A
land of fantastic contrast, where you feel all of the seasons intimately the
‘hiver’ days can be long, hard and extremely chilly in Champagne.
One longs for hearty soups,
broths and casseroles to warm the heart and the kitchen on these long days…it
is time for reflection, hibernation and contemplation. Time to stoke up the
fires, pile on the wool and lace up your boots against the harsh elements of
the great outdoors. There is nothing more delightful than waking to a fresh
powdering of snow over the garden and placing the first footprint into the
virgin snow. Liliana greets the snow with a double welcome as it also means
that the school bus will be unable to safely deliver the children so she gets to
stay home and play! Now that the snow has been with us for quite a few days she is keen to get back to school though...the novelty is over...time to see her friends! Even Nou Nou the cat likes to get in on the fun!
After
the madness of the New Year supping Champagne and slurping oysters the long
days are peppered with seasonal traditional celebrations where food remains the
focus. Epiphany is celebrated on the 6th of January with the
‘Galette de Rois’. This flaky pastry cake appears in all of the boulangeries only at this time of the year and
filled with frangipane, served warm cut into slices with the added fun of
discovering who has the small ceramic gift in their piece therefore making them
the wearer of the crown…king for the day!
Mid
January the Patron Saint of Winemaking Saint Vincent is honoured in many small
Champagne villages with a procession in traditional period ‘vignerons’ costume
followed by a church service where the sermon focuses on the winemaking season
past and the hope of a great season ahead. Followed by much feasting drinking
and dancing throughout the village, the labours of the hard year past and the
ever present chills forgotten as Champagne is poured into the wee small hours.
We have been lucky enough to be involved with many a Saint Vincent celebration
in the small village of Avize and it was a delight to see our girls dressed in
the lovely pink bonnets and long skirts with grape picking baskets in hand.
As
we pass the longest day of the year we watch the sky lighten by a minute a day
and look forward to the year ahead.
The
work is hard in the vines all year round and as Champagne has its roots firmly
planted as a drink of celebration the pre-Christmas rush is felt throughout the
area. After New Years Eve the real holiday begins for the local folk. The vines
are dormant, the cellars full and the years orders filled. Apart from
maintenance at the Champagne House, press and cellars there is only the winter
pruning to attend to.
Small
smoky fires can be seen near the white vans perched on the side of the barren
vineyards…the vines are pruned and tied in by hand in preparation for the
growing season ahead. The trimmings are burnt in a crude wheelbarrow
made of half a 44 gallon drum…narrow enough to fit between the rows of vines and
warm enough to warm the pusher. Food is prepared on the fire during the day to
sustain the workers…fatty slices of wild boar ‘sanglier’, that was most likely
shot and cured by a local in the Champagne forests, is barbequed and served in a
baguette with a sauce made from melting the hearty stinky ‘Maroilles’ cheese
with a little wine… I have tried this a few times when walking the ‘Escapade de Vignes’ and
it is just delicious…especially after some hearty exercise in the great
outdoors!
As we cosy up inside beside the fire we also plan our year ahead and throw ourselves into our own
maintenance and drawing up our building projects…we play cards and backgammon in the evenings
and retire early to snuggle under heavy feather duvets and read. A stark
contrast to the land of our loved ones in New Zealand where they are busy
sunning themselves at the end of the school year and swimming in the sea…if we
are lucky we may join them reliving childhood summers body surfing the waves,
barbequing freshly caught fish and playing cricket on the beach…
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