Life in a small French village for an old American

[corkybstewart]

La Chouffe Blonde is my current favorite Belgian beer. Belgians are where I get the most variety within style. Interesting flavors built from yeast and bugs and process in addition to hops. I would rather have 1 or 2 strong, interesting beers than half a dozen predictable mild beers whose variation comes from hops alone. The only Belgian beer I have had that I am not a fan of is De Ranke XXX Bitter. For obvious reasons. My old favorite was Straffe Hendrik Tripel but I haven't seen it around in a couple of years in my area. I would buy their tshirt if I could get it on my side of the creek. Saison Dupont is hard to beat and pretty much the standard of saisons IMO.

I finally visited the beer store here when it was open. They have the Straffe Hendrik and a really nice selection of Belgian and German beers.

 

[corkybstewart]

Today we're going next door for moule frites. My wife asked what I was going to cook and I replied not a damn thing. I'm gonna do like my neighbor and just show up to eat and leave before the cleanup. Actually men don't clean up much after these parties, that's traditionally the role of the women. My wife and I don't let anybody help us, other than hauling dishes back to the kitchen. But the sister in law next door is about as lazy as a person can be and still breathe so she'll have all the women doing dishes and cleaning her kitchen. She's not my favorite family member. But she serves a good meal, and my wife's brother pours some very good drinks in spite of being a reformed alcoholic. You take the bad with the good.

 

[An Ankoù]

If you want a great blues guitarist for a gig with your community, check out Paul Cowley. Down in Malansac at this very minute.
Not even going to try to send a video over 4G.

 

[corkybstewart]

If you want a great blues guitarist for a gig with your community, check out Paul Cowley. Down in Malansac at this very minute.
Not even going to try to send a video over 4G.

I'll check him out.

 

[leedspointbrew]

You're better equipped than the average bar, then. What do you do for beer in your parts? I find the beer either very-uninteresting-to-horrible or far too strong when it's of the Belgian persuasion. There are some decent beers in the North East, around Lille, but I don't get up there all that often.
One or two exceptions: Lancelot do a couple of well crafted and very drinkable beers, but others from the same stable fall into the dégueulasse category.

Hoping that you don't class Tellen Du as degeueulasse - according to my ex-French-teacher wife, that's a pretty harsh designation.

 

[An Ankoù]

Hoping that you don't class Tellen Du as degeueulasse - according to my ex-French-teacher wife, that's a pretty harsh designation.

Tellen Du isn't my favourite; I don't like sarrasin in beer, it's a gimmick and spoils the beer. Great for making galettes, but it has quite a distinctive flavour that doesn't lend itself to beer, in my opinion. It's like chestnut beer in the autumn- a waste of good beer and good chestnuts.
But the one I really dislike is their Blanche Hermine. I wonder about this style, it's sort of a take on Wit beer of the Hoegaarden persuasion, but there's something not quite right and I find it very difficult to drink. When the best example of the style is Kronenbourg Blanche then you should suspect there's something not quite right.

 

[corkybstewart]

We're in a different small village in the volcanic area of France to look at possibly buying a second house and visit old friends at a gem and mineral exposition. Every Friday during the summer this small village hosts a concert in the courtyard of the town hall. Last night it was a group of young classical musicians playing traditional circle and line dances. The music was incredible but the energy (and chaos) of the audience was incredible. Young and old attempted to follow the steps to each dance, some simple, some complex, with varying levels of success. But it was a real great time listening to the music and watching the locals. This old guy with a bad hip and his wife with the shot knee sat out the dances.

 

[Hoochin'Fool]

Such a cool thread, dunno how I missed it until just this evening. Thanks for the posts @corkybstewart, @An Ankoù, and everyone else!

I've only been to France once, back in January 1987 (about when the rest of the world was learning just how bad the Chernobyl accident was for Europe), spent a week skiing in Meribel and surrounding valleys/resorts*, it was one of the best experiences of my life!

* Courchevelle and Belleville were the other connected resorts/valleys! Thanks google maps! Now I'm craving a gaulois (spelling most certainly wrong) cigarette!

 

[An Ankoù]

We're in a different small village in the volcanic area of France to look at possibly buying a second house and visit old friends at a gem and mineral exposition. Every Friday during the summer this small village hosts a concert in the courtyard of the town hall. Last night it was a group of young classical musicians playing traditional circle and line dances. The music was incredible but the energy (and chaos) of the audience was incredible. Young and old attempted to follow the steps to each dance, some simple, some complex, with varying levels of success. But it was a real great time listening to the music and watching the locals. This old guy with a bad hip and his wife with the shot knee sat out the dances.

I can attest to that. Here we have fest noz or fest deiz with traditional Breton music, which is quite lively. The old crinklies get up and do their thing and put me to shame. I couldn't keep up with them even if I knew the steps.

 

[corkybstewart]

Such a cool thread, dunno how I missed it until just this evening. Thanks for the posts @corkybstewart, @An Ankoù, and everyone else!
Now I'm craving a gaulois (spelling most certainly wrong) cigarette!

Skip the Gaulois, you'll thank me later.

 

[corkybstewart]

We spent a 4 day weekend in Auvergne, at a bed and breakfast in a village of 100. The owners were magnificent. In the evenings they turned fans on and opened door/windows to create a breeze so that when we got back the rooms would be cool(no AC). Temperatures were in the high 90s, dangerously high for this area because of the high humidity and lack of AC. Normally it would be around 80F.
Sunday night they invited us to the table with their friends at the local brewery for beer and blues-very nice friends, excellent music and the beer was very good. When the music ended we went back to the B&B and the owner broke out several bottles of very old fruit brandies- eau de vie and Calvados from Normandy. I love liquor from bottles with no labels, or labels without bar codes and chunky stuff settled on the bottom-you know it's old and it's kind of special that he would share it with us.
The myth that the French don't like Americans is way overblown. It mostly applies to Paris, but Parisians don't like French country folk anymore than they like Americans. But when you get out in the villages that attitude does a 180 and if you act like a decent person you will be treated very well. I was the first American to stay in their B&B for the 14 years they've been open, it's not an area of France well know to Americans.

 

[corkybstewart]

We spent another 3 nights in Murat le Quaire at the same bed and breakfast so we could look at the house and finally decide to buy it or not. This time we took a basket filled with tomatoes and zukes, came back with a bottle of delicious bottle of Calvados.
Tonight was our last night in our house, tomorrow we take the train to Paris and fly back on Sunday. We had our last family dinner-roast chicken
and garden ratatouille.
I've put most of the garden furniture away. I've got to put a final coat of varnish on my summer kitchen countertops and that will be done. Most of my tools are put away, chairs are upside down on the table.
It's a weird feeling to be closing up a house. Even though know we'll be back soon, there's an undercurrent of anxiety about wether we ever come back. Will we lose or gain family members? Most of my inlaws are in their 70s and 80s. One friend has a serious cancer, will we ever see him again? Life is strange.

.

 

[An Ankoù]

We spent another 3 nights in Murat le Quaire at the same bed and breakfast so we could look at the house and finally decide to buy it or not. This time we took a basket filled with tomatoes and zukes, came back with a bottle of delicious bottle of Calvados.
Tonight was our last night in our house tomorrow we take the train to Paris and fly back on Sunday. We had our last family dinner-roast chicken
and garden ratatouille.
I've put most of the garden furniture away. I've got to put a final coat of varnish on my summer kitchen countertops and that will be done. Most of my tools are put away, chairs are upside down on the table.
It's a weird feeling to be closing up a house. Even though know we'll be back soon, there's an undercurrent of anxiety about wether we ever come back. Will we lose or gain family members? Most of my inlaws are in their 70s and 80s. One friend has a serious cancer, will we ever see him again? Life is strange.
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Not sure I'm following. Are you in the process of buying a house down south? Did you decide to buy it?
Yeah it's always sad to pack away and leave. Only ever read your posts from France, but you sound as if you belong here. As for Calvados, it's just Normandy moonshine (from Calvados). I get an irregular supply of eau de vie de pomme, which is the same stuff, but not made in Calvados. If you're ever offered a bottle of eau de vie de mirabelle (or just mirabelle) from the Alsace, grab it with both hands, it's truly delicious.
Keep in touch and let it is know how you get on Stateside.

 

[corkybstewart]

Not sure I'm following. Are you in the process of buying a house down south? Did you decide to buy it?
Yeah it's always sad to pack away and leave. Only ever read your posts from France, but you sound as if you belong here. As for Calvados, it's just Normandy moonshine (from Calvados). I get an irregular supply of eau de vie de pomme, which is the same stuff, but not made in Calvados. If you're ever offered a bottle of eau de vie de mirabelle (or just mirabelle) from the Alsace, grab it with both hands, it's truly delicious.
Keep in touch and let it is know how you get on Stateside.

We did not buy the house. Our friend's family owns it, she bought it after years of saying she refused to have anything to do with it. But we're working on how to be part owners. We'll be at her house in Salt Lake City Utah in early September for a week and we'll she what she has in mind. When we decided against it she couldn't bear selling it to strangers for almost nothing so she decided to buy out her family, half of whom want no money.
One of my big regrets is that the tomatoes and zucchinis are in their prime right now. A brother in law across the street will pick them and put them in the freezer for us.

 

[Grannen]

What a wonderful reflection — I really enjoyed reading this.

 

[An Ankoù]

What a wonderful reflection — I really enjoyed reading this.

How are things in Barcelona, @Grannen , what are you brewing over there?