Imagine a sun-kissed valley, caressed by cool flowing rivers, surrounded by vineyards, lush and green - this is the Clisson Valley.
So, it said on the ticket to pay at Hotel de Ville (remember the ones you admired in every town and village Julie!!!), so off we went in search of it. No, no, no, we had to pay at the Tabac store. We had to purchase stamps to total €11 and then return to Hotel de Ville to pay the fine with the stamps. It sounded like double handling to us, but this was French administration after all. Off we trotted to the Tabac. The Tabac did not have any €11 stamps left, there was only 15 minutes left until the Hotel de Ville closed for the day and we would not be back in town again. Back we marched to Hotel de Ville with much head shaking and tut-tutting; I could see the funny side though. I think somehow the French administration has softened me over our months living here, now I just expect complications like this.
JR choofed off to enjoy the evening light and capture some photos, while AJ and I found Parc de la Garenne Lemot where we lay on the cool grass making pictures out of clouds – well, I managed to persuade AJ to find at least one picture, apparently it is not very cool to play games like this with your Mum.
Our helpful friend at the tourist office had called one of his favourite wineries and organised a private wine tasting for us beginning at 8pm. Bruno Cormerais Vins de Nantes is snuggled away in La Chambaudiere, St. Lumine de Clisson in the Vallee de Clisson. The smiling Marie-Francoise met us at the cellar door, Bruno was summoned from his vines soon after.
Bruno layed before us bottle after bottle of lovely Muscadet wine, so typical of this region. It was surprisingly high in minerals and some vintages showed a distinctly salty twang. The wine flowed and the laughter bubbled up and out of Bruno time after time again. It was obvious he has great pleasure in showing his wines, he is very proud. Marie-Francoise gurgled her wine, consciously drawing air through each mouthful, concentrating on her experience. We began to talk food and she left the room returning soon after with a small book of recipes she had written to compliment each wine from the vineyard. The book is mine to keep. Before we left, Bruno brought out a wine he explained as, “for pleasure only”. It was a 1990 Muscadet and is very special, the bottle was opened just for us.
We visited the crumbling Chateau de Clisson after a trip to the tourist office where we were pointed in the direction of La Bonne Auberge for lunch. Mr. Tourist Office know his stuff and we had a great meal accompanied by friendly but polished service. Chef Serge and his lovely wife Chantal, have owned the Auberge for 10 years, it is their passion. Allow the photos to give you just a hint of the wonderful dishes we enjoyed. I finished with a smooth bauble of marbled white and milk chocolat, inside was hidden ripe raspberries, lightly coated in fine, crunchy toffee. As our waiter delivered my dessert, he poured over the chocolate bauble, a hot raspberry sauce, melting the bauble and creating a wonderful marriage of sweet fruit, crunchy toffee and luxurious chocolat. It was quite a moment.
We chatted in the courtyard with Chantal; she shared her passion with us and marvelled at stories of our year long adventure.
Our car had been visited by a parking inspector during our long and decadent lunch. We had parked in a blue zone, and although it was free, we were required to display a wheeled device on our dash advising the time we had left our car. This system was news to us and JR only learned about it through animated discussions with fellow parkers in the same blue zone. There was not a sign to be seen explaining the rules.
We chatted in the courtyard with Chantal; she shared her passion with us and marvelled at stories of our year long adventure.
Our car had been visited by a parking inspector during our long and decadent lunch. We had parked in a blue zone, and although it was free, we were required to display a wheeled device on our dash advising the time we had left our car. This system was news to us and JR only learned about it through animated discussions with fellow parkers in the same blue zone. There was not a sign to be seen explaining the rules.
So, it said on the ticket to pay at Hotel de Ville (remember the ones you admired in every town and village Julie!!!), so off we went in search of it. No, no, no, we had to pay at the Tabac store. We had to purchase stamps to total €11 and then return to Hotel de Ville to pay the fine with the stamps. It sounded like double handling to us, but this was French administration after all. Off we trotted to the Tabac. The Tabac did not have any €11 stamps left, there was only 15 minutes left until the Hotel de Ville closed for the day and we would not be back in town again. Back we marched to Hotel de Ville with much head shaking and tut-tutting; I could see the funny side though. I think somehow the French administration has softened me over our months living here, now I just expect complications like this.
Back at Hotel de Ville, we asked to see the Directeur and were sent through a doorway into an office to be met by a smiling lady. She had heard our plight as we explained ourselves at the front desk on two occasions and was ready to help. “Come back tomorrow” she offered. We explained that we could not and we were merely Australian tourists visiting the pretty valley for the day. She held the parking fine in her hand, shaking her head, mouth downturned. I kept thinking, it couldn’t be this hard, it’s only a parking fine. I asked could we please just pay cash? “Oui”, yes you can. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. I wonder why we just couldn’t pay cash in the first place???
We explored Clisson on foot, crossing Pont de la Vallee and La Sevre Nantaise River. We stood on top of the Viaduc that spanned the Moine River, lined with Italianesque inspired villas, their gardens meeting the green banks.
JR choofed off to enjoy the evening light and capture some photos, while AJ and I found Parc de la Garenne Lemot where we lay on the cool grass making pictures out of clouds – well, I managed to persuade AJ to find at least one picture, apparently it is not very cool to play games like this with your Mum.
Our helpful friend at the tourist office had called one of his favourite wineries and organised a private wine tasting for us beginning at 8pm. Bruno Cormerais Vins de Nantes is snuggled away in La Chambaudiere, St. Lumine de Clisson in the Vallee de Clisson. The smiling Marie-Francoise met us at the cellar door, Bruno was summoned from his vines soon after.
Bruno layed before us bottle after bottle of lovely Muscadet wine, so typical of this region. It was surprisingly high in minerals and some vintages showed a distinctly salty twang. The wine flowed and the laughter bubbled up and out of Bruno time after time again. It was obvious he has great pleasure in showing his wines, he is very proud. Marie-Francoise gurgled her wine, consciously drawing air through each mouthful, concentrating on her experience. We began to talk food and she left the room returning soon after with a small book of recipes she had written to compliment each wine from the vineyard. The book is mine to keep. Before we left, Bruno brought out a wine he explained as, “for pleasure only”. It was a 1990 Muscadet and is very special, the bottle was opened just for us.
We left the wine cave with smiles on our faces. The sun has transformed into an orange ball and was suspended above the leafy vines. It was such a beautiful way to end the day.
