The Grape News
Volume III - Summer 1999 - June 11, 1999

Whew! The renovations on La Maison des Deux Clochers are finally finished and we had our first guests arrive on May 1. We were extremely happy with how the house turned out, and now can’t wait to go back in November and stay for a little (or long!) while. The response from our first few guests has been overwhelmingly positive and very heartwarming for Franck and I. Here’s the scoop…

I) BEEN THERE, DONE THAT

It was great to get some feedback on some of the places we recommended in our information binders.

Biking

Our first guests, the Sullivans & friends were thrilled with Claude’s services as a bike guide. They confirmed our impression that he was a very personable and knowledgeable chap.

Some later guests used the services of the little bike rental company in Chaux and were extremely pleased with the quality of the bikes, friendliness of the service, and price. They even found a bike to fit Chris N., a person so very tall that he "let some air out of his head" by bashing it on the kitchen door jam several times. Ahhhhh, the charms of these old houses!

Winetasting

There have been choruses of praise for the quality of the wine found at our friendly neighbourhood winemaker Domaine Naudin-Ferrand, just up the road. Most guests made at least one visit there for their vacation supplies, and one is trying to figure out how to import a case back to Canada!

However, unfortunately one of our guests had a very bad experience at the Marché du Vin in Beaune (right by the Tourist Info. Office). Evidently the proprietor was extremely rude to them. Maybe this is a place to avoid…

Restaurants

Chez Losset has won unanimous praise from everyone who went there. One group of our guests charmed the pants off the chef to such a degree that he ended up offering them a bottle of wine!

Other big hits have been La Ferme de Rolle just outside of Ternant and Le Petit Paradis in Beaune.

House stuff

Franck and I just want to thank our guests for taking such great care of the house. One of our guests who is a furniture expert even performed repairs for us on a squeaking buffet door and the magnetic catch under the kitchen sink that was no longer working. It is truly a pleasure to be sharing out home with such wonderful, thoughtful people.

II) ARTICLE

In the July anniversary edition of Winetidings magazine there should be a humorous essay written by yours truly about setting up home in Burgundy, tentatively entitled "Letter from Burgundy". Barring any last minute publishing glitches, you should be able to read about the house you have/will/might be staying at in the Canadian press!

III) PHOTO ALBUM

We would like to keep a photo album in the house in France of our guests during their visits to Burgundy. If you have any photos you can spare of you at the house, or biking, winetasting, or generally living it up in Burgundy, please send them to us so that we can include them.

IV) MARKET IN LOUHANS

Last summer Franck and I went to the legendary Monday morning market in Louhans for the first time. It is about an hour away from Beaune by car in a picturesque region known as La Bresse. The market is just about as authentic as you can get. The main artery is the medieval street - La Grande Rue - which is lined with arcades for its entire length. This theatrical setting is perfect for the animated goings on of the market day - lots of colour, laughter, and shouted conversations in regional dialect. After wandering around for a while it is great to park yourselves in one of the cafés overlooking the market. Inside, the locals take part in a sacred ritual. No market day is complete without a huge plate of tête de veau - or veals head - accompanied by a chilled glass of chilled white wine. Seeing as I was not a local I settled for just the glass of white wine. However, for the more adventurous.…. details will be in the binder!

Several of our guests also visited the market in the neighbouring village of Nolay (just on the other side of Beaune), and were all impressed by this beautiful village.

V) CASSIS TASTING

Feel like a break from all that winetasting? Yeah, right! No, seriously, to add a little variety to your vacation, why don’t you throw a little bit of cassis tasting into the mix? Cassis is a ruby coloured blackcurrant liqueur that is mixed with dry white wine to make that famous Burgundian drink, the "kir". There are two great family-run places to taste cassis near la maison.

Ferme Fruirouge:

Where: Hameau de Concoeur / 21700 Nuits-Saint-georges / Tel: 03.80.62.36.25

This charming little operation is run by a dynamic young couple. The tasting room is beautiful – part of an old barn, and they also sell a full range of other fruit liqueurs as well as jams, etc.

Otherwise, there is also:

Jean-Baptiste Joannet:

Where: Arcenant / 21700 Nuits-Saint-Georges / Tel: 03.80.61.12.23

His tasting room is not very attractive, but the quality of the cassis and other liqueurs more than makes up for it. Jean-Baptiste is also a real character who would love to show you his fruits presses, etc. etc.

VI) AVAILABILITY

We have already booked a month in 2000! If you or anyone you know is interested in receiving a Year 2000 Information package, please don’t hesitate to contact us and we’ll send one off right away.

Questions?

Once again, Franck and I can be emailed at Laura@MyBurgundy.com or faxed at (250) 385-7500 in Victoria with any queries. We would be more than happy to help you.

À Bientôt!

Laura & Franck