Emily in France 🇫🇷 Harvest Time!
Happy Harvest!
Since I first moved to Paris back in 2007, one of my favorite yearly events has been the Fête des Vendanges in Montmartre. (The first article I ever wrote for the now-defunct Planet, aka my university newspaper at AUP, was a review of the Fête des Vendanges. [I misspelled "vendanges" in that article.])Â
But I digress.
Early each year in October, the grapes from one of the last remaining vineyards within Paris' city walls are harvested, and all weekend long, a host of different events is held in celebration of not just this harvest but harvests across the country. Truth be told, I tend to skip most of the talks, dances, and other non-edible events and go straight to the "village," a long line of stands peddling regional foods from all around France: sausages, cheeses, roasted chestnuts, and of course, my favorite, truffade.
This specialty from the Auvergne sees sliced potatoes combined with a truffled fresh cheese from the Cantal region. See more (including some really incredible cheese pull) on my most recent reel, which I made at the event!
This year, for the first time, I also managed to sample the wine, which I'd always heard was meh at best (due in part, perhaps, to the north-facing vineyards), but which folks had told me recently was actually getting better.
My review? Still meh. But oh-so-fun to sample.
This year, this event was blessed with bright blue skies and almost springlike temperatures. The perfect way to see the fête return after months of confinement and lockdown.
Cheers and happy harvest!
What I'm Eating
Chef fangirling is so not my jam, but after finally testing Bertrand Grébaut's Tâpisserie, I find myself wondering if the chef behind Septime and D'Une Ile is actually capable of doing any wrong. More on the blog.
Discover more of my foodie finds via Instagram @emily_in_france.
Where I'm Going
Now that we're deconfined here in Paris, it seems high time I bring this section back! Here's where I'm headed in Paris and beyond this week. For more ideas, tune into Don't Miss This, a podcast hosted by the incomparable Jennifer Geraghty, producer extraordinaire of Paris Underground Radio.
1. Back to the Georgia O'Keefe exhibit at the Pompidou Center, which is the first of its kind in France. I paid it a first visit last week but abandoned ship within 20 minutes due to the hoards of people occupying a space laid out in a way not dissimilar to a Filene's Basement. Hoping that my next visit will have a little bit more breathing room to enjoy the art.
2. The Musée du Quai Branly, for a private tour of the African section from a friend who works there. (My friends are so cool.)
3. The Belleville Food Market – I've got my eye on the arepas from Aji Dulce.
Â
What I'm Writing
1. Madeleines are humpbacked, shell-shaped cakes that originally hail from Lorraine – but they're currently all over Paris. To find out why, I spoke with pastry chefs like Gilles Marchal, whose beautiful caramel-stuffed madeleine is above, for Food52.
 2. From the archives: my profile of Cocomiette, a brewery in the French Rhone Valley making beer from stale bread, recently earned an honorable mention from the North American Guild of Beer Writers. Check it out on Good Beer Hunting.
3. A cheeseburger is perhaps one of the perfect conveyances for a good melting cheese. Figure out which cheeses make the best burger for Mashed.
What I'm Saying
1. The word francophonie might seem to mean "the ability to speak French," but when explored through a socio-political lens, it emerges as something far more complex. My guest this week is Gemma King, Senior Lecturer in French Studies at the Australian National University. She and I chat Francophonie, francophonie, and the difference a capital letter makes on Navigating the French.
2. On Chez Toi, Caroline Conner and I pair your home-cooked recipes with the perfect wine and most complementary cheese. This week's recipe comes from Barbara Betus: a clam pasta that helps me finally lay to rest the myth that seafood and cheese can't pair. Tune in to discover my funky, assertive cheese pairing and Caroline's suggestion of a bright, slightly salty white wine to tie it all together.
(And if you want your recipe featured in a future episode, shoot me an email! We're always up for a challenge.)
What I'm Reading
1. I never thought I'd rave about a book about trains – but then I read Italian Ways. More on this bright, insightful, hilarious travelogue/memoir on the blog.
2. Maybe it's because I'm finally getting my French driver's license that I so loved this story about the parallel parking job that ignited the Internet. In Curbed.
3. Not sure if the Proust personality quiz took your friend groups by storm as much as it did mine, but this deep dive into its history and significance certainly tickled me. (And kind of made me want to take it again). In the New Yorker.
A bientôt !