Maison Mirabeau has taken some liberty with the traditional Negroni it’s a classic cocktail, with a rosé twist! With equal parts of our Dry Gin, Lillet Rosé and Campari, it is the perfect aperitif cocktail. Cheers! The secret of a great Negroni is in the ice. More Cocktail Ideas from …

As part of the summer 2022 menu, Emma Kershaw of La Maison du Rire, a food and wine school in Corbières, shared her easy dessert recipe for a strawberry soup (soupe de fraises). This summer dessert comes from her cookbook Taste of Le Sud. The strawberry season starts in March …

Virginie Van Der Wees lives with her young family in Rousset, a small Provencal village near Mont Sainte Victoire and a short 20-minute drive from Aix-en-Provence. She is a masseuse and a certified French teacher for non-French speakers. Beginning in 2018, Virginie organizes full immersion experiences that include hosting language …

What’s On in the South of France? During the summer in Provence and the Côte d’Azur, daytime temperatures range from warm to hot. So, you don’t need an excuse to laze by the pool. The lavender is in bloom at this time of year, and the sunflowers put on a …

A couple of years ago, we spent a transformative week in the historic hill town of Cagnes sur Mer, widely considered the ‘Montmartre’ of the South and long favoured by impressionistic painters for its alluring beauty. Within five (5) days we went from our hurried, busy lives to a more …

We often visit Grignan in the Drome Provencale, an area that falls between the Rhone River and the Alps north of the Vaucluse. Since we were last there in the summer of 2019, Grignan was added to the Plus Beaux Villages de France. And, there is little wonder why. Rising …

Recently, I felt inspired to bake some delicious Lemon and Lavender Honey Madeleines. I hadn’t made madeleines since I left my last restaurant job several years ago. My madeleine moulds were still wrapped in the same plastic from the day when my pastry chef handed them back to me. The …

There are nuances in French with words that mean different things depending on pronunciation or capitalization. Midi is one of those words indicating a geographical location, the southern part of France; the 45th parallel is the dividing line for some people. However, in lowercase, midi also means mid-day and the …

When Life Gives You Lemons. We Make Gin! The Citron de Menton has been cultivated since the 15th century, reaching its peak in the 18th century, when millions of lemons were shipped to the United States and Russia. Plagued by scurvy, many sailors were saved by eating lemons. In the …

Last July, we went to Provence for the first time in a while. Although I wrote about our favourite things in Provence shortly before our trip, seasonal “floral” attractions such as red poppies, lavender, and sunflowers are high on our list. Since July is sunflower season, we set off one …