STRAWBERRIES, CREAM CHEESE AND LITTLE BIT OF BLISS

I spent the weekend in Provence which was beautiful. Lovely place, lovely people, lovely food, lovely wine.  Perfect combination of ingredients.

I ate cheese. I do not eat cheese as it smells like mouldy socks and I have never been partial to eating mouldy socks.     But Claudine Vigier the master fromager there (the big cheese), made it sound so sexy (roll the cream around your mouth with your tongue very very slowly until it melts into your mouth).    

I stayed at Le Crillon Le Brave, @crillonlebrave about two hour's drive from Marseilles, depending on if you are French or English driving.  Owned by one of the former directors of Soho House, its more than Babington in France.   Although its more than one building, its also more than a hotel, or holiday village, or resort. I don't know what they should call it, perhaps just Crillon Le Brave.    Or Le Brave, as its taken over 26 years to get to this level and the nearby Pope's Palace in Avignon (hours drive away) only took twenty.

GM Sebastien who is as efficient as he is handsome, and his team are all very good looking and very efficient which really says it all (about me and them both).   Benoit Liebus, the sommelier, also made his description of wine tasting into something better than Fifty Shades.   "Wine and food is like a man meeting a woman.   A part they may be tasteless, but together they may taste amazing'   I may have lost or gained something in translation there but I've got it on tape.     Also don't eat egg/choose egg on the menu with wine. The wine will always taste of egg.   I didn't know that.  I do now.

Visited the strawberry festival in Carpentras where the fruit is the size of plums, and everything is strawberry. People dress as strawberries, sell the plants, millions in boxes, cup cakes, drinks, as long as its strawberry, it works.

Visited the antiques market in L'isle sur la Sorgue which is enthralling and lunched at Le Jardin du Quai @jardinduquai
 where the food and wine do a match.com of flavour.

Would recommend the break to anyone who wants a treat. Don't take children if you have them. It is wasted on them and Le Crillon has loads of stone steps up and down and they are bound to fall over.    Take someone worth loving.  Not saying your children aren't (they are, more than anyone or anything else, unconditionally) but this is grown up time.