Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Last Meal of the Loire 2024 Tour: At La Coupole, Boulevard du Montparnasse, Paris - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours








2024 Loire by ombiasy Wine Tours, led by Annette Schiller, took place from Sunday, June 9 to Thursday June 20, 2024. The tour started in Nantes and ended in Sancerre. In fact, the tour did not end in Sancerre, but in Paris.
 
Following breakfast on Thursday, June 20, in Sancerre, the bus took us to Paris, where we had lunch at La Coupole, 102 Boulevard du Montparnasse, 75014 Paris, with all our luggage. From there the group went into different directions. Some stayed in Paris, one couple went directly back to the USA, Annette and I went by train to Frankfurt.  

La Coupole is an institution. Josephine Baker took a bath in the fountain, which sits in the middle of the brasserie. Jean-Paul Sartre dined here. Hemmingway, Fitzgerald and Joyce consorted here. Henry Miller came here for his morning porridge. Man Ray and Matisse were also part of the local fauna.

La Coupole is on the Boulevard du Montparnasseis, very close to three other famous places of the literary world: La Rotonde, Le Dome and La Closerie des Lilas.

See: Dining and Wining on Boulevard Montparnasse in Paris: La Rotonde, Le Dôme and La Coupole, France – Pre-Bordeaux Wine Tour 2016 by ombiasy WineTours, France

La Rotonde, 105 Boulevard du Montparnasse: Located on the Carrefour Vavin, at the corner of Boulevard du Montparnasse and Boulevard Raspail, La Rotonde was founded by Victor Libion in 1911. La Rotonde has retained much of its bohemian charm and continues in operation to this day as a popular spot for the Parisian Intelligentsia. Picasso portrayed two diners in the cafe in his painting "In the cafe de la Rotonde" in 1901. It was the preferred place of the Russian crowd, includng Trotsky and Lenin. Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald and T.S. Eliot were also patrons there.

Le Dôme, 108 Boulevard du Montparnasse: From the beginning of the 1900s, it was renowned as an intellectual gathering place. A poor artist used to be able to get a Saucisse de Toulouse and a plate of mashed potatoes for $1. Le Dôme later became the gathering place of the American literary colony and became a focal point for artists residing in Paris's Left Bank. It was widely known as "the Anglo-American café." Today, it is a top fish restaurant, with a comfortably old-fashioned decor. The food writer Patricia Wells said, "I could dine at Le Dôme once a week, feasting on platters of briny oysters and their incomparable sole meunière."

La Closerie des Lilas, 171 Boulevard du Montparnasse: Also situated in Paris' Montparnasse is La Closerie, which opened in 1847 and attracted everyone from Henry James to Leon Trotsky to Gertrude Stein and Hemingway, who references nearby statues and descriptions in The Sun Also Rises.

Pictures: La Coupole, Le Dôme and La Closerie des Lilas at the Beginning of the 1900s

Lunch at La Coupole

Parisunlocked.com: ...Walking through the doors transports you to Paris circa 1927, the height of the jazz age and a feverishly innovative period in the arts. It isn’t a stretch to imagine regular patrons such as Simone De Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre, Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, André Dérain, Colette and Tamara de Lempicka coming through the heavy glass and metal doors, then sashaying through the enormous Art-Deco dining room to their regular tables. In later years, it’s been favored by the likes of Edith Piaf, Hemingway, Albert Camus, Serge Gainsbourg and Patti Smith. At one of the tables, Camus celebrated his Nobel Prize in literature with friends and fellow writers. At another, Josephine Baker frequently sat.

Arriving


La Coupole (1927)




Outstanding Seafood





3-course Lunch












Leaving


Back to Frankfurt





Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours: Already Released and Forthcoming Postings
 
Announcement: Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours (Sunday, June 09 - Thursday June 20, 2024)
 
Stopover in Frankfurt: 3 Nights at Zur Mainlust Desche Otto in Frankfurt/ Schwanheim - From Washington DC (USA) to Nantes (France) for 2024 Loire by ombiasy WineTours, led by Annette Schiller
 
Pitstop at Le Petit Sommelier, Standard (10.5/ 20 Gault&Millau) Food and Worldclass Wine List, Just Opposite of Gare Monteparnasse in Paris - From Washington DC (USA) to Nantes (France) for 2024 Loire by ombiasy WineTours, led by Annette Schiller    

Dinner at L'Océanide (Bib Gourmand Michelin) in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at L'Instinct Gourmand in Nantes, with Owner/ Chef Sylvain le Bras - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Tour of Old Town Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Iconic Brasserie La Cigale in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour, Tasting and Light Lunch at Vignobles Günther Chéreau, Château du Coing, in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, with Owner Véronique Günther-Chéreau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Two Domaines under one Roof: Visit at Domaine Gadais Père et Fils and Domaine de la Combe/ Pierre-Henri Gadais in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, Muscadet Sévre et Maine, Pays Nantais, with Owner/ Winemaker Christoph Gadais - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant Les Petits Près of Chef Samuel Albert (Top Chef France 2019) in Angers - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Château d’Épiré, AOP Savennières, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Paul Bizard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Barrel Tasting and Salon Tasting at Château des Vaults, Domaine du Closel in Savennière, Anjou, with Owner/ winemaker Evelyne de Pontbriand - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

 
Guided Visit of Château Angers and the Apocalypse Tapestry (UNESCO) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
 

Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Liv Vincendeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Tasting with a Light Lunch at Domaine de la Soucherie in Beaulieu-sur-Layon, Anjou - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant L’Essentiel, Michelin-listed and Nestled at the Foot of Saumur’s Fairy-tale Castle - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit at the UNESCO-classified L’ Abbey Royale de Fontevraud in Fontevraud - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch in the Courtyard of Saumur's Fairy-tale Castle Château de Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting, Cellar Tour and Vineyard Tour at Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains, Anjou, with Next Generation Owner/ Winemaker Louis Germain and Agathe Germain - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Maison Bouvet-Ladubay in Saumur, with Owner Juliette Monmousseau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Cave M. Plouzeau in Chinon, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Marc Plouzeau his Château de la Bonneliére Wines - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

At Domaine Bouchardière in Cravant les Côteaux, Touraine: Tasting the Wines of Domaine Bouchardière and Domaine de la Haut Olive, Cravant les Coteaux, Chinon and Panzoult, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Menu du Jour Lunch at Bar-Restaurant Le Bistrot du Marché of Hotel Le Lion d'Or in the Center of Chinon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine François Cazin, Le Petit Chambord, in Cheverney, Touraine, with François Cazin - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course "Bistronomique" Dinner at Restaurant Brut Maison de Cuisine in Blois, with Owner/ Chef Adrien Delafoy - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Brazilier in Thoré-la-Rochette, Côteaux Vendômois, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Benoît Brazilier - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Le Moulin du Loir in Vendôme - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit of Château de Chambord: "An Epitome of what Human Art can Produce" said Charles V. (Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nations) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Tour of Château Royal de Blois, where 7 Kings and 10 Queens lived - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

With a Large Cheese Cart and Soufflé Flambé au Cognac: 5-course Menu Inspiration - Leisurely Sunday Lunch at Restaurant La Croix Blanche on the Banks of the Loire between Amboise and Blois, with Owner/ Chef Jean-François Beauduin (Bib Gourmand Michelin) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit of Château du Clos Lucé, where Leonardo da Vinci lived and died, in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner and Overnight-stay at Château de Pray in Amboise, a Loire Château from the 12th Century - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit at Domaine Denis Meunier in Vernou-sur-Brenne, Touraine, with Daniel Meunier - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit at Domaine des Aubuisières, Bernard Fouquet, in Vouvray, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit of Château Chenonceau, Residence of Diana de Poitier and of Katharina de Medici, Mistress (the Former) and Wife (the Latter) of King Henry II - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner - Aperitif, Amuses Geules, 4-course Dinner, Mignardises, Digestif - and Overnight-stay at Auberge du Bon Laboureur, 2024 Best Wine List Award (Traditonal Restaurants) of Terre de Vins, a Leading Gourmet Journal in France, in Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Extensive Vineyard Walk, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Pellé in Morogues, Menetou-Salon, with Export Manager Pauline Guillot - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch - Menu du Jour: Entrée, Plat, Dessert - at Restaurant Fluteau in Morogues, Menetou-Salon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Extraordinary Tasting and Cellar Tour at Domaine Alphonse Mellot in Sancerre, with Alphonse Mellot jun. - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Moulin des Vrillères (Famille Lauverjat) in Sury-en-Vaux, Sancerre, with Kevin Lauverjat - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Tinel-Blondelet in Pouilly-sur-Loire, with Marlène and Annick Tinel - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Lunch at Romain Dubois - Fromager, Affineur - in Chavignol, with Gilles Dubois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domaine Henri Bourgeois in Chavignol - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Outstanding Wine-pairing Dinner at Restaurant Le Clos du Maréchal with the Wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Last Meal of the Loire 2024 Tour: At La Coupole, Boulevard du Montparnasse, Paris - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tuesday, August 27, 2024

Outstanding Wine-pairing Dinner at Restaurant Le Clos du Maréchal with the Wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours












2024 Loire by ombiasy Wine Tours, led by Annette Schiller, took place from Sunday, June 9 to Thursday June 20, 2024. The tour started in Nantes and ended in Sancerre.

Our final event, before driving to Paris, was a wine-pairing dinner at Le Clos du Maréchal in Sancerre, with the wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant.

Nathanael opened the restaurant just for us. There was nobody else in the restaurant. All the wines were Vignobles Berthier wines, presented by Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier.

We had met Clément earlier in the year at a winemaker dinner in Washington DC. Initially, Annette and Clément had planned an estate visit but the plans were changed on rather short notice before the end of the tour. We were lucky, becaue this turned out to be an outstanding event, apropriate final dinner for Loire 2024 by ombiasy WineTours. 

Thanks Clément and Nathanael!

Loire Winemaker Dinner with Clément Berthier, Sancerre, at Bastille Brasserie in Alexandria, Virginia, USA 
 
See: Loire Winemaker Dinner with Clément Berthier, Sancerre, at Bastille Brasserie in Alexandria, Virginia, USA 
 






Arriving at Restaurant Le Clos du Maréchal

6-course Dinner

Apperitif: Houmous + Champagne





Gaspacho



Salade Haricot Vert









Poire de Bœuf






Fromage



Dessert



The Wines

Bye-bye and Thank You






Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours: Already Released and Forthcoming Postings
 
Announcement: Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours (Sunday, June 09 - Thursday June 20, 2024)
 
Stopover in Frankfurt: 3 Nights at Zur Mainlust Desche Otto in Frankfurt/ Schwanheim - From Washington DC (USA) to Nantes (France) for 2024 Loire by ombiasy WineTours, led by Annette Schiller
 
Pitstop at Le Petit Sommelier, Standard (10.5/ 20 Gault&Millau) Food and Worldclass Wine List, Just Opposite of Gare Monteparnasse in Paris - From Washington DC (USA) to Nantes (France) for 2024 Loire by ombiasy WineTours, led by Annette Schiller    

Dinner at L'Océanide (Bib Gourmand Michelin) in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at L'Instinct Gourmand in Nantes, with Owner/ Chef Sylvain le Bras - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Tour of Old Town Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Iconic Brasserie La Cigale in Nantes - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour, Tasting and Light Lunch at Vignobles Günther Chéreau, Château du Coing, in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, with Owner Véronique Günther-Chéreau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Two Domaines under one Roof: Visit at Domaine Gadais Père et Fils and Domaine de la Combe/ Pierre-Henri Gadais in Saint Fiacre-sur-Maine, Muscadet Sévre et Maine, Pays Nantais, with Owner/ Winemaker Christoph Gadais - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant Les Petits Près of Chef Samuel Albert (Top Chef France 2019) in Angers - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Château d’Épiré, AOP Savennières, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Paul Bizard - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Barrel Tasting and Salon Tasting at Château des Vaults, Domaine du Closel in Savennière, Anjou, with Owner/ winemaker Evelyne de Pontbriand - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

 
Guided Visit of Château Angers and the Apocalypse Tapestry (UNESCO) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
 

Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domäne Vincendeau in Rochefort-sur-Loire, Anjou, with Owner/ Winemaker Liv Vincendeau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Wine Tasting with a Light Lunch at Domaine de la Soucherie in Beaulieu-sur-Layon, Anjou - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner at Restaurant L’Essentiel, Michelin-listed and Nestled at the Foot of Saumur’s Fairy-tale Castle - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit at the UNESCO-classified L’ Abbey Royale de Fontevraud in Fontevraud - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch in the Courtyard of Saumur's Fairy-tale Castle Château de Saumur - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting, Cellar Tour and Vineyard Tour at Domaine des Roches Neuves in Varrains, Anjou, with Next Generation Owner/ Winemaker Louis Germain and Agathe Germain - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Maison Bouvet-Ladubay in Saumur, with Owner Juliette Monmousseau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Cave M. Plouzeau in Chinon, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Marc Plouzeau his Château de la Bonneliére Wines - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

At Domaine Bouchardière in Cravant les Côteaux, Touraine: Tasting the Wines of Domaine Bouchardière and Domaine de la Haut Olive, Cravant les Coteaux, Chinon and Panzoult, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Menu du Jour Lunch at Bar-Restaurant Le Bistrot du Marché of Hotel Le Lion d'Or in the Center of Chinon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine François Cazin, Le Petit Chambord, in Cheverney, Touraine, with François Cazin - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course "Bistronomique" Dinner at Restaurant Brut Maison de Cuisine in Blois, with Owner/ Chef Adrien Delafoy - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Brazilier in Thoré-la-Rochette, Côteaux Vendômois, Touraine, with Owner/ Winemaker Benoît Brazilier - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

3-course Lunch at Le Moulin du Loir in Vendôme - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit of Château de Chambord: "An Epitome of what Human Art can Produce" said Charles V. (Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nations) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Tour of Château Royal de Blois, where 7 Kings and 10 Queens lived - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

With a Large Cheese Cart and Soufflé Flambé au Cognac: 5-course Menu Inspiration - Leisurely Sunday Lunch at Restaurant La Croix Blanche on the Banks of the Loire between Amboise and Blois, with Owner/ Chef Jean-François Beauduin (Bib Gourmand Michelin) - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit of Château du Clos Lucé, where Leonardo da Vinci lived and died, in Amboise - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner and Overnight-stay at Château de Pray in Amboise, a Loire Château from the 12th Century - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit at Domaine Denis Meunier in Vernou-sur-Brenne, Touraine, with Daniel Meunier - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Visit at Domaine des Aubuisières, Bernard Fouquet, in Vouvray, Touraine - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Guided Visit of Château Chenonceau, Residence of Diana de Poitier and of Katharina de Medici, Mistress (the Former) and Wife (the Latter) of King Henry II - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner - Aperitif, Amuses Geules, 4-course Dinner, Mignardises, Digestif - and Overnight-stay at Auberge du Bon Laboureur, 2024 Best Wine List Award (Traditonal Restaurants) of Terre de Vins, a Leading Gourmet Journal in France, in Chenonceau - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Extensive Vineyard Walk, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Pellé in Morogues, Menetou-Salon, with Export Manager Pauline Guillot - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch - Menu du Jour: Entrée, Plat, Dessert - at Restaurant Fluteau in Morogues, Menetou-Salon - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Extraordinary Tasting and Cellar Tour at Domaine Alphonse Mellot in Sancerre, with Alphonse Mellot jun. - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Moulin des Vrillères (Famille Lauverjat) in Sury-en-Vaux, Sancerre, with Kevin Lauverjat - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Domaine Tinel-Blondelet in Pouilly-sur-Loire, with Marlène and Annick Tinel - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours 

Lunch at Romain Dubois - Fromager, Affineur - in Chavignol, with Gilles Dubois - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Domaine Henri Bourgeois in Chavignol - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Outstanding Wine-pairing Dinner at Restaurant Le Clos du Maréchal with the Wines of Vignobles Berthier, with the Owner/ Winemaker Clément Berthier and the Chef/ Owner Nathanael Fromant - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours

Last Meal of the Tour: At La Coupole in Paris - Loire Valley 2024 by ombiasy WineTours