Une occasion pour du mousseux

J'ai pris cette photo dans un restaurant, le jour de la fête de ma femme. Ils donnaient un verre de mousseux gratuit pour l'occasion. Sans doute du prosecco, peut-être du champagne (je ne sais pas faire la différence, philistin que je suis). Depuis quelques temps, j'ai comme envie de reboire du mousseux, mais j'aimerais trouver un prétexte quelconque, une occasion à célébrer. J'imagine qu'il y a la Saint-Valentin dans une semaine. Ce sera sans doute donc ça, mais je préfère en général que ce soit un évènement heureux et inattendu, ce qui n'est pas trop arrivé récemment. Bon, ce sera donc pour la Saint-Valentin, si j'en achète d'ici là.

Free Fizz

We went to a French restaurant recently, to celebrate my wife's birthday. As she subscribed to their newsletter, we received a glass of "free fizz" each. Well, except Wolfie. I cannot tell if it was champagne or prosecco, but it's a nice piece of freebie when we celebrate. Even my wife, who does not like alcohol all that much, enjoys a bit of bubbly from time to time. It was not the greatest "champagne" I drank (if indeed it was champagne), and it was not cold enough, but all the same, I do enjoy a freebie, especially when it's alcohol.

Moules et frites

C'était la fête de ma femme il y a quelques jours. Pour célébrer, nous sommes allés manger dans un restaurant français. Ce qui faisait changement des pizzerias où l'on se ramasse plus souvent qu'autrement. Pour la première fois depuis longtemps, j'ai commandé des moules et frites. Je ne sais depuis combien de temps exactement, mais je sais que ça date, lire ce billet. Les moules ne remplissent pas leur homme, mais les frites étaient à volonté, et avec de la mayonnaise, ben c'est solide comme repas. Ah oui, et nous avons eu droit à une coupe de mousseux (champagne? prosecco?) gratuit.

Sabler le champagne

 Comme vous le savez déjà, j'ai reçu de mon employeur une bouteille de Veuve Clicquot. Parce que je travaille pour eux depuis trois ans. C'était donc pour fêter mon anniversaire de travail et en reconnaissance de mes loyaux services. J'ai donc pu sabler le champagne en fin de semaine. Je ne sais pas si c'est l'âge ou si c'est parce que j'avais envie de célébrer, mais j'avais oublié à quel point c'est bon du vrai de vrai champagne. Je dirais même que ça se boit comme de l'eau, mais en plus savoureux.

Question existentielle (388)

 Une question existentielle inspirée de certaines circonstances (j'ai du champagne à boire):

-Quoi manger avec du champagne, plus particulièrement du Veuve Clicquot?

Je suis philistin, mais j'ai de quoi boire.

Say it with Champagne

 I mentioned two days ago that I was celebrating my work anniversary: I have been three years in my job. My bosses are very happy with me, or so it seems: they thanked me by sending me this bottle of Veuve Clicquot. A genuine, authentic Champagne, not just a fizzy wine. I must be doing something right. I was expecting something, but not this. So I was overjoyed when the delivery man knocked at my doorto hand me this bottle. It's not only to celebrate my three years, it is also because the project I am on has been extended and even expanded. I was profusely thanked for my hard work this week and they told me how thankful they were with the work I have done for them. Well, it is sweet in itself, but it is made all the sweeter as more than four years ago, I was in a different job, which I hated. I put the Veuve Clicquot in the fridge and drinking it this weekend to celebrate will be oh so sweet!

Thirsty Thursdays

It seems that sometimes, any excuse is good to drink alcohol, even an alliteration. This is what I thought during our last visit to Marlow, when I saw this billboard by The Chequers, a local pub. I don't know if it's a new tradition or just a promotional stunt, but I like the idea. Although I only drink at weekends nowadays.

Buck's Fizz with a twist

This may be my last Christmas post until next year (and I may add: at the end of 2022). So anyway, you may know about Buck's Fizz, the Briths cocktail made of orange juice and champagne, or fizzy wine. Two parts champagne, one part orange juice. My wife is quite fond of it, especially during the Christmas holidays. Well, M&S made one for the Season, with clementine and cranberry instead of orange juice. It is much, much sweeter, so much so that you don't really taste the alcohol. I find it quite treacherous and not that great, but it does have a festive colour. It has been my wife's poison during the whole Christmas holidays. But, as she is not a big drinker (a few sips and she is done), I had to finish her cups. I can't say I was very enthusiastic. It is truly too sweet.

Buck's Fizz VS Mimosa

Today, out of pure chance, I finally learned the difference between two cocktails that seem exactly similar: the Buck's Fizz, a British classic I discovered here in England, and the Mimosa, which I knew from before, but never quite got into. Both are made of champagne and orange juice. The only difference is the quantity: the Mimosa has half parts of each beverage, while the Busk's Fizz is two parts champagne and one part orange juice. No wonder I always preferred Buck's Fizz. Mystery solved.

"Save water, drink Champagne"

And now for a public service announcement. My parents are on holidays in Berlin and my father took this picture. I have seen the exact same message on internet memes, but never in the flesh, so to speak, on a chalkboard on the pavement. As a meme, it is kind of funny, on display like this in the real world, I actually find it hilarious. I don't know why. Maybe because it looks more real? Maybe because it is in Berlin and I rarely think of German as particularly funny people (and I know it is a stupid prejudice I have). Anyway, Champagne is not my drink of choice, albeit I can enjoy it, like I can enjoy any fizzy drink in the right circumstances. But I'm ready to do my share to save water and drink Champagne, if it needs to be done. What about you?

Mois en "bre"=huîtres

J'ai pris cette photo au National Museum de Cardiff et je voulais la partager le plus tôt possible en septembre. Parce que c'est un mois qui finit en "bre" et ça veut dire que c'est le temps des huîtres. Je n'en ai pas mangé depuis septembre 2015. Selon mon père, septembre est le meilleur mois pour les manger, il faudrait bien que j'en retrouve ici et pas dans une vitrine de musée. J'en a déjà mangé avec du Champagne, à tout le moins avec du mousseux, mais je n'ai jamais essayé avec du Tabasco. Ça doit gâcher le goût, mais je vais essayer au moins une fois juste pour voir. Pour moi, les huîtres s'apprécient simplement: le fruit de mer lui-même, du sel, puis du citron, puis hop derrière la cravate et on fait descendre ça avec de la bière. Ça me donne faim rien que d'y penser.

Time for cocktails?

I had this cocktail, a Porn Star Martini, at York. I cannot remember the name of the pub, but it was a hip, trendy pub, which explains why they were serving such abomination and not proper, good, honest English beers. It goes with a shot of Champagne or Prosecco (in this occasion the latter), which I can enjoy by itself, although with this it is downright bizarre. That said, since it is summertime now, it is the season of cocktails. Seriously, I cannot imagine drinking a cocktail any other time of year. It has to be on a hot summer day. It just has the right colour and taste for the season, although when it's hot the alcohol goes straight to your head and then the taste must mess up your stomach. I have yet to find a cocktail I enjoy, if you have any suggestions, tell me.

Of Champagne, cats and new homes...

For those who read French, I already blogged a bit about our new move. Because yes, today the exchanged has been made and we are now the new owner of a house. Our first property. We received the keys... and a complimentary bottle of champagne. So we know what to drink on our house warming party. Domino seems pretty oblivious to the move and all these boxes, full or empty (we still have a lot to pack) that are taking more and more space. But he noticed the Champagne bottle and was very curious (eager?) about it. My wife took this picture today and published it on Facebook. I wrote this comment: "Better get home before Domino nicks all the champagne." Thankfully, he had not even started, nevertheless this deserves to be a great unknown line. So here it is.

A Martini with a twist

I had this drink in one of the pubs of York, which one exactly I cannot remember. It came free with the meal. You can maybe recognize that it is a sort of Martini, although it does not really have the colour of one. In fact, its tropical and summery colours makes it look far more sickening than a traditional Martini would. It is a Porn Star Martini and it tastes as tacky as it looks as it sounds. And it comes with a shot of... Champagne or Prosecco (there it was Prosecco), in case it was not decadent enough. When I was a younger man, I tried to discover cocktails and in the end decided it was not really my thing. When I tried this one, it just confirmed my thought. But it looks very summery, so I thought I'd upload the picture here and bring you a bit of... A bit of tropical sickening cocktail in your day?

Champagne vs Prosecco

There are so many marginally useful yet interesting things one finds on Facebook. I found this little bit of article, about the differences between Champagne and Prosecco. Basically, it all goes down to pricing, at least for the Philistine like me, who does not drink wine very often and bubbly wine even less. Good to know. Okay, so it is not quite the same, they don't go with the same food, but fizzy is fizzy. And Prosecco is less pretentious.

A missed evening with Fabian Perez?

Last week, I have received from an art gallery an official invitation, with an admission ticket to make it even more official, to go to a new exhibition by Fabian Perez. Later on, I even received a voice message on my mobile from the art gallery, asking me to confirm. I have not replied yet. Because I am afraid that I cannot be there that evening. For a very good reason: it is my wife's birthday and thus we planned something else. Of course, we could just change the plan, go there and I could buy to my wife one of his paintings as a birthday present. Except for one thing: however I love his work, I don't think I can afford any painting by Fabian Perez. And even if I could, my wife does not like his paintings nearly as much as I do, so that would be like paying myself a present, thus very selfish.

So instead I will visit the gallery at another time, when there is less pressure to buy and I won't be shamed as a cheap skate art lover in front of the maestro. I still have the internet to shamelessly download images of his paintings and shamelessly share them on my blog. This one of Champagne glasses, something I would see at the exhibition. Although the one and only time I went there, it was Prosecco that was offered.As for meeting Fabian Perez and talking to him, there will be other occasions.

Memories of Saint Patrick's Days

So Saint Patrick's Day has come and go. I barely celebrated it, because of my cold: I had one Guinness and a shot of whiskey (Jameson, which is ok when you have a sore throat, although I know zilch about whiskey) and some Irish stew at the local Irish pub. This year the stew was average, not as good as 2010 and 2011, I don't know why. In Montreal I made an Irish stew once, with mixed results, I think I used a Wikipedia recipe and it didn't taste all that much. At least it was better than the Irish stew I used to have when I started celebrating St Patrick's Day, which was basically something from a tin.

I enjoy celebrating St-Paddy's Day everywhere, even in Southern England. In fact, it is more celebrated here than on the Plateau Mont-Royal in Montreal, where I really started making it a special day for me. I have been once to Old Dublin with my brother on the day, where it was very crowded and very enjoyable, even though I think I was the only one drinking Guinness and not green coloured lager. I went to Dublin back in 2000, a few days after Saint Patrick's Day. I missed something I guess, but I was in Ireland, so I didn't care. A Guinness is an Guinness at any day. I think my best Saint Paddy's was still in Liverpool: I spent the afternoon in the various Irish pubs in town, drank enough to feel good about it, but not too much to get drunk. I listened to Irish music, chatted with drunken Scousers or Irish (the city is full of them). I went back home in the evening and watched some documentaries about Irish folk groups, so more Irish music. Then I watched Donnie Brasco as I was sobering up. A drinking day is enjoyable when you remember enough about it. That one was.

I know it is a day too late, but I thought about uploading one last Irish song here. You can come back here next year, or simply enjoy it as it is a nice song. My father sent me information about a Black Velvet, a cocktail mixing Champagne and Guinness. A strange combination, not certain if it is not spoiling good Guinness with something too fancy and high brow.That said, because of this I had the Black Velvet Band in the head all of yesterday (with the headache caused by the Jameson). So here it is, sung of course by the Dubliners. It is a song about treachery and alcohol is after all often treacherous, especially on a Saint-Patrick's Day.