Sipping Sunday

A pre-lunch apéritif.

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Happy Sunday

Wine Wednesday

 

 

Evening apéro outside a small Italian traiteur in Montmartre.

Above: La Vie en Rosé

 

Sit-down Saturday

 

Wine barrel tables at a favorite Left Bank French tapas wine bar.

Below: a summer apéro finished off w/riz au lait (creamy rice pudding) made w/vanilla bean and topped w/dried raspberry petals, dessert du jour

 

 

  L'Avant Comptoir du Marché

 

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Merci Yves Camdeborde

Green Fairy Friday

Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder.

 

Above: at the counter of historic Montmartre café/bar Au Rêve

 

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Dubbed "The Green Fairy" due to its supposed hallucinogenic effects and re-legalized in 2011, absinthe is often associated with artists,writers and as a preferred apéritif of Vincent Van Gogh.

Wine Wednesday

 Midweek apéro of charcuteries and cheeses from Spain and France separated by a vibrant red from Portugal.

 

Wine Wednesday

 

A market stall stocked with Medovina, a sweet mead, Czech in origin, made from honey and apple cider.

 

Welcome back Wednesday

 

 

Good weather prompts an impromptu apéro in Montmartre among friends.

 

A Paris planche

 

 

Once a rarity, the planche mixte, perfect for a sharing apéro or even a light meal, seems to be everywhere - and some of the best are at local cafés and wine bars.

June newsletter

A spot of cheese

And the spot? The laid-back terrace at L'Avant Comptoir du Marché.

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Sadly, many small wonderful places we'd frequent did not survive the lockdowns.

 We are very happy that this one did.

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Merci Yves Camdeborde

 

[Re-post]

Flashback Friday

 

Going green:

Green tea with a splash of eau de vie surrounded by vibrant green fields, in the Aubrac.

Go figure

  

Seasonal figs at a Paris street market.

Below: cut in half and grilled w/goat cheese, cashews, drizzled w/honey

 

 

Aperitivo

 Time for an aperitivo on the Left Bank.

Work break

 

 

A sidewalk terrace, a simple planche, a bottle of (Bandol) rosé on ice.

Gin juleps

The French-inspired mint julep of The Old South - originally sipped from silver goblets - just in time for this week's coming heatwave.

 Above: gin replaces traditional rum or cognac

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Gin

Perrier or soda water

 Freshly-squeezed lime juice

Mint

Ice

L'apéro du jeudi

Radishes are back in season.

 Above: w/bacon-wrapped prunes, piment d'espelette chips, AOC French cheeses

Drinks: kirs bretons (crème de cassis + chilled apple cider)

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 Today is National Cheese Day (March 27 in France) 

The cheese snuggled into its tiny box (below) is Le Petit Gaugry, a delectable raw milk discovery I made years ago staying in a village in Burgundy. Despite its size, it packs a punch, possessing all the character of the region's heady Époisses, but ripened for weeks in Marc de Bourgogne, an eau de vie distilled in oak vats, giving it an amber hue. - BPJ

 

Paris meets London

Evening apéro of saucisson sec à l'ancienne and herbed baguette croûtons paired with a crumbly Shropshire Blue and splash of port.

Cheers!

Season of the spritz

Originating in Italy the Aperol Spritz continues to reign as Paris' #1 summer terrace drink.