I received a profuse message of thanks from journalist David Jaggard for helping him research material for his column C’est Ironique! that appears in the on-line weekly guide called Paris Update. To view this nugget of gratitude, click here and scroll down the central column of the Web page to the end of the article. Oh yes, and take a moment to read his material—he’s got some interesting things to say!
Now, I wonder if Obama needs some help with his research…
Jérôme Boulestreau
Manager of Fromagerie Beillevaire
(c) Discover Paris!
Last month, members of the Paris Alumnae/i Network met Jérôme Boulestreau, manager of the cheese shop Fromagerie Beillevaire on rue de Belleville in Paris. He opened his shop to us for a private visit.
The shop is one of ten that the company Beillevaire has opened in Paris. The company began with founder Pascal Beillevaire’s love for dairy products, a passion that developed while growing up on the family farm “La Vacheresse,” located in the Pays de la Loire region near Nantes. Today the company specializes in receiving, fabricating, and aging cheeses, which it distributes through 73 shops and markets in western France and Paris.
Crayeux de Roncq
Photo from La Ferme du Vinage Web site
At the end of Mr. Boulestreau’s presentation, we tasted eight different cheeses. The most memorable was the Crayeux de Roncq (also called Carré du Vinage), a brine-washed, raw cow’s-milk cheese with soft, almost runny, texture. It was smooth, creamy, and had a—whew!—strong flavor. It is produced by fromagère Thérèse-Marie Couvreur at a farm that lies in the north of France, near Lille called “La Ferme du Vinage.”
The full article describing Mr. Boulestreau’s presentation is available to the subscribers of our monthly newsletter Paris Insights.
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Bonne lecture!
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We stopped by Marie Gantois’ chocolate shop Mococha on rue Mouffetard to see what kinds of confections she is selling for Easter. She is featuring the chocolates of her three favorite chocolate makers, plus a “guest appearance” by a fourth.
We liked the chocolate Easter eggs by Patrice Chapon, who won the Grand Prix de la Mairie de Paris (2003).
Easter Eggs by Patrice Chapon
The fat chicken by Jacques Bellanger, Meilleur Ouvrier de France (1982), and the puffy fish by Fabrice Gillotte, Meilleur Ouvrier de France (1991) made us smile.
Fat Chicken by Jacques Bellanger
Puffy Fish by Fabrice Gillotte
The confections of Gérard Cosme, guest chocolate maker, are particularly celebrated for their coatings, as witnessed by this photograph of a chocolate lollipop displaying the image of a rabbit happily munching on a chocolate cookie.
Happy Rabbit by Gérard Cosme
Happy Easter!
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Caveau de la Huchette
(c) Discover Paris!
On Saturday, April 2, we had the opportunity to take a walking tour on the history of jazz in Paris. Entitled “Le Jazz Hot, an American art form in Paris,” it is presented by Context Paris, a company that organizes cultural walking tours of the city. We met Context’s docent, Jason Domnarski, and four other participants in front of Saint-Germain-des-Prés church. As well as working as a tour guide, Jason is a jazz pianist. His knowledge of and passion for jazz became increasingly obvious as the walk unfolded.
Jason loaned us iPods containing selected recordings of jazz music. We donned the ear buds, ready to listen to the selections that he had programmed. Then, we set off.
Our first stop featured two nearby cafés—Les Deux Magots and Café de Flore—which Jason described as once being an “epicenter for writers, intellectuals, and musicians.” It was at these cafés where the spirit of existentialism flourished and transformed into a life-style. Jazz thrived In this open-minded circle of eclectic people.
Farther along, Jason showed us the former location of Club Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Because performances were given in the cellars of the clubs, jazz fans became known as “troglodytes,” or cave dwellers. It was in this milieu that French singer Juliette Greco met American trumpeter Miles Davis. A short, passionate affair ensued.
Continuing our walk, Jason pointed out the hotel where jazz greats Kenny Clarke and Bud Powell held late-night jam sessions after their gigs. Kenny Clark lived in this neighborhood for the last fifteen years of his life. His bebop drum work changed the rhythm of jazz and allowed greater exploration of the music.
Along the route, Jason gave a history of the early development of jazz from its beginnings as funeral march music in New Orleans. He went on to talk about swing and big band jazz of the 20s and 30s, and the bebop era of the 40s and 50s.
We stopped near the site of the former Tabou club, where French writer, singer, song writer, musician, and jazz promoter Boris Vian performed in 1947. Vian was instrumental in introducing American jazz greats to the in-crowd in Paris. The club had a late-night license and stayed open until 4:00 a.m.
Stopping near pont Neuf, Jason talked about the jazz scene in Montmartre. That area, which once teemed with nightclubs, had seen the development of the French chanson in the pre-WWI period. When jazz arrived in 1919, there was a big clash between the traditionalists who admired the French chanson and those who preferred the new jazz music.
From pont Neuf we walked into the 5th arrondissement, where Jason pointed out the Caveau de la Huchette, the oldest jazz club in Paris. Bebop jazz pianist Bud Powell played in the now-defunct Chat Qui Pêche, a club that stood across the street from the Caveau. In the vicinity are two other historic clubs that still feature jazz. Trumpeter and jazz singer Chet Baker and blues singer Memphis Slim performed at one of these.
Crossing the river Seine, we made our way to the final point of the walk in the Châtelet district. Jason talked about several jazz clubs in this area, including the Duc des Lombards. At the entrance to the club, we spotted an announcement for Esperanza Spalding, an American bass player on her European tour.
We parted company with Jason, secure in the knowledge that jazz is alive and well in Paris!
Context Paris organizes group “Le Jazz Hot” walks on a regular basis and private walks on request.
Lapeyronie
(c) Discover Paris!
I stopped by Lapeyronie, a coffee-roaster and vendor located at 9, rue Brantôme in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris. Eager to try a single-origin coffee, my eyes alighted on a jar containing Galapagos coffee beans. The price of this coffee is about twice what one would pay for a good-quality coffee, but I threw caution to the wind and purchased 125 grams for 6.85€.
Galapagos Coffee
(c) Discover Paris!
The coffee comes from the Galapagos Islands, an archipelago that lies off the coast of Ecuador. These are the islands that Charles Darwin explored in 1835.
From the information that I have been able to glean from the Internet, the coffee comes from a specific island named San Cristobal and is an original Bourbon variety brought from Panama and planted by a certain Manuel Cobos. After his death in 1904, the trees continue to flourish in the island’s rich micro-climate. During the 1990s, a family purchased the land and, realizing the quality of the coffee that the trees produce, re-established the plantation.
After grinding a small quantity of beans, I brewed them in my French press. The aroma that rose from the press as I poured in the hot water was sweet and, to my sense of smell, malty. Upon tasting, I found the coffee to be medium-bodied with no trace of bitterness and to have the flavor of sweet, dark malt. A number of coffee aficionados on the Internet have described the taste as caramel. However one describes it, the coffee has a smooth, rich flavor and is a pleasure to drink!
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American photographer David Henry gave a presentation of his recent candid photography at Paris Soirées, a social gathering organized each Sunday by Patricia Laplante-Collins.
David Henry Presenting Candid Photographs
Photograph by Maria D'Arcy
The evening began with socializing around wine, cheese, and other beverages and snacks as people arrived in the spacious, former dance studio where Patricia holds her events. Following introductions of each attendee by Patricia, David began his slideshow. While projecting the images on the wall of the darkened room, he gave running commentary on the kinds of shots he tries to capture.
His main theme for the evening was the interesting juxtapositions and seeming relationships that unconnected people can form in a single, candid shot. For example, he showed the image of an elderly lady looking with active interest at his camera, while in the background, sitting at a café table, a young woman’s bored look revealed her obliviousness to the action that was taking place.
Woman Looking at Camera
Photograph by David P. Henry
In another image, the side view of a woman looking down in the foreground and a young girl looking up in the background gave the impression that they were about to kiss, a common form of greeting in France. While watching the presentation, I wondered how David managed to capture these fleeting moments on camera. It is not only because of his practiced eye, but also because he walks around the city with his camera ready. When he sees a shot, he doesn’t hesitate—he takes it immediately.
Two Girls on Rue du Temple
Photography by David P. Henry
On another of his favorite topics, he showed a series of photographs of young, soon-to-be-married men and women dressed in outlandish costumes who were undergoing a curious ritual of public humiliation. Called “enterrement de vie de jeune fille/garçon,” (“burial of the life as a single person”), the celebration marks a major turning point in their lives.
Hot Dog Man
Photograph by David P. Henry
David arrived in Paris in 1996 and soon found work as a photographer. His pictures have been published in numerous books, magazines, and journals, and he was recently (2008) featured on NRJ Paris television. Watch the video of David in action to get an idea of how he works!
David Henry teaches photo workshops in Paris.
There are numerous restaurant guides available for the Paris-bound traveler to consult before making that dream trip to the City of Light, but the one that I have found that best describes the city’s culinary scene is the soon-to-be-published J’aime Paris: Mon Paris du goût en 200 adresses, by Alain Ducasse (April 2011, Alain Ducasse Edition).
J’aime Paris is a heavy book, weighing in at 4 lbs! It contains 596 pages, and is illustrated with sumptuous black-and-white and color photographs. Co-written with Frédérick E. Grasser Hermé, it is a lively account in words and pictures of some 230 establishments in Paris. While most of the places described are restaurants, the authors also include numerous marketplaces, kitchenware shops, specialty food shops, bars, bakeries, pastry shops, cheese shops, butcher shops, cafés, and more. The book is a veritable treasure-trove of information on the vast and varied world of gastronomy for which Paris is famous.
Although the brief accounts of each establishment are written in French, in my opinion, an understanding of the language is not necessary to enjoy and to learn from the book. It is amply illustrated with hundreds of photographs. The images by themselves effectively convey the passion that motivates Parisian restaurant and food shop owners, and the rich culture and traditions of the French gastronomic experience.
J’aime Paris by Alain Ducasse
Alain Ducasse Edition
Photographer: Pierre Monetta
Appears in bookshops in April 2011 – 35 €
A full review of J’aime Paris is available to the subscribers of our monthly newsletter Paris Insights.
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Bonne lecture!
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Max McCalman
Maître Fromager
(c) Discover Paris!
In this month’s Paris Insights newsletter, we depart from our standard format to bring our readers a special issue on food and the world of cheese.
We had the occasion to meet Maître Fromager Max McCalman last month when he traveled to Paris to accept the “Best in the World Book on Cheese” award at the Paris Cookbook Fair for his book Mastering Cheese: Lessons for Connoisseurship from a Maître Fromager. During the conversation we learned about the fascinating odyssey that led McCalman to his true vocation in life, namely that of a leading American expert on cheeses.
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 | Tom Reeves - author of Paris Insights - An Anthology and Dining Out in Paris - What You Need to Know before You Get to the City of Light. |