BCA
Trips
BCA Spring Tour to Normandy
 |
The little known Chateau Vendeune was voted the best yet as we toured the room settings and saw the collection of miniature artwork in pottery, silver, and wood. The gardens were full of strange artwork which gave forth displays of water and music with no warning and pure white peacocks added to the delightful setting. The ‘Village of God’s Frying Pan’ was a real treat with a visit to the Atelier du Cuivre to see how traditional tinned copper pans, still used by the best chefs, are made much as they were two hundred years ago in the same premises. The bell foundry was also fascinating, the techniques using hand skilled labour continue in this unspoilt hidden region of Normandy, which is well worth a visit.
A treat before we left for the journey home was the local farmers’ market which gave us the opportunity to buy really fresh real Normandy produce to bring back and enjoy – cheese, butter, cream, fresh fish, asparagus, fruit, salads and local lamb and poultry were all too good to resist.
With only a short stop on the way back to Calais, and again a smooth no-wait loading onto the shuttle we were back in Barnes by 5pm.
The holiday was tinged with sadness as a regular and very popular BCA member, Laverne Mayer, who was booked to come with us, passed away a fortnight before we left. However his brother, who was over from Canada for the funeral, was able to take his place and was comforted by being amongst his friends who in turn enjoyed his company. Laverne will always be remembered for giving a ballet lesson to everyone on the coach whilst going through the Channel Tunnel on his very first trip, such was his sense of fun. The holiday group donated £130 in his memory to the British Heart Foundation.
Rita Robinson
See the slideshow below for more photos
A taste of Normandy
 |
We were taken through a guided tasting of five of their products by Guillaume Vauvrecy, a direct descendant of the founder, whose charm and good looks distracted some of the ladies from their tasting glasses.
First we tried the pure, unfermented apple-juice, deliciously fresh and moreish with just a touch of sweetness. Then two Ciders: the demi-sec, just off-dry and the sec, bone-dry, both agreeably winey. I thought that the hint of sweetness in the former suited the appley flavours better but, of course, it is entirely a matter of opinion.
Next came Pommeau, a far more alcoholic drink (17% alcohol by volume) made by adding one-third old Calvados to two-thirds apple-juice and maturing in oak casks for three years. This showed darker, almost chocolatey flavours with hints of prune juice mingled with overall apple character.
Finally we tasted the mature Calvados, aged in cask for eight years and fit to be ranked with France’s two other fine spirits, Cognac and Armagnac. This had dark, almost burnt apple flavours with a lovely earthy character and the taste elements lingered on and on in the mouth after swallowing.
Many of the appreciative tasters purchased a bottle or two of what they had enjoyed, to take away with them.
Alastair Mackenzie
See the slideshow below for more photos from the Spring Tour
