bordeaux and cognac

The Thorpeleigh Cottage month of visitors started with Nick and Tami arriving in mid May.  They hobnobbed around London for a few days and then came up to the midlands to see us + Cambridge before the four of us headed to France to visit our friends Ian and his wife Mélanie. 

After morning airport beers and a quick flight, we arrived in Bordeaux where Ian picked us up and started his week long role of tour guide and translator.  We spent the day in Bordeaux and then traveled to Ian's home in Cognac where Mélanie had beef bourguignon simmering on the stove.  (Ian told us that Mélanie had taken the pot of beef to work that day so it could simmer on a hot plate, proving that whole the-French-taking-cooking-and-eating-very-seriously stereotype to be TRUTH.)

As you would guess, our time in Cognac was spent sipping fine Cognac.  Ian scheduled two very different vineyard tours - first a smallish mom and pop operation where Marco met his long lost twin and we saw the process of Cognac making from start to finish.  French oak barrel making to picking grapes to fermentation to bottling.  The next stop was a tour on a much larger scale and highly regarded in the Cognac world, ($$$$) (no photos please!) Remy Martin.

Evenings were spent around Ian and Mélanie's dinner table with wine, cheeses, funny stories, and fine company.  Seeing close friends' faces, smiles, and hearing their laughter was something Marco and I hadn't realized we missed so so much.  This was just the beginning of a month stretch of seeing friends whom we have missed since moving across the pond.

Photos below from our time in Bordeaux, Cognac, and a day trip to La Rochelle.  To Ian and Mélanie: a BIG thank you for your ever so gracious hosting.  Mélanie, for hanging late night even when you had to wake up early for work and Ian, for going to pick up fresh pastries every morning, the translating, and airport taxiing.   

After an impromptu late night at the Casino ;) we got up early and headed to La Rochelle on the coast.  I fell in love with the old nautical city.  We browsed markets, enjoyed cold cocktails and lunch at a tiny Moroccan joint, walked along the stone walled sea that was lined with sailboats, and I resisted every urge to add to my striped shirt collection.