Comming to France

Fav1921: I am sure you will have a great time. If crc95 sees your post he may have a few suggestions. Be prepared for a very weak dollar if money is an issue. If money isn’t an issue let me know as I would then like to adopt you. Donerail

fav : I assume by ’11th district’ you mean Paris XIè ? That’s La Bastille, nice part of town, great nightlife for a college student, you’ll like it.

Donerail : what’s with you and adoption lately, is it a new fetish of yours ??

CRC

crc95: It is a fetish. I need either more tax exemptions or I need rich parents. The dollar is too weak. Soon I will have to drink California wine and cheese. Gawd help me. Donerail

If you need tax dodges, may I recommend charity. It does the soul good.

California wines have outdone French wines in International competitions with French judges several times. We also have some excellent artisanal cheeses if you care to come out and search for them. Sonoma would be a good place to start.

I was told recently that some CA wines mature with oak logs floating in the plastic barrels, so that they can get an oak taste just like the French wines.

Is this true ?

CRC

Well I have actually saved up money for this trip, and I have already prepared for the conversion from dollar to euro. I wanted to make sure all bases were covered before going. I have 20 days left till I will be on a plane to Paris. I am soo excited and looking forward to my visit.

Fav1921: Have a great time and hang on to any excess euros. Let us know how the trip went. Make sure you carefully unpack your bags when you return. Just kidding.

crc95: California wines have actually come a long way. Unfortunately there isn’t near the variety that LaFrance has. For the most part CA wines are Cab Sauvignon and Chardonnay. These are good, in fact very good but they all tend to taste the same. Those that don’t are hard to find and then tend to be very expensive. CA, Washington, and Oregon are putting out some good stuff. They have predictable climate and irrigation so those variables are under control. They do lack the talent of the French vingnerons, however. With the dollar croaking against the euro I am afraid a good number of Americans will be drifting towards West Coast wines. They have some good cheeses too – but not in the same league of France. I think the difference is that in France wine and cheese is a cultural honor – in the USA wine and cheese is driven by marketing and finance. Imagine trying to explain any of this to kfouler5?

Donerail

crc95, Oak logs floating in plastic barrels . . . possibly in Thunderbird wine, certainly not in the reputable wineries. They purchase their oak barrels from France so they know it is quality. Quite a few of the wineries are run by Frenchmen who have emigrated to CA so I imagine they know what they are doing. There are also Americans making wine in France now. It is turning into a global economy whether we like it or not. I think in the future the quality of wine will be determined by the terroir and the winemaker.

There are very few truly excellent CA cheeses because there is no real market. This is changing slowly and both CA and OR have a few artisanal cheese makers but you really have to go to them to get the cheese. It is also difficult to get the better CA wines outside of CA. I run into this when I go to Ohio to visit my mother. Do not, I repeat, do not drink Ohio wines. It is better to switch to water when having a meal in Ohio. You can buy Evian there!!

SalB: Never assume its a floating oak log. Donerail