Raise a glass of the red stuff
It seems that every time l go on line and read the British press l come across an article explaining the benefits, or otherwise, of various food groups and depending on how long, 60 odd years for us, you have been eating or drinking something you really enjoy, the “collective wisdom” of the medical profession, nutritionists, bio warriors, homoeopaths, phytotherapists, dietitians, white witches and HFW(the lovely Huge Fergie Whitestool) tells us that it is bad for us, good for us, will either shorten or prolong life, will give our skin or hair a lovely sheen, give you spots, turn you bald, aid your sex life or lower the sperm count. Confused……… we are, well, l am.
Madame and her sisters come from a long line of Earth Mothers and strongly believes in the health benefits of spending an awful lot of time and a few bob in the various bio supermarkets and homoeopathic outlets that seem to have sprung up all over France. Each week it seems that we have to try some new potion or other that will detox (god forbid), purge, clean the stomach, intestine, bowels or a new vitamin supplement, plant extract or newly discovered homoeopathic infusion or extract (have you seen the size of those pills – so small you have to take 50 at a time) which will apparently revitalise and cure almost every ailment known to woman.
My own research however. leads me to believe that the modest little grape can, and does, provide a general boost to my well being once it has been harvested, crushed, whether underfoot or otherwise, pressed and drained for all its worth and then left to ferment for a relatively short period of time. The outcome of this simple process, once the oenologist has had their say, is the red, white, pink or bubbly stuff that comes in variously shaped bottles and bags widely available at your nearest supermarket.
Bizarrely, in the Gironde – home of what the Brits collectively call claret, there are very few Wine Bars as such just a thousand or more producers offering “Degustation” in their cellars or in some cases their front rooms (occasionally in glorious Chateaux). We have enjoyed a variety of degustation from a ridiculously small thimble sized glass of average plonk to stunningly beautiful glassware filled with Divine wines of excellent vintage. But the thing we enjoy most is discovering great wine from passionate vignerons presented without pretention where the shape or quality of the glass is unimportant.
My love affair with the red stuff started when l first met my future Father in law. At the tender age of 18 l had travelled to a small village, on the Lot et Garonne and Dordogne borders, to request the hand of his eldest daughter in marriage. I was put up in the Hotel de Londres and invited to dinner at the rather splendidly rustique farm where l was formally introduced to Madame’s magnificent family. My lovely future Mother in law turned out to be the best cook l have ever known and l still salivate at the mere thought of the many wonderful meals enjoyed in her her kitchen . It was with the very first meal she cooked in my honour, a magnificent roast chicken, that l tasted my first ever glass of vin rouge. To that point l had only drunk beer and lager with the odd teenage folly involving gin and orange or rum and black, the vaguest smell of which still makes my stomach turn. So wine, which l had believed up until then was not a drink for the working class as it came in a bottle and cost a lot of money, was a real treat.
Some years later l discovered that my Beau Père was serving me a rather nice Pecharmant from a vigneron near Bergerac whom he supplied chickens and other fowl in exchange for 10 litre demijohns of the red stuff. My old Dad in law was an extraordinarily generous man as he graciously gave me not only his eldest daughter, for which l am eternally grateful, but also introduced me to Madame Vin Rouge (and the delights of Monsieur Eau de Vie – which is another ‘histoire’ entirely) with both of whom l have had a passionate affair ever since. So lets all raise a glass, of the red stuff – to the red stuff,
Santé.
TOUJOUR AVEC MODERATION
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