Wining around France

We spent a few days in the Loire Valley, visiting Blois and Amboise and specifically going to Vouvray to sample the Chenin Blanc. Of course we are of the opinion that South Africa has usurped Vouvray, France of the top spot in the Chenin stakes but we did enjoy ourselves nevertheless. The campsite in Vouvray is 200m from the town centre and we found a great restaurant called Au Coin Gourmand. The Maison de Vouvray has wine by the glass and local deli platters.

Vouvray Chenin Blanc

Next stop, Gigondas for the Rhone blends. Gigondas, Vacqueras and Lirac are all towns around Château Neuf de Pape, with some excellent wines at a fraction of the price of the Château Neufs. Cotes du Rhone is the plonk from the region, Cotes du Rhone Villages is from towns whose wines are better than the average and Gigondas, Vacqueras and Lirac have gone on to be given their own appellations. Without a reservation the snooty Michelin restaurant in Gigondas refused to give us a table but we did have a superb evening of chacuterie, fromage and wine at Noz Bar and Vins.

Noz Bar and Vins

We spent a great weekend in Avignon. Camping Bagatelle is the campsite to stay at, right over the bridge from the old town.By this stage the weather was sweltering but we were able to dodge the heat  by ducking into restaurants, pubs and wine bars.

All bistros on Place de la Horologe are to be avoided at all costs, due to plastic laminated menus with photos of steak frites etc catering to hordes of tourists!

We did have our best meal in Europe 2017 so far: Lunch at Maison Christian Ettiene. (1 Michelin star) The location is good, on a terrace next to Papal Palace. The set lunch menu is only 35 euros. The cheese course is an extra 13 euros but the cheese trolley is impressive. Superb service, friendly staff and chef himself greets diners as they leave.

Dessert by Christian Ettiene

We also went to 83Vernet, a modern restaurant in a 17th C building with dinner served in the courtyard. It's very trendy with good looking waiters, cocktails and well prepared typical French dishes.

Courtyard at 83 Vernet

For sport's bars we only found O'Collins where we watched the rugby on Saturday (the Springboks beat the French ) and Red Sky where we watched the French Open Men's Final on Sunday. (Nadal's 10th French Grand Slam )Pubs are not a French thing. I can recommend wine tasting by the glass at Le Vin Devant Soi or L'Ampelos. Both have chacuterie and cheese plates to go with the wines.