“Field Trip” to Beaujolais

One of the great things about AVF, the group we belong to in Lyon, is that it sponsors what we call “field trips.”  Our most recent one was to Beaujolais, the once semi-autonomous fiefdom of the Lords of Beaujeu.   Our friends, Dominique and Roger, were kind enough to take us along in their car which made the trip even more enjoyable.  Our day included touring the village of Beaujeu, a delicious lunch, and a visit to a local family-owned winery.

Beaujeu was the ancient capital of Beaujolais region.  Bérard became the first Lord of Beaujeu in

Beaujeu from the air

966, so you can see that it’s been around for quite a while.  The Lords of Beaujeu were once pretty powerful both as politicians and as warriors, and they controlled one of the main transport routes between Paris and the South. At one time they controlled one of the three baronies in France.

Beaujeu now has about 2,000 inhabitants and covers about 1725 hectares (about one-third of which is in vineyards). From those vineyards and vineyards in the surrounding countryside, we get the majority of Beaujolais crus:  Moulin-à-Vent, Chénas, Juliénas, Fleurie, Chiroubles, Morgon, Régnié, Brouilly, and Côte de Brouilly. The day was cold and clear, and we had time to wander around this picturesque but vibrant village and speak with some of the folks who live there.  As their tourist office says, “Beaujeu, heir of a glorious past, is a small town in France where life is good…. Each year, more and more visitors…are discovering this territory and leave conquered by the beautiful scenery, the friendliness, frank and jovial spirit, simplicity, which are among the virtues Beaujolais.”  Well said!

Church of St. Nicolas

One of the highlights of our tour was the Church of St. Nicolas which was dedicated in 1132 by Pope Innocent II.  It is still in use and very remarkable both inside and out with side chapels and stained glass throughout the interior.  Hard to imagine a building that old still in use when "historic" on the west coast means 18th and 19th centuries! 

 

 

Some of our group at lunch - David is on the left

 and Roger is two seats away

 

Next stop was lunch at a local restaurant.  We had chosen our main courses and desserts in advance at the restaurant's request; both Anna and David chose coq au vin, Anna had tarte au pomme and David had chocolate mousse for dessert.  These courses were part of a many-course lunch that included aperitif, appetisers, salad, lots of fresh bread, and, of course, local wine.  Absolutely delicious and graciously served – no small feat for a large group such as ours.

 

 

In the cellar

And, finally we piled into cars to go to Régnie-Durette to visit the vignerons, Thierry and Cécile Robin.  There we went down into their cellar to taste some of their wines, including Beaujolais Neuveu (just before its release date).  One wall in their cellar is covered with the many awards their wines have won through the years.  Very impressive!  We definitely enjoyed tasting many of their wines – especially in the atmosphere of that rustic cellar.

Then it was back into the car and a very pleasant drive back to Lyon.  With several newly-purchased bottles of wine, bien sûr !

THANKSGIVING FEAST IN FRANCE

As we have mentioned before, Estelle, our French daughter, spent a year in the US and enjoyed the holidays specific to the US.  Like Thanksgiving!  When we were in Lyon for a year, we prepared a Thanksgiving dinner for Estelle’s family, and since we were in Lyon at Thanksgiving again, we offered to fix another Thanksgiving dinner.  Our offer was enthusiastically accepted, and, so we did it!

Our Thanksgiving was postponed to the weekend to accommodate work schedules, but otherwise was pretty traditional.  Estelle ordered a turkey and prepared a guest list, and Anna prepared the menu (David was in charge of wines):

Appetiser
California Dip (onion dip) with potato chips
Deviled Eggs
Cremant  (sparkling wine)

Main Meal
Turkey (duh)
Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Gravy
Corn
Cranberry Sauce
Dinner Rolls

Dehlinger [CA] 2003 Pinot Noir; Pouilly Fuisse, Tavel

Green Salad

Dessert
Pumpkin Pie with Whipped Cream
Lemon Meringue Pie
Coffee

L-R:  Estelle, Victor, Chantal, Paul, Dominique, Laurent, Roger, David

Anna prepared what she could a couple of days before the event.  The day before the event David and Anna transported everything (but the turkey) via subway and bus with roller suitcase and shopping trolley to Estelle and Laurent’s home.  David and Estelle went off to get the turkey while Anna began making pies.  By the end of the afternoon, David and Anna had everything that could be prepared ahead done and in the refrigerator.  Whew!  The next morning, the day of the actual feast, David and Anna put the finishing touches on all the dishes.  Meanwhile, Estelle and her mother, Chantal, had prepared a very impressive, elegant table.  All was ready for the feast!

Paul, Laurent, Anna, David

Estelle, Anna, Chantal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Estelle had invited our good friends, Dominique and Roger, and as soon as they arrived, we started munching and chatting, and the festivities began.  Anna explained the Thanksgiving story, with Estelle translating, so that folks could get an idea of why Americans celebrate Thanksgiving and why certain foods were pretty traditional.  David then announced, in French, bien sur, whatfoods we had prepared.  Then it was time for everyone to get down to the business of eating and more conversation.  As is typical, everything tasted good, and we all ate more than we probably should have.  David and Anna (mostly David) quickly had the leftovers in the refrigerator, all the dishes and glassware clean and ready to put away so that Laurent and Estelle could just sit back and enjoy the rest of their day. 

It was a perfect Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends, and everyone had a memorable and enjoyable time.  In fact, we are still hearing about what a fun time everyone had and how surprised they are at the amount of food we all ate.