Cool it
An emergency heatwave edition with French cocktails to keep you refreshed, even when you're wearing a corset; and a new-look for France Traveller!
In our times of political and global upheaval, you may have noticed certain news podcasts putting out ‘Emergency episodes’. While this makes them sound faintly ridiculous, as if they’re the fourth emergency service, I am nevertheless channelling that same audacious spirit to bring you an emergency ‘heatwave edition’ of France Traveller, with some refreshing drinks to try in your hour of need. It means that the fourth and final part of my road trip series will come next time when we’ve all cooled down a bit.
This intense heat is quite something isn’t it? I writing this with two fans focussed on me, with my hair blowing à la Beyoncé but not looking as remotely glamorous. What is glamorous, however, are cocktails and the French have a good line in tipples that help in the heat. The first is pastis: preparing a glass of this most Marseillais of refreshments always feels like a magic trick… you pour the water into the clear spirit, it turns a cloudy white and, voilà, a cold refreshing drink. If you’re lucky to be sipping it in sight of the Mediterranean, even better. This heat reminds me of when I was in Provence researching my story about the new wave of pastis producers for National Geographic Traveller Food. It was during the brief pause between lockdowns in 2020, so it was a case of donning a face-mask for every distillery visit and doing some very hot drives between them in the Provençal countryside. As much as I love my research trips, this one was quite a slog but the central redeeming element was that the drink itself is the perfect antidote to summer temperatures, so every evening I was rewarded with a shot of my ‘research’. (In a funny twist of the story, my editor Glen credits the story for him developing his own regular pastis habit). It was on that trip that I fell in love with the simple cocktail the Mauresque, which is even better in torrid temperatures than straight pastis. It mixes pastis with a very French ingredient you may not see elsewhere: which is an almond syrup called sirop d’orgeat.
Here’s how to make it:
Pastis: 45 ml ( 1.5 oz ), Ricard and Pernod are easiest to find, but Henri Bardouin is even better and if you ever come across a bottle of pastis from Distillerie de la Plaine, then get it - it was my favourite find.
Orgeat Syrup: 15 to 25 ml (0.5 to 1 oz)
Stir together and top up the glass with 100 to 150 ml (3 to 5 oz ) of chilled water + ice cubes.
The best-known brand in Marseille is Ricard and, as part of the research for the pastis feature, I visited the island that belongs to the family of Paul Ricard, the Île Bendor. It’s just a few minutes’ boat ride from Bandol near Marseille and it’s recently had a massive refurbishment by the Zannier hotel group, which has gained a lot of press in the luxury market. Sadly I was too busy with The Roux Scholarship this year to pitch a story on its opening in May but I am very curious to visit because I’m dying to find out what happened to the collection of 8000 bottles of booze - including cognac given to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1811 - they had on display. There was also a cute little museum of Ricard memorabilia too, and the whole island had a sleepy, rustic vibe that you don’t really find on the Provence coast now. The pictures of the new hotel look pretty swish (obviously) but I’ll feel sad if it’s lost that lovely retro quality it had.
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Making a mint
I have long loved another drink that is also perfect when the mercury is rising, in fact it was the very reason it was invented. The summer of 1885 was also baking hot and in Angers in the Loire Valley - usually a pleasantly temperate part of France - people were not coping. I suspect the fashions of the time didn’t help - could you wear a corset in this heat? A young pharmacist named Émile Giffard was summoned by the Grand Hotel in the Place du Ralliement - their guests were wilting. It just so happened that Giffard had been experimenting with a variety of peppermint, black mitchum, and had created a liqueur that was refreshing and very minty. The guests loved it and within a few months, the pharmacy had been turned into a distillery. The Giffard distillery is now run by the fifth generation of the family and is based in Avrillé, a suburb (more on that suburb below) in Angers. Its success continues too… Menthe-Pastille is still a popular drink exporting it to 90 countries around the world and it still bears the date 1885 on its turquoise branding. As I lay in the breeze of a fan the other night, I thought ‘hang on, I have a bottle in the cupboard’ and dragged myself to the kitchen to try out a few cocktail recipes. It was worth it… these two cocktails were winners.
The Émile Fizz
This is the signature cocktail of Maison Giffard, named after the founder
Fresh mint leaves
½ a lime, cut into wedges
50ml Menthe-Pastille
Sparkling water, to top
Muddle the mint leaves and lime wedges in the bottom of a tall glass. Fill with ice, pour over the Menthe-Pastille, and top up gently with sparkling water. Stir briefly and add just a sprig of fresh mint as a garnish.
Parisian mojito
This one is sweeter thanks to the apple juice, with some extra zing from the lemon.
40ml Menthe-Pastille
30ml apple juice
20ml lemon juice
4 mint leaves
Shake it all together with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with a mint leaf.
Angers - the summer city
If you’re in the Loire Valley yourself this summer, Angers is a great stop. Yes it’s a city, but a really summery one. It is set on the Rivers Loire, Mayenne, Sarthe and Maine, and so there are lots of breezy spaces and - the highlight of summers in France - guinguettes, these riverside, open-air bars with live music and other activities. From my story in The Times from 2021:
Four rivers run through or close by Angers, so locals have always embraced the waterfront. But in recent years the ‘guinguette’ bars that were popular in the 19th century have had a resurgence. While the original incarnations offered open-air cabarets and dances, as seen in many an impressionist painting, the 21st-century versions come with everything from Bollywood dancing lessons and yoga classes to rock bands and improv nights, as well as good food and a lively atmosphere — all alfresco.
One of my favourites La Cabane du Chat Qui Peche (the cabin of the fishing cat) is found next to the River Mayenne and is just a five-minute drive from the Giffard Distillery, where they have (as well as welcome air-conditioning!) a really interesting little museum about the mint liqueur and their other drinks. A guided tour takes you through the production process, there is a museum space with antique posters, and collector bottles and it ends as it should: with a tasting session. You can also book cocktail workshops and there’s even a new escape game. See the website for details: giffard.com
For most visitors to French cities, the suburbs don’t tend to hold much appeal, but strangely Avrillé has even more attractions than a guinguette and a distillery tour. It’s also where you find the city’s plant-themed ‘theme park’ Terrabotanica . We’ve been twice when the children were quite small, and really enjoyed it. It’s pretty tame - that’s to say the rides would hold no sway now they’re thrill-seeking teenagers - but if you’re there with grandparents too, then it’s a good day out for all generations.
There’s also a restaurant, well, hotel-restaurant, there that I still think about often despite visiting ten years (sorry not exactly a fresh recommendation!): the Hotel Moulin Cavier. I interviewed the chef Franck Houdebine in my first book as he gave me the recipe for a Cointreau soufflé and, when I tasted it, it was possibly the best soufflé I’ve ever had. Cointreau is another famous liqueur from Angers, and so he celebrates this heritage as part of this dessert, which is like a cloud of sugary, woozy orangeriness (excellent writing there, Carolyn, blame the heat).
So hats off to Avrillé as it would absolutely win the ‘best suburb’ prize if there ever was one (actually, there probably is in France, they give prizes to everything).
Same newsletter, new look!
You’ll notice things are a little smarter here now, and it all matches my new-look website too. I wanted to give everything a joined-up look, as my work is so varied these days. As well as information about my writing, it’s also where you’ll find upcoming events you can take part in. I’m really excited about ‘The Real Flavours of Regional France’ at The Alain Roux Culinary School taking place in September, where I’ll be sharing the stories about the ingredients and dishes that that we will go on to learn to cook with Chef Michael Nizzero. It’s also where you’ll find more information about my tours with Kirker Holidays, and other upcoming tastings and talks. It’s been a joy to work with Tash at Culpepper & Co, who’s a brilliant designer and marketing guru near me in The Cotswolds. I’m a strong believer in working with experts, especially in this age of AI when graphic design is all starting to look very naff! I mean, look at these lovely little features, such as the fork, pen and spoon. Good quality graphic design and illustrations make my inner magazine editor very happy!
Next time part four: road trips, east and west
As mentioned, the final part in my Road Trips series will come next time, when I’ll be taking you East and West because we may not always want to go zooming through the middle to the south coast. If you missed the previous ones, don’t worry, you can read them here:
Thanks for reading! This is a free edition of France Traveller as everyone could do with a pick-me-up at the moment, but if you’d like to upgrade to a paid subscription then just click below and join our merry band of France-lovers. I will launch the Chat function when I reach 100 paid subscribers (a threshold that is now happily coming into view!) and that will mean we can discuss routes, attractions, hotel recommendations etc. etc. between us on there.
Until next time, bon voyage and bon appétit!
Carolyn x
This article was timely as I sit here sweating in Provence. The Émile Fizz sounds delicious, and I can practically taste it. I'll be buying a bottle of Menthe Pastille during my next trip to the supermarket, thank you!
Those drinks sound delightful! And I keep hearing about Angers and hope to visit this year.