For dates please contact James and Diana
All
walks for non-cooks will be accompanied. Please see separate
walking itinerary.
Day
1 After flying in to Toulouse airport you will be met
by James and driven for 1¼ hours to the medieval village
of Saint Antonin where we lunch beneath the cliffs and over-looking
the river Aveyron. A short stroll through the village before
we continue to Chateau Couanac. Chateau Couanac has huge majesty
sitting in the heart of rural France amidst mighty oaks and
maples. It is a private chateau run by the Count and Countess
d'Armagnac de Castanet who are absolutely charming hosts.
The outbuildings (the miller's house, the baker's house etc.)
have been restored with great taste though the beds are simple
and you may find yourselves wandering down the corridor wondering
where the bathroom is! All bedrooms have showers. Swimming
pool.
Day
2 We start the morning in the presence of a French chef
who will be showing us just why French cuisine is regarded
as being one of the best cuisines of the world. From Brillat-Savarin
to Fernand Point to the Roux brothers (to cite but a few)
there is no doubting the talents of the French hand in the
kitchen. So we start the week with a classically French chef
and classically French cooking. Lunch will be a picnic beneath
a massive Monpellier maple. The afternoon will be spent either
helping the cook or walking up an appetite or taking it easy.
Dinner Chateau Couanac.
Day
3 Charles de Gaulle once said that France had two hundred
and forty six different cheeses and how on earth was he expected
to govern a country with so many different cheeses. We will
look this morning at several of these wonders and what wines
(Jurançon, Irouleguy, Madiran, Cahors, Saussignac,
Monbazillac, Pecharmant etc.) and breads compliment their
flavours. We drive to Cahors for lunch at the Rendez-Vous.
After lunch a visit to Chateau Lagrezette to see how money
can be spent on creating great wine. We then drive back to
Cahors to the Hotel Terminus for an exceptional dinner at
Le Balandre - the hotel restaurant with an international reputation
for 'cuisine gastronomique'. You stay the night at this three
star hotel. All bedrooms with bathrooms en suite.
Day
4
We drive to the peacefulness and charm of Domaine de St Gery.
This is the home of Patrick and Pascale Duler. Patrick has
an affinity with truffles and foie gras. He has trained with
Alain Ducasse and will be offering us two mornings of talk
and demonstration the first regarding the truffle. We will
also walk to his truffle plantations and see how his dogs
hunt the 'diamant noir'. Lunch will be on the terrace of the
domaine looking down to the village of Lascabannes. An optional
afternoon walk to the truffle plantation of Jean- Pierre Caumont
before returning to a dinner of truffle delight never to be
forgotten. You will spend the next two nights here. All bedrooms
with bathrooms en suite. 6km
Day
5 Patrick and Pascale do much work in the grand food fairs
of Paris where Patrick has won a gold medal for his truffled
foie gras. Here he will talk to us about the foie. We will
see it prepared with spices, saffron, baies roses etc. and
eat these samples as an hors d'oeuvres to the picnic on the
terrace. The picnic will incorporate various rillettes and
other local delicacies and the great jambon cru washed down
again with carefully chosen wines from the south west. An
optional walk in the afternoon through the village of Lascabannes
to get an appetite for the evenings foie gras dinner. 5km
Day
6 We drive to Lario, the home of James and Diana. Lario
is a small Quercy farmstead with beautiful views over the
distant hilltop bastide of Lauzerte down to the Pyrenees.
Here James and Diana will give a demonstration on the versatility
of the magret. This is indeed one of the greatest 'cuts' of
meat. It is the breast of the fatted duck and is delicious
in a million different ways hot and cold. A magret lunch on
the terrace at Lario before a gentle walk to Saint Felix.
We move to Le Vert for the next two nights. Le Vert is a converted
Manor house with a reputation for excellent cuisine. All bedrooms
with bathrooms en suite. Swimming pool. 6km
Day
7 We will drive to Montcuq market to buy some of the fresh
produce available for a picnic in the orchard of Mademoiselle
Goul. We will return then to Le Vert where Bernard Philippe
will demonstrate to us the art of the French pudding or 'desert'.
He will be showing us how, from the simple base of a crème
brulée for example, you can have such diversity of
presentation and of flavours. Local flavourings of lavender
and saffron will be used as well as many others to help put
his theory into effect. The afternoon will be spent relaxing
except for those who are keen to take their truffled foie
gras back home. These people return to Lario with James and
Diana. They will finish off before returning to Le Vert to
prepare for the farewell dinner.
Day
8 Return to Toulouse Blagnac by car, passing the hilltop
bastide of Tournon d'Agenais and driving through a landscape
dotted with Romanesque churches and small white stone villages.
Shaggy ink caps
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