Notes from our garden

Like everywhere else we've had a really unpredictable summer. Non-stop rain, followed by heatwaves of 38-40 degrees. Now it's back to 28 which is about right. But we're also getting strong and drying winds, so the ground is as tough as a rock, and we can't get a fork or a spade into it. We've lost a few plants, but most are going well and they have been treating us to some great colours and textures.

We decided on a new build here in France, which meant we had to buy the land first. After the build was completed we began working on the garden, with the help of a 'paysagist' (landscape gardner) from Azay le Rideau. It's taken us a while to get used to the seasons; to see what survives and what works where best. We've made some mistakes in our choices, but overall it's worked out well.

A good portion of the garden is lawn, the preferred option with a lot of people here. But the English touch is the flower bed all the way round it, with extensive planting. No annuals, as they're too much work. So large and medium sized shrubs and mini pine tree styles, which pretty much look after themselves. Hydrangeas and roses thrive, so we have quite a few of those. Euphorbias self-seed with no difficulty, as do poppies which are huge about 8"/20cms across.

There are several herbs, but I would like some more. Next year maybe. Amongst the blues, lavender is a good grower as are  thistles. But you have to watch those as they spread very quickly like weeds. I reluctantly admire weeds.They can be quite exotic looking. They are also survivors so have to be dug out. There's no other way. The roots are so long. The first weed I pulled had a root the size and colour of a young parsnip! Fooled once but not again.

Can't believe it's the first of September. We're on a 8k rando this afternoon with neighbours. More about that with some photos later. Looks like being a good day for it.

Let's party!

It's the tradition here in Cravant for individual roads, once a year to have a party with all their neighbours.

Our road had its party in July. We all pay annual subs into our 'road fund', which our committee uses for general road business and maintenance. A bit of it also goes on party essentials. Being a cul-de-sac, there's a perfect position for a marquee at the end of our road, which along with the tables, chairs and glasses, is hired from the mairie. The wine/water come from the party 'budget' but again this year, as previously, the mayor of Cravant, Christophe Baudry, provided a crate of wine to boost supplies. Much appreciated! Although he is the largest wine producer in the Chinon region. www.baudry-dutour.fr   Party food is down to the neighbours. Usually a form goes round which you fill in saying what you'll bring, which Corinne - Madame Président - then co-ordinates. This year we had twenty-five adults, five children and a baby. The 'boys', including Mike, put up the marquee that had been delivered with the other bits and pieces, by tractor and trailer from the mairie.

Our menu is organised along traditional lines. So for Party 2012 the neighbours provided:
an apéro and nibbles. Entrées (four ). Main courses dishes and salads (three of each). Cheese boards (two). Four desserts. Coffee.  Wines were a choice of red, white, rosé and pétillant to go with the dessert.

It was a glorious day. We began at 12 noon. Non stop banter, laughter and messing about. Delicious food and wines. The children were having a ball, and were all playing together quite happily. The oldest was 8 and the others aged between 3 and 5.  At 7pm we stopped for a walk and a game of boules in our next door neighbour's garden.

Then we went back to the marquee and started all over again! 
The party finished around 10.30pm. Then we cleared up, loading all the hired equipment back on the trailer that had been parked further up our road, ready for collection the next day. By 11.30pm we were done. A truly brilliant day.

On parade

Cape et Épée 2012: Richlieu

At this time of year there are special events virtually every weekend - annual fixtures - local as well as further afield. Those 'must dos' if you fancy some French flair and a great day out. We managed to get to the Cape et Épée Festival at Richlieu for the first time this year. A bi-annual event in July, it's over both days at a weekend. Named after a certain 'legendary' Frenchman, Richlieu reverts to its 17th century roots with re-enactments, music, dance, theatre, fencing and horse-riding demonstrations. There are loads of stalls, traditional crafts workshops all to the period and on the Sunday, the day we went, the festival was brought to a close with a massive fireworks display. The atmosphere was just wonderful. The town was decorated from top to bottom and the 300 actors (amateur and professional) were beautifully costumed and played it all perfectly.

Le Marché Médiéval: Chinon 2012

Chinon's Marché Médiéval takes place every year on the first Saturday in August. There are two halves to Chinon. The newer and the older and it's the older part that hosts the marché. The marché starts about 10am with a costume parade round the centre of Chinon and then heads off into the older part of town, where the narrow streets are lined with flags and banners. There are stalls everywhere, wine tastings, craft displays and lots of entertainment. Courtyards that are normally closed are opened to the public. Eateries offering special marché menus are all over the place, usually with a traditional spit roast such as sanglier (wild boar), for the plat du jour. The day winds down around midnight with a firework display. This year we went at the very beginning. It was another gorgeous day and by 11am the town was packed. Met up with various neighbours along the way, so we walked around together for a while. Chinon was buzzing.

Le Marché à l'ancienne

Le Marché à l'ancienne - Chinon's second annual event  in August, takes place on the last Saturday. It's our favourite, so of course we went again this year. Very much a community affair, villages from all around Chinon participate in celebration of the traditional ways, associated crafts and professions that in many instances, continue to support the way of life in our region: farmers, wine makers, stone masons, wood turners, carpenters, ironmongers. As a result it is very well attended by locals and of course attracts visitors. An extensive parade launches the marché. This year crowds, several rows deep, lined the parade route, well before the start time of 9.30am. All the floats gathered, as usual, on the other side of the river and then crossed over the bridge into the centre of Chinon. Roads are always cordonned off so that the parade can safely make its way right round the town. Horse drawn floats mingled with old and contemporary tractor drawn floats, each one carefully decorated to represent an individual community. Older modes of motorised transport with passengers dressed to the period, followed on from early models of the pedal-bike. There were marching bands, traditional musicians, dancers and songs sung going back at least a couple of centuries. There were produce stalls in all three of the town's squares and through Chinon's central shopping area. Stalls offering workshops were arranged along the river bank, while old vehicles, transportation and agricultural, were carefully manoeuvered into separate viewing areas for closer inspection. A truly superb event alive with community spirit.

Walnut Oil straight off the tree!

Some neighbours of ours have walnut trees in their garden. They always get a good crop which are then pressed at a small family business over towards Loudon - a forty minute drive from Cravant. So not far.  We took our neighbours over this time after getting a call to say the husband had broken his arm, while his wife has poor eye-sight, so driving was a bit of an issue. Visits have to be pre-booked and all the walnuts, shelled in advance. Being old-hands at it, our neighbours were extremely well organised. So off we all went with sacks of rich gold coloured walnuts and several large containers for the oil.

The journey over was gorgeous. A late, sunny afternoon with perfect light on a mixed, undulating landscape of woodlands, wheat and vines, some parts of which were completely new to us.

www.huileriedesroches.fr
The walnut oil industry has existed in and around Loudun since before WW1. Every farming family in the area owned walnut trees and it continued like that pretty much until WW2. Then gradually families producing oil began to disappear, and today only l'huilerie de roches is operating. It's a wonderful place to visit. And the aroma!! One of those smells that immediately make you feel ravenously hungry. 

The walnuts are ground to a paste by a large circular, granite stone, as in the photo - approx. 1m.25 in diameter - which is fascinating in itself, because of all the colours in the stone and the two surfaces - smooth for grinding while the natural, rougher side holds the stone in place on its spindle. From there the paste is 'cooked' in a circular shaped pan with a paddle, that turns the paste over to make sure it's cooked evenly. Once cooked, the mixture is transferred to the press. The oil pours into metal buckets, left to cool, and then is transferred to your containers. The oil has a beautiful smokey flavour, perfectly balanced, so not overpowering in any way. It's not for cooking with, but in salads or drizzled over grilled goats cheese, it's just heavenly. And we've been given a few bottles.

Apéro nights

There is some advantage to living in a village with forty wine producers. Particularly during the summer, when the apéro party season gets into full swing.
The essential ingredients of red, rosé, white and pétillant are all close by. And we're so spoilt for choice. The wines in Cravant are just great whatever the colour and whatever the style - flat or fizzy. There is also the 'apéro's apéro'. A liquid entrée before you get on to the hard stuff, which involves mixing rosé with grapefruit syrup = 7 parts wine to 1 of syrup and then well chilled.
On a hot day it's fabulous.

Apéros are a regular feature of the social life here. And they're such fun. They start anywhere between 6pm and 8pm. But there is an 'understanding' as to how long they go on for. This depends on the generation and the degree of familiarity with those who are coming or who you're going to. When we first came here, we invited all our neighbours in (with children or babies if they had them), house by house for an apéro. It was the best way to get to know each other and for us to show that we could speak French. Then the apéro lasted for a couple of hours. Now of course it's different. They can go on for hours and we're often still outside at 11pm.

We have though been very pleasantly caught out.  The first time was last year, when some neighbours invited us round for an apéro. We were to get there about 7pm, and were sitting outside as it was a lovely evening. Then they said they had a surprise for us. Some other neighbours arrived who we hadn't met before from another part of the village. This we thought was the surprise. Masses of food came out. All delicious. We were happily chatting, drinking and nibbling till about 9pm. Then suddenly we were asked to go inside, where we discovered our neighbours had prepared a four-course dinner + different wine with each course. This was the surprise. They felt it was the best way for us to meet new people. It was a truly wonderful meal and evening, and we eventually walked home around 1am. Classic French generosity. But as our neighbours said when we thanked them for such kindness. . .
'C'est normal !'

Local is definitely best!

At the moment the fruit and vegetables in the markets here are just mouth-watering and so colourful. Pretty much all of it is local or at least from within the Indre et Loire region. So it's not had to travel far.  

Our regular weekly market is in Chinon, on a Thursday. As you'd expect during the summer season, it's packed with stallholders, as well as locals and visitors.

Chinon has a mixed market. So there are clothes and household goods, alongside the edibles of fish, meat and vegetables. The vegetable stalls are mostly family businesses, but include producers as well as retailers.


The producers usually offer a complete range of
fruit and veg, and like everywhere else, it will be seasonal produce. Not a 'Kenyan fine bean' amongst them. Others specialise in one item. So for example Madame Champignon, otherwise known as Chantelle sells mushrooms. She usually has about six varieties. Madame Oignon or Nicole sells onions - probably about a dozen varieties. There's also a bio stall in the market which has wonderful things at the moment, including one of my favourites -beetroot (betterave). I have a recipe for Betterave Tsatsiki if anyone's interested. Very good and very pink!  As with all the traders, you say what you're buying something for, and they'll suggest what's best and how much you need. What is good to see are the local restauranteurs buying from the market. The seal of approval if you like!

Sunflower summer

Just love sunflowers! And in the Indre et Loire region, where we live, they are everywhere.
I hadn't appreciated there were different sizes of flower heads until we came here. The ones in the photo are relatively small, but you can see them between 20 & 22 cms or for the none metric savvy among you around 8/9" which is pretty big.  Sunflowers always make me smile. I think they are one of the most cheerful looking flowers around. The trouble is the season is over so quickly. Then there's nothing quite as depressing as a field of dead sunflowers, all drooping over with a ghastly greyish-green tinge where the once vibrant yellow had been. The good thing is they'll be back next year.

The sunflowers here were taken in a village just on the other side of the river called La Roche-Clermault. We drive over usually once a week, to buy our goat's cheese from a family owned and run business called Vazereau. www.levazereau.fr

Yes it would be simpler to go to a supermarket (all of them stock Vazereau's cheeses) as it involves driving over specially. But I wouldn't miss it for anything.There's such pleasure in going directly to the producer and getting to know them, having a chat, trying out new flavours. And of course meeting the goats! There are 500 in all. Once a year Vazereau has a porte-ouverte, which means that the farm and the cheese production areas are open to the public. We've been twice now. They are always well supported and organised. The goats are immaculate and clearly well looked after. Typically a porte-ouverte is a bit of a party. So there is wine as well as tastings of cheese available, which you can buy from the Vazereau farmshop. The cheeses I should add are just glorious. By the way 06013 sends his meilleurs voeux to all!