Harvest Wine Tours in the Loire Valley Vineyards

HARVEST WINE TOUR IN THE LOIRE VALLEY

1 DAY PACKAGE (additional days on request)

From mid-September to mid-November 2009 we are offering the opportunity to come and see the grape harvest in the Loire Valley. Throughout the 2 month period we have a series of special 1 Day Harvest Wine Tour Packages to offer which include the opportunity to see the harvest in action and even get to harvest a few bunches yourselves!

Some of the highlights of the harvest season allow us to :

See the hand harvest picking into crates
See the machine harvesters in action
Taste the bernache - white grape juice from the harvest
Taste wine directly from the barrel
Measure the baume (sugar level) in the grapes using the refractometer
Taste the previous years wines
See the harvest being brought into the Caves des Vignerons
Enjoy a delicious harvest picnic in the vineyards

To see what is included in the package click here : Harvest Wine Tour Package

Or click here to see the : Harvest in Action Photos from previous years.

To check availability or book today email Micaela and/or Sue at resv@lagrandemaison.net

Pyramids Are not Easy to Clean

We have a pyramid in our house....

....unusual I know but a necessary precaution to stop small children and dogs disappearing through a large hole and into the kitchen sink!

The story goes that before the staircase in the hall was constructed (from the wood of an ancient winepress) the previous owner of La Grande Maison used to descend into the kitchen on a rope!

This pyramid was inspired by the Louvre pyramid, however, it does not contain 666 panes of glass, holds no satanic significance and has not featured in a Dan Brown novel.

Nowadays the pyramid is a good source of light into the kitchen and also a good spot to watch our sous chef ‘Sue’ at work, but don’t let her know I told you that.

So yesterday was my day to clean the pyramid and in doing so I got to wondering about the symbolism of the pyramid and it’s ancient powers. Here is what I found.

Pyramids are handy for :

Preserving food
Sharpening razor blades or knives
Improving heath
Functioning as a thought-form incubator
Triggering sexual urges
Relieving stress
Improving quality of drinking water
Restoring the lustre to tarnished jewellery or coins

Now here is the really interesting one :

Improving the taste of coffee, wine and fruit juices:

Apparently pyramid energy alters the hydrogen bond in water. A general effect is an increase in the "smoothness" of a drink. It takes the sharp "edge" off drinks like coffee and works well with wine too.

So here is the experiment : a comparative tasting between wine decanted and placed under the pyramid and the same wine decanted and placed elsewhere. Chosen wine? Domaine de Grand Maison from Langlois Chateau of course. Can we decrease the acidity of this marvellous Muscadet using the power of the pyramid?

Come back in a couple of weeks to discover the results! In the meantime we will be relaxed, shining jewels, having loads of ideas and well....I’ll leave the rest to your imagination ;-)

12 More Things To Do in the Loire Valley Around Saumur

A couple of weeks ago I promised I would find you "12 More Tips for Things to do in the Loire Valley" around Saumur from La Grande Maison. So here they are! Enjoy...

1. Take a ride on Le Grand Elephant at Les Machines des Isles in Nantes

2. See the hand harvest at the Chateau of Saumur around the end of September

3. Visit a riverside 'Guinguette' like this one on the island of Béhuard
for traditional Friture de Loire

4. Go to the beautiful Chateau at Montreuil-Bellay for a walk around the magnificent gardens

5. Interested in art then the Contemporary Art Gallery at Bouvet Ladubay is for you

6. Enough of wine tasting then how about a liquer at the Combier Distillery?

7. Angel or Demon everyone likes to visit the tomb of Leonardo da Vinci at the Chateau in Amboise

8. Chinon is not far either for all things Rabelais & this amazing statue of Joan of Arc


9. The fairytale castle of Rigny Ussé will bring out the sleeping beauty in you

10. Get clean at the most amazing homemade soap shop at Domaine de Mestré


11. A little dressage at the Equitation Centre in Saumur

12. ...and home for a wine tasting in the pigeon tower at La Grande Maison with one of our local winemakers

Phew! So much to do and so little time. Don't underestimate just how much there is to see and do here. It is worth taking a little more time out than you think to explore this area. It's a rich tapestry of history, food, wine & vines, culture & traditions. If any of these ideas appeal to you then make sure you ask for more details during your stay here at La Grande Maison ... a biéntot as there will be more to come over the next few weeks so don't forget to check back.

12 Things To Do in the Loire Valley Around Saumur

"La Grande Maison Top Twelve Tips" for what to do in the Loire Valley Region around Saumur.

1. A visit to the Chateau of Saumur is a must for great views of the river.

2. Fine dining at many of the local restaurants

3. Visit one of the local festivals or fetes held in the villages during the summer months

4. Opportunities for some pretty serious wine tasting

5. Canoe a section of the Loire River.

6. Visit some of the pretty Loire side villages such as Chenhutte -Treves-Cunault

7. Visit the markets such as the Sunday Marche' in Cunault or the Saturday Market in Saumur

8. Riverside Brocantes & Antique Markets

9. Wine Cellars and Caves to visit

10. Take a Hot Air Ballon ride

11. Explore the Caves, Tunnels and Underground Pigeonniere at La Grande Maison

12. A cycle ride in the vineyards around La Grande Maison

Twelve ideas to get you started and I've only scratched the surface. Come back in a couple of weeks for more ideas of what to do in the Loire Valley Region. www.lagrandemaison.net

Strawhouse Players Summer Production 2009

Huge applause goes this year to Frank, Ned, Luc, Beth and of course Steve (scriptwriter extraordinaire) for their traditional summer production. This year "King Arthur & His Trusty Knights on the Quest of the Holy Grail" Maybe a tad pythonesque me thinks?

Posters are painted, costumes are made, tickets are designed, props are propped and the scene is set on the lawns of Plantagent Plantes in Argentay.

The Knights of the Round Table

King Arthur's Knights in search of clues to the Holy Grail

Knights of Camelot: [singing] We're knights of the Round Table, we dance whene'er we're able. We do routines and chorus scenes with footwork impec-cable, We dine well here in Camelot, we eat ham and jam and Spam a lot. / We're knights of the Round Table, our shows are for-mi-dable. But many times we're given rhymes that are quite un-sing-able, We're opera mad in Camelot, we sing from the diaphragm a lot. / In war we're tough and able, Quite in-de-fa-ti-gable. Between our quests we sequin vests and impersonate Clark Gable / It's a busy life in Camelot
[solo]
Knights of Camelot: I have to push the pram a lot.

A snack during the interval? Escargot au Chocolate - hmm delicious.

Tickets are in high demand!

Bravo the Strawhouse Players
il était for-mid-able!

Retro Grand Prix Grande Maison Drive Past

The cars have now arrived in Le Puy Notre Dame for the Retro Grand Prix tomorrow and there is a buzz of excitement in the air. The arrival heralds the start of a weekend of festivities and first off comes the drive through the vines and past La Grande Maison.

So every year we rush outside the gates and wave everyone on their way. There are always a few that take the wrong turning so we are there to put them right back on track. Or even push them up the hill if necessary!


Here they come arriving at the bottom of Rue de la Cerisaie....

....they pass the house.

....and then continue on up the hill and through the vines behind La Grande Maison.

.....the last in line being safely followed by the 'depannage' truck in case of breakdown.

The Le Puy Notre Dame Retro Grand Prix is always held on the last weekend in July so book early for next year's weekend of fun and frivolity Arrive on Friday evening for a delicious La Grande Maison Wine Sampling Supper, take Wine Tour through the vines on Saturday and finish off at the Retro Grand Prix on Sunday for a BBQ and glass of local Le Puy wine. No better way to spend a sunny July weekend. Hope to see you in 2010!

Le Puy Notre Dame Retro Grand Prix

26th July sees the Retro Grand Prix in our local village of Le Puy Notre Dame. This normally quiet corner of France comes alive to the sounds of convertible Morgans, Bugattis, Amilcars and the odd vintage Rolls Royce. Here are a few photos from last years event to whet your appetite.

Cordoned off by bales of hay, the entire village becomes a race track for the day. The local vignerons sell their wines by the glass and the BBQ's spring into action.

More to follow soon......opps mid-blog and got a phone call to say that our dog Willow had escaped and had made his way down to the local nursery. Quick diversion whilst I jump in the car and go to collect him!

Now back to the grand prix....


Vintage motorbikes are allowed compete too. This includes a side-car race and the opportunity to wear old leather helmets with ear flaps - very alluring. Here Olivier from Le Puy au Vin checks out a problem on his old vintage some thing or other.



Along with a few more photos of noisy engines....


.....and shiny badges of desirability.



...see how they shine!


...and to make our day there is even a convertible rainbow Amilcar.

From Potager to Loire Valley Vineyard

A pretty hectic couple of weeks has left little time for blogging other than 'micro-blogging' on Twitter where you can now find us at Twitter.com/frenchwinetours if you wish to join in with the tweets. Otherwise we have been pretty much out and about running Wine Tours and serving our delicious Wine Sampling Suppers here at La Grande Maison.

So what has been happening in the vineyard and the potager during this time? Well less than a month ago the bunches on the vines looked like this. Flowering went well in the end and we managed to avoid any heavy rain that might have knocked off the tiny delicate flowers.

Within 3-4 weeks the bunches are looking good and with the cooler evenings it has been the ideal time to go out and work on the few rows of Chenin Blanc that we have in the vineyard. When the vines were pruned during the winter eight buds were left on last years canes so each vine produced about eight vertical shoots. Each shoot usually produces two bunches so there are a total of around sixteen bunches per vine. This is too many for us as we wish to produce quality rather than quantity hence the job in hand. The extra bunches that didn't fit the bill were cut off leaving 8-10 bunches per vine.

It is hard to think that the grapes will be wasted but it will improve the quality and space available for what is left on the vine.

Back in the potager, secateurs still in hand and we have good crops of yellow and green courgettes, potatoes, garlic, shallots, peas and beans. All our produce is grown organically and our meals are based around what is available each evening.

Even the hens are coming up trumps and Vita produced her first double yolker bless her, she always was a hen of many fancies!

Dogs as per usual do their best to help. With the odd bit of baguette snaffling.

Humble Pie H.R.H

They don't look at all guilty do they?

Willow (aka Wills or Mr Beans)