, somewhat larger than life (I guess), guarded by two very lively angels, on a black marble slab.  His feet rest on the back of a lion with gilded mane.  The figure is supported by alabaster arches that form a cloister sheltering a procession of 41 very realistic mourners.  Each is about a foot tall, and they have remarkable features, expressions, and clothing, all carved in the alabaster. (The guide book says three men worked for a total of 25 years, from 1385 to 1410 on this tomb.)

The depicted mourners are clergymen, relatives, family, friends, and officials of the Prince's entourage, and each is unique and full of character, as though they might step off the tomb in real life.  Clergy are always wearing a hood and cloak, while regular folk are in period clothing.

Nearby are the tombs of John the Fearless and Margaret of Bavaria, dating from 1443 and 1470.  They are in a similar style, but perhaps even a little more flamboyant.

Philip the Bold and Brian the Tourist

In a nearby room are gilted wood altar pieces and paintings of scenes like the Annunciation, the Visitation, and the Presentation in the Temple. the beheading of John the Baptist seemed especially lifelike, and the devil gets pretty theatrical treatment too.

The Dijon version of "bikeshare"

As we walked back to the car, we passed le Musee Rude, in a former church, and devoted to the works of sculptor Francois Rude (1784-1855).  His most memorable work is on display there, 1792 Volunteers, also known as La Marseillaise.





 

"Chocolat" shopfront

We drove on winding two-lane and what seemed like one-lane roads to the simple hill village of Flavigny-sur-Ozerain.  Its narrow streets are flanked by old mansions and it still sports some fortified gateways and the remains of medieval ramparts.  On the main square stands the L'église Saint-Genest, a 13th century church built on the site of an even earlier religious building.  A lady there launched into an extensive description of the church and its history, drawing attention to various features such as the 12 century Virgin nursing the infant Jesus. 
Of course it was not the church that lured us to

Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, Côte-d'Or, France This is the village used as the location for the film "Chocolat."  Right there on the main square was the little storefront used as the chocolate shop, and nearby were the church and the mayor's home.  Many village scenes were shot here too. 

What struck me was the steady stream of foreign tourists that kept arriving, even in late September, to see the shopfront, look around, and take their picture in front of it.  Someone explained that while the film was never a big hit in France, it played well in Europe as well as in the United States.  It's a popular stopping point.  The little cafeteria in the La Grange was doing a good business.

L'église Saint-Genest

So, one wonders why the storefront is empty?  Is there no enterprising young Frenchman who can see that you could open a chocolate shop and sell some appropriately-labeled candy and souvenirs?  Is there not an opportunity here, especially in a country with high unemployment?

Lace curtains

We had lunch in La Grange (the only place in town serving food -- pretty simple fare but it solved the lunch problem and took a few minutes to examine the Carolingian crypt under the former abbey.  The abbey now houses the factory which manufactures Les Anis de Flavigny, small aniseed-flavored pastilles distributed worldwide. This is in fact what the village is famous for among Frenchmen -- not the movie.

Our last stop of the day was Fontenay abbey. Late afternoon was definitely the right time to come, for the sun was warming the sandstone walls of the Romanesque church, reflected in the still water of a lake.  Like most Cistercian abbeys, this one was placed up in a quiet valley, protected and isolated by hills, yet near a rushing stream. To add atmosphere, a small group of nuns and abbots were touring the property just in front of us, lending an air of authenticity to our explorations. 
 
Fontenay is one of the oldest and most complete Cistercian abbeys in Europe. Of the original complex comprising church, dormitory, cloister, chapter house, caldarium, refectory, dovecote and forge, all remain intact except the refectory and are well maintained. Some buildings were signposted as "private" and we understood that the family that renovated Fontenay still live and work here.

We spent some time on a self-guided tour, simply walking around and remarking on the views, and imagining what it must have been like when some 300 hundred monks worked and prayed here. The Cistercians had a certain fondness for work, and especially work with metals, so we were not surprised to see a forge and the attendant water wheel for power. 

On the way back to Pommard, we did have to stop and have a photo of Dick with a Charolais cow.  We have seen so many of these white cattle on the hillsides in Burgundy, where they are the second most prevalent breed of taurine beef cattle in France.  In this case, I think the cow was surprised to see Dick, and may not have recognized him as a senior U.S. Department of Agriculture official.

Here are a couple of pictures of our dinner preparations back in Pommard, where we had plenty of space and no small amount of Burgundy wine to appreciate.

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