Blog
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Loire valley vineyard update – 14 July 2018
Planting at this time, with no rain and high temperatures has its problems but the team at Chateau de Fesles was unable to get onto the ground earlier.
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Recipes from Le Tasting Room’s kitchen – cooking the perfect duck breast
A perfectly cooked duck breast (magret de canard) is one of life’s pleasures and something that you can easily master. Here’s how to do it.
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What are we drinking this week? Busardières 2011, Bourgueil from Domaine de la Chevalerie
Memories of 2011 as we sat out in the garden enjoying dinner this week. The difference between this year and 2011 is that as we sat in the garden that year, the rain clouds passed over us.
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Wine education – mildew in grape vines, what’s all the fuss this year?
Downy mildew is indigenous to north-eastern North America where it spread from wild vines into cultivated vineyards. It probably came over to Europe during the phylloxera crises when native American rootstock were being tested for their resistance to the disease that wiped out around two thirds of Europe’s vineyards.
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Recipes from Le Tasting Room’s kitchen – spicy cumin and turmeric roasted new potatoes
New potatoes roasted in the oven with cumin and turmeric. Delicious with a steak or any kind of bbq they are very moreish!
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La Grange aux Belles portes ouvertes
We tasted a very interesting range of wines today at La Grange aux Belles in Soulaine sur Aubance about half an hour from us here at le tasting room
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Un diner en blanc at Chateau du Petit Thouars
Our friends Sebastien and D’Arcy du Petit Thouars host a diner en blanc at their beautiful chateau every year and this year we were able to join in the fun.
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Le Printemps de Brézé 2018
Domaine Arnaud Lambert invites its professional buyers to a day of discovery and tasting every year at Arnaud’s beautiful home in St Cyr en Bourg. This year we went to take a look at the Clos du Midi.
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Summer drinking – rosé from the Loire
As the summer weather finally seems to be settling in and we are able to eat out in the garden, my thoughts turn to the rosés of the Loire.
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Le Mans 2018 – a day of food and wine from the Loire
Every year we have a group that comes over from the UK to the Le Mans 24 hours race. They’re all interested in cars but they love good food and wine too and a day with us makes a change of scene. Le Mans is only an hour from Le Tasting Room so it’s an ideal day out.
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What’s going on the Loire valley vineyards in June?
Well, what a month we’ve had since I last reported from the Loire valley vineyards. Huge amounts of rain during the first 2 weeks of June caused chaos around the region. On the 11th June Amboise had 80mm of rain in just 2 hours.
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Personal News – my life in the Loire June 28th
The week of the Le Mans 24 hours race is always our busiest of the year and 2018 was no exception. We had 33 people through that week culminating with the Le Mans Gang.
