Bonjour French Market Friends,
This week in Paris the Federation of Haute Couture and Fashion (FHCM)’s Woman’s Wear Paris Fashion Week (Spring/Summer) is taking place at the Palais de Tokyo. The Paris Fashion Week is a bi-annual event that 
showcases Paris as the global hub of Fashion. Fashion Houses have to apply to participate and are chosen by selection committees that include Buyers and International journalists. In order to grow and develop their “Trade” and keep it relevant in the modern times by embracing online dissipation of the latest trends, the selection focuses on the creative potential and international outreach of the candidate brands. This week sees the creations of several new designers at the top Houses which is anticipated to shake up trends, including Blazy at Chanel, Anderson at Dior, Piccioli at Balenciaga and Lantink at Gaultier. (Image courtesy Louis Vuitton)
Back here at the tip of Africa, I must be honest that I was not focussing on what to wear when I launched our French cheese range at the flagship store of Model, in the Auas Valley complex in Windhoek. I love this city and its
wide-open spaces, there is so little traffic, and it is such a friendly place. With two days to go before the official opening of the store, everyone was working day and night. It was strange to start our particular section of the store from scratch, having been 
established for so many years in the Gardens centre. Training a young team that have never been to France, nor experienced French cheese was also challenging. Technical issues such as getting bar codes working and printing the correct codes was tough but we made it and by the time H.E. Lucia Witbooi, the Vice President of Namibia officially opened the store on Wednesday we were ready.
Many dignitaries visited us, as well as the Mayor of Windhoek who greatly enjoyed our Buche de chevre. The resident Frenchies were delighted as they
told me the only thing missing in Namibia was French cheese and wines, now their lives are complete as we also included French wines in our offering. The French Embassy was also most receptive and welcoming and introduced me to several of the top French company leaders. It was a great launch, and I am back safely home again.
The cheeses that were the most popular amongst the French community was the aged Comte with its deep taste and crunchy crystallised texture; the handcrafted Brie from the top cheese producing house of Donge, with its buttery centre and crust that h
as a hint of mushrooms; the Cantal Entre Deux with its tart, dense texture, the subtle Blue from Auvergne, and interestingly the St Julien, that’s the cream cheese flavoured with layers of walnut cream that appealed most to the Namibians who had never tasted French cheese before. Luckily for my Cape Town clients, all these cheeses have been available to you for years.
We have received a small quantity of white asparagus; there is very little available
this season and it flies out the doors as soon as people spot it. The short season lasts only for a few weeks, and I have learnt from the past to buy some as soon as I can, as it is so popular. I tried to find some information on this Cape varietal and came across an entry in the Encyclopaedia Londinensis published in 1810 which informed me that “the Asparagus declinatus” is a native of the Cape of Good Hope” so this plant has been established here for a long time. It is the real symbol of the start of spring growth and tastes like it. 
This week’s recipe is white asparagus coated with a delicious creamy, fondue style sauce made with some tart flavoured Cantal cheese and a dash of Kirsch (Eau de Vie from black cherries). I recommend that you mop up the sauce with chunks of baguettes and pair it with a glass of De La Doucette Pouilly Fume, as the unique flinty flavour in this sauvignon blanc wine pairs well with the earthy flavour of the asparagus.
I wish you a great weekend and hope to see you in my shop sometime soon.
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team