Claudette Comes Home

We went up to Saint Pierre des Corps to pick up Claudette, who has been languishing in our garage there for the whole of the pandemic. She's had a flat battery, so driven nowhere because of that and because a lot of the time we were not allowed to go there due to lockdowns. So we picked up a new battery from Classic Auto-Elec in Nazelles-Négrons, Simon changed the battery over -- a bit fiddly and stressful in a Traction Avant and involves taking the bonnet (hood) completely off (and more to the point, getting the unco-operative thing back on again!). Then we noticed she was leaking petrol from the fuel pump, so I quickly phoned our expert mechanic Jean-Louis to see if he thought we were going to catch fire. He reassured me that the fuel pump seal was dry from lack of running the car and would most likely plump back up once we drove a bit. We checked it when we stopped for lunch and it seemed fine, and we got her to the mechanics for her pre-roadworthy service with no problems. We will keep her at home now until travellers start returning to the Loire Valley and we are working.

 

 

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website. If you would like an idea of how your tour might look and sound, please check out our YouTube channel.

Baguette Vending Machines in the Loire Valley

Increasingly, as the population in rural France ages and declines, village bakeries are struggling. Yet French law demands that everyone have access to fresh bread. When a bakery closes, often when the baker retires and no one takes the business over, small villages can be left with no supplier of bread in the community.

Find out about the modern solution that many villages are coming up with when you take a tour with us.

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.

What We Know About Joan of Arc

For someone of seemingly legendary status, we know a remarkable amount about Joan of Arc. One of the things we at Loire Valley Time Travel know is that she isn't just associated with Orléans, as many people believe. We think there are much more interesting sites associated with her at Loches, in Tours and in Chinon, and we would be delighted to show clients these place. We also know with astonishing detail quite quirky facts, such as exactly where her armour was made, how much it weighed, what it looked like, what it was made of, who paid for it and what colour her war horse was.

The site where Joan's armour was made (now a second-hand designer clothing shop).

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website. If you want to go shopping at independent boutiques like the one in the photo, just ask and we will build it into your tour.

Fighting Frost in the Loire Valley Vineyards

The past few days have seen many dramatic photos of vineyards in France apparently on fire. After a warm spell which caused the leaf buds to open ('burst' as it is called) there followed a cold snap. Winemakers scrambled to get supplies of paraffin candles (sometimes called smudge candles) and hay bales to burn, hoping to raise the temperature in the vineyards by enough to save this year's vintage. In these modern times, the winemaker receives temperature readings on his or her mobile phone, and an alarm when the temperature goes below the danger point. It means a disturbed nights sleep, and cold dirty work in the early hours of the morning. And sadly, this year, it has been to little avail.

We hope that when you visit the Loire Valley you will support local small scale wine estates. These are usually family run, and you will probably never have heard of them. But they are making great small batch artisanal wines that reflect the long traditions of working with chenin blanc, sauvignon blanc, cot (malbec), gamay and cabernet franc in the Loire Valley. 

The photo above was taken by our friend and colleague, Laetitia Rey [link]. She's an independent specialist wine tourism guide living in the heart of our favourite local appellation, Vouvray. If you would like a full day of wine tasting and winery visits, let us know and we will put you in touch with Laetitia. If you would like a more varied day of chateaux visits, a great lunch (with local wine) and a visit to a market, cheese producer or winery, contact us and we will design personalised tour for you with us.

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.

Gourmet and Specialist Markets in the Loire Valley

Street markets are common everywhere in France. Everywhere has its weekly market where locals pick up their regular supply of fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and dairy. But lots of places also have special annual gourmet markets. I’ve written already about the truffle market at Marigny-Marmande, and two other favourites of mine are the saffron market in my own village and the combined art and food market, called L’Art et Lard, held in a nearby village.

My own village, population 1000, was one of the medieval centres of saffron growing in medieval times and the annual saffron market is a 20th century revival of a medieval tradition. If you want to experience a gourmet market let us know when you book your tour with us.

Pressing apples into juice at a local fair.

 To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.

Célestine at the Chateau of Amboise

Our last excursion with Célestine before the third Covid19 lockdown was a trip to Amboise. With help from the Chateau Royal d'Amboise and Photograph France we were able to spend a day in the grounds taking photos that in normal times would be impossible.

 

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.

Baguettes -- the staff of life in the Loire Valley

The long thin French stick, or baguette, as it is called in France, is the archetypal loaf of bread, bought on a daily basis by almost every household in the country. It is made from wheat flour, bakers yeast, salt and water. Nothing else is permitted for a baguette de tradition, and it must be made from scratch every day at the bakery where it is to be sold. Many visitors comment that bread tastes quite different in France to their home country, and this is a big part of the reason - no additives, which includes bread improvers, nutritional supplements, sugar, or flavouring elements, all of which are commonplace or even legal requirements in other countries. 

 

Organic baguettes for sale in our local bakery.

 If you want to find out exactly what makes French baguettes so special let us know when you book your tour with us.

To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.