Wine is a part of the tradition of France and the French like to pair wine properly with their dishes, they usually like to make wine a part of the artwork de vivre, the artwork of the nice life, particularly on the subject of making a desk look inviting and fairly.
First somewhat little bit of etiquette – the French method
While you open the bottle, it’s best to attempt it first – in entrance of your visitors, to ensure it’s good.
Serve girls first – oldest to youngest, then the boys.
Serve clockwise and start at your proper aspect.
By no means fill a glass greater than midway – a 3rd of the way in which is common (makes the glass simpler to carry and to swirl!).
French etiquette for ingesting wine
Maintain a stem glass on the base.
It’s okay to swirl earlier than you style!
Wait for everybody to have their drinks poured earlier than you drink.
Serve wine the French method
French folks drink completely different wines in keeping with the season. Rosé in summer time, recent crimson wines in Autumn, strong reds in winter. And so they drink completely different wines with completely different programs, a candy white wine with foie gras, a crisp white wine with oysters, white wine with fish, crimson wine with meat, a floral crimson with creamy cheeses like Brie and Camembert, candy wine with dessert. Although don’t go pondering that is an on a regular basis factor, that a lot layering of wine is for particular dinners or at a restaurant the place a sommelier, a waiter who’s educated as a wine skilled, chooses wine to go together with the programs.
We eat with our eyes first and in France the visible presentation of meals and wine is taken severely, and it’s the small issues, the little particulars that elevate the unusual to the beautiful. It’s about taking the time to make one thing look fairly, and taking the time to note that somebody has gone to the difficulty to make the desk look the very best it may well.
How you can costume a desk the French method
There are 4 key tricks to attaining a terrific look on the desk the French method if you’re serving wine:
Wine glasses – lovely glassware makes an enormous distinction. Champagne flutes, wine glasses, tumblers for lengthy drinks. That is your likelihood to make the desk shine – fairly actually! Whether or not you employ matching glasses or combine them up, clear crystal or colored glass – glass displays the sunshine
Flowers and vegetation – a small vase, an announcement vase, large daring bouquet, wildflowers, vivid flowers. Or maybe petals, nuts, small crops – it’s all about bringing nature to the desk. A strand of vine leaves all the time appears pretty on the desk encircling the wine.
Carafe or jug of water – no want for plastic bottles, simply pop a beautiful carafe on the desk, ice cubes on a sunny day. Pop an edible flower within the ice dice tray compartments for further pizzazz.
Champagne bucket – Not only for bottles of fizz, any wine or bottles you wish to hold cool will look fabulous in a beautiful steel Champagne bucket (the shiny steel contrasts superbly with the glassware on the desk.
Pour, swirl, sip – and revel in somewhat soupcon of French fashion, wherever you’re…
Janine Marsh is Writer of My Good Life in France: In Pursuit of the Rural Dream, My 4 Seasons in France: A Yr of the Good Life and Toujours la France: Residing the Dream in Rural France all out there as book, print & audio, on Amazon in all places & all good bookshops on-line. Her new guide How you can be French: Eat, Drink, Gown, Journey, Love (printed October 2023) is out there from Amazon and all good guide shops.
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