Bonjour French Market Friends,
This week in France is the completion of the grape harvesting season. Speaking to French winemakers this week, they expressed their concern that the harvest is considerable smaller than 
previous years due to the changing global climatic conditions. In most regions there were unseasonal frosts in the early part of the year which affected the budding flowers, downy mildew which damages the vine leaves and continual rain most of the summer, so the grapes did not have sufficient sunshine to ripen. The yield of the harvest has reduced by approximately 18% across the wine regions. Despite these concerns, after the intense physical challenge of picking all the grapes and bringing them in safely to the cellars, the end of the Harvest is celebrated in many towns across France. Such as in Chablis this weekend, in the northern part of Burgundy, the 75th Fete des Vins (celebration of the wines) de Chablis takes place in the village, with tastings from local wine producers, music and lots of good food.
The first of the Beaujolais wine harvested each year is traditionally raced around the world. If
you wish to participate in a celebration of this year’s French Harvest you can celebrate the Fete du Nouveau Beaujolais here in Cape Town on 22November. The event is organised by the French S. African Chamber of Commerce (FSACCI) and the Alliance Francaise du Cap. The Beaujolais Nouveau 2024 wine will be flown in and enjoyed with some French style snacks. Tickets can be purchased on Quicket, more info can be obtained from FSACCI at events@fsacci.com The event is also being celebrated in JNB on 21st Nov.
We received ple
nty more cheese this week including the popular Brie layered with truffle cream. This delicious cheese is quite addictive with the two layers of Brie encasing a thick layer of cream laced with black Truffles. The flavour of the brie is a great complement to the rich taste of the black truffle. We also have a large wedge of raw milk Emmental from the Vos
ges. This designated Superior Lable Rouge Emmental cheese has irregular holes and a dense texture. Ideal for slicing and serving on a cheese board or for melting in dishes such as Croque Monsieur or over a potato or vegetable bake. We have lots of individual cheeses such as Camembert and Pont L’Eveque from Normandie, Munster from Alsace, and little goat’s crottins.
The year is racing away, we are 8 weeks to Xmas and people are looking ahead to gift ideas for the Festive season. We start planning in April when we place orders for the Italian Christmas cakes. Our first Festive season products have just arrived.
We have just received chocolate Advent calendars from Baci Perugina. This famous Italian 
chocolate was created by Luisa Spagnoli in 1922 in Perugia. She created a bite sized chocolate made with a special cocoa filling with crushed hazelnuts, on which she placed a whole hazelnut and finally she covered everything with her special chocolate coating, the Luisa® dark chocolate. This unique recipe has continued until today with the hazelnuts roasted perfectly, the chocolate filling and coating made with 
sustainably harvested cocoa, including Arriba cocoa, and vanilla from Madagascar. The ingredients are gluten free and conform to Kosher and Halaal requirements. The name Baci means “kiss you” in Italian so in addition, each chocolate comes with a little paper Love note. The Baci Advent calendar has several different chocolate recipes, with 24 chocolates hidden behind individual doors, so much more tempting than the usual Advent calendar. Stock is limited so please message me to reserve one for you if you wish to get one.
Another gift idea new in stock this week is Armagnac from the Domaine Tariquet. Armagnac is a single distilled brandy and is produced in the Bas-Armagnac region in Gascony in the Southwest of 
France. This Domaine has been producing brandy since 1683 produced by the noble family Montesquiou, now owned by the family Grassa-Artaud for 5 generations, they grow and produce their Armagnac on their Estate. Rémy et Armin Grassa believe in biodiversity with a focus on enriching their vineyard’s soil with natural fertiliser, to ensure healthy vines and good quality grapes. We have 2 ages of Domaine Tariquet Armagnac,
made with 60% Ugni blanc grapes and 40% Baca grapes. The XO is a great example of a classic Armagnac brandy, made with Armagnac that has been aged on average for 15 years. The taste is supple and complex combining elegance and power. The tannins are balanced and present a great combination of the taste of the fruit aged in the wood barrels. The VSOP is aged on average 5 to 7 years. This Armagnac has a golden amber hue, a floral aroma with a taste of woody spices and a hint of fresh mint, ending with hints of liquorice and macerated fruits.
For my recipe this week, I fancied the taste of lamb cooked slowly in red wine and herbs. In this 
easy recipe I combined a shank of lamb with garlic, olives and some fresh lemon and rosemary from my balcony garden. While I slow cooked the lamb in some red wine on the stove, the heady cooking aroma filled my kitchen. I paired this with the Pavillon St Pierre made from a blend of the
Cotes du Rhone local grapes, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Carignan and Marsellan available from our French Market shop.
I hope you enjoy your weekend and the first ever Cape Town Country Music Festival which is being held at the DHL Greenpoint stadium. Running on Saturday and Sunday from 11 until late there will be 8 international and plenty of local bands performing, should be loud and lots of fun.
Regards
Suzanne and The French Market Team