Provence Confidential has been blogging about restaurant launches, cooking classes, food festivals, Provençal wines and spirits as well as tradition and folklore since 2008.
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The 38th Worldwide Sketchcrawl kicks off in Aix en Provence on Saturday January 19th at 10:30 am from the Bibliotechque Mejanes. For anyone unfamiliar with the concept you meet up with other participating artists (of all ages - kids welcome) at the starting point armed with a sketchpad and pens and record what you see as you wander through Aix en Provence for the day.
Marseille Provence is the European Capital of Culture in 2013. One of the highlights of the year is the art exhibition called "Le Grand Atelier du Midi" from Cezanne to Matisse at the Musee Granet in Aix en Provence from June 13 to October 13. Simultaneously the Musée des Beaux Arts- Palais Longchamps in Marseille will be hosting from Van Gogh to Bonnard.
Pack a picnic and head out to one of 32 participating vineyards (in Provence) on May 26, 27 or 28th. You bring the food, family and friends and the winemakers will throw in the wine, the atmosphere and a beautiful setting for a perfect day in Provence.
Looking for something exceptional to do this weekend? Head over to Chateauneuf du Pape for their 3rd annual Salon du Vin from March 31 to April 1st.
The 3rd bottle from the left is a regular size bottle of wine but to satiate the tastes of both NY night clubs and the Kazak market, some Provençal wine producers are bottling much larger formats.
Shake Shake Shake. Looking for some new cocktail ideas using the anis-flavoured spirit that was wildly popular with artists and writers like Vincent Van Gogh and Ernest Hemingway? Well there is an an APP for you with cocktails suggestions that range from easy to prepare, elaborate to very elaborate.
Master chocolate maker Philippe Second, who was also awarded the prestigious title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France (it means he is among the best pastry chefs in the country) may have been inspired by Roald Dahl when designing his 2011 Christmas promotional campaign.
With Val Joanis and Chateau Estoublon downsizing their famous Christmas Markets, the opportunity was wide open for another vineyard to step in. Corinne & Emmanuel Gensollen, who recently purchased Le Domaine de Brillane www.labrillane.com from Rupert Burch, have scheduled a Christmas Market featuring regional delicacies on December 4th, 2011.
The official opening of the 2011-2012 Tuber Melanosporum season kicked off today in the town of Richrenches with a procession by the Brotherhood of the Black Diamond and a special mass blessing these elusive gems. Interestingly truffle are placed into the collection basket as opposed to coins or bank notes. Producers, brokers and just plain old admirers were on hand to attend an entire day dedicated to the first truffles available.
Auguste Escoffier, who served as the first Executive Chef of the Ritz in Paris said "good cooking is the foundation of true happiness". So after having tried out dozen of cooking classes in Provence I thought it was time I gave the Ecole Ritz Escoffier, the reference in French culinary arts, a try.
Snail farming or héliciculture in French (from the scientific term Helix which is one of the varieties of snails that can be farmed) is making a come-back. They aren’t really completely free-range as the giant pens have an electric fence so that they don’t just wonder off and so that their natural predators, like hedge hogs and birds don’t get there first.
La Sommelerie, a wonderful hotel and restaurant in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, has designed a special harvest menu featuring the wines of local vineyards throughout the month of October.