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Always chasing his culinary dreams, my husband, Dick was excited to
be visiting Domaine d'Esperance in Gascony - home to the foie gras
that he so dearly loves. As guests of Comtesse Claire de Montesquiou,
he was able to indulge in his fancy and I was able to study under
Chef Natalia Arismendi who teaches the cooking classes on the estate.
Picking us up in Bordeaux, Claire
drove to Domaine d'Esperance, a property purchased 10 years ago by
she and her husband to be closer to their family roots. Winding
through the productive agriculture and often heavily wooded
properties; we arrived at the 18th century country home surrounded
by vineyards. This working estate produces white wines and Armagnac
on site using their own grapes. Rather than a grand, overwhelming,
massive house, this is a family home used as to escape the fast
living in Paris and we immediately made ourselves at home. Although
the four de Montesquiou children were not there, it was easy to
imagine them enjoying the rural live as well as the large swimming
pool and a huge attic room where they and their friends can gather
for giant slumber parties on weekends and summer holidays.
Entering this home, decorated lovingly with family antiques and
treasures, we were enthralled and knew we would enjoy our stay.
While renovating the house, the de Montesquious were careful to
maintain the integrity of what the home represented. We were shown
to our room and then I immediately went to the kitchen to meet chef
Natalia, a very charming and lovely woman. During our stay, Dick
wandered the estate and read in the comfortable drawing room,
showing up of course for the fabulous meals. I, however, spent as
much time as I could with Natalia to experience all of her expertise
that I could.
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The totally modern kitchen had the feel of an old farmhouse kitchen
with bright yellow walls, green and white trim, a huge stone
fireplace nearly large enough to walk into, and shelves filled with
pottery and cooking utensils. There were enough workstations for each
student to be able to prepare what Natalia was teaching. Among the
many dishes taught during our stay were Jambonnettes de Volaille [stuffed
chicken legs served with a garnish of red, green and yellow peppers],
Rougets a la Puree de Pommes de Terre [red mullet with the most
incredible pureed potatoes], Bavaroise au Yaourt [a creamy molded
dessert served with a garnish of kiwi puree] and the piece de
resistance and my husbands dream come true - Salad Tiede de Foie Gras.
This dish was the most divine taste sensation either of us had ever
experienced. The recipe is featured in the recipe section of the site.
Fresh foie gras was sautéed, placed on a plate surrounding a pile of
freshly picked greens garnished with thinly sliced carrots and
dressed with a reduction of a vinegar Natalia had made by boiling
vinegar, a variety of fruits and spices until it was syrupy. Served
with crusty French bread and Domaine d'Esperance LaCuvee du Comte, a
wine from Gros-Manseng grapes and aged for 2 years in oak barrels
produced by Claire on her estate and served on the porch on a
beautiful sunny afternoon in France, we can think of nothing more
divine.
Our afternoons were spent with Claire
proudly showing us her territory, visiting her favorite villages,
buying cheese and bread in her favorite shops and visiting wineries.
Each evening we gathered in the elegant dining room for dinner,
always freshly showered and changed for dinner to share the day's
experiences with Claire and Natalia and to enjoy the menus prepared
by Natalia and paired with wines from the estate. Before retiring,
many pleasant hours were spent in the drawing room tasting the
Armagnac from the Domaine's cellars.
(This article is contributed by Cuisine
International - Editor. For more interesting travel articles,
please visit InfoHub Specialty
Travel Guide)
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