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Julie Shipman Photography in Baja, Cabo, Los Barriles, Mexico and Park City, Utah – Park City Photographer

Julie Shipman Photography in Baja, Cabo, Los Barriles, Mexico and Park City, Utah - Park City Photographer

Action Sports Photographer, Portrait Photography, Travel Photography, Senior Portraits, Family Portraits, Salt Lake City & Park City, Utah

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Clear Blue Sky

The Best Rhone Wine Tour in Provence!

July 10, 2017 by Julie Shipman

Let’s be clear. I am not a Wine Writer. I am not a Wine Blogger. I am a Wine Drinker.   I claim no sophisticated palette, nor ‘nose.’ But, I love wine. I love food. I love clever & curious people. I love beautiful scenery. And, I love to travel. If you too, love these things, this is a perfect way to spend a day or two in Provence.La Madelene Rhone Wine Holidays offer a perfect wine tour. I enjoyed their “Selected Domaines” Tour. This includes an overnight stay at La Madelene, or The Big House. In their words: “La Madelène is a beautiful renovated 12th c. priory located in the foothills of Mt.Ventoux in Provence. Founded by Benedictine monks, the house sits on a sandstone outcrop surrounded by mature trees with views over vines, fruit orchards and mountains. We have 5 bedrooms sleeping up to 11 people.”

We started with drinks on the patio overlooking the pool, followed by a lovely meal of several courses — each paired with the perfect wine. Our hostess, Jude, prepared a wonderful dinner while her husband,Philip, taught us about the Rhone region.Philip gave us a detailed lesson on the region: its history, soil and vineyards.

Fun Fact 1: Below, Philip shows us a round stone known as galets roulés. They are mostly quartzite, remnants from the glaciers and smoothed over by the Rhone River. These stones retain heat and release it at night, hastening ripening. They also help hold moisture in the soil.

We started the morning with a perfect Provencal breakfast of warm croissants, homemade local jams, fruit, cured meats/cheeses and fresh brewed coffee. Then we loaded up in a comfy Mercedes van and headed out. Our first stop was in the hills above Roaix at Domaine Escaravailles, founded by Jean-Louis Ferran in 1953. The wine maker’s daughter, Madeline Ferran, was our lovely and knowledgable host.

Fun Fact 2: “Escaravay” is the local word for beetle. The inhabitants of this village used this nickname to describe the black-robed monks who were the owners of the farm in the 17th century. Next, we drove west to the well-known appellation Chateauneuf du Pape, where we visited one of the largest and oldest wineries in the area — Chateau La Nerthe. This stunning large estate is home to the appellation’s finest Chateau. We enjoyed a private tour of their remarkable cellars which date back to the 16th century. Most Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines are blends dominated by Grenache. Only one of every 16 bottles produced in the region is white wine.

Fun Fact 3: They made Thomas Jefferson’s favorite wine and he had it sent to the US in large wooden crates!The following photos illustrate their historic cellars.  Apparently, this is the perfect mold. It demonstrates the correct temperature and humidity levels of the cellar. Below you can see the private cellars of many famous chefs, sommeliers and wine collectors. I photographed two but there are hundreds.

Fun Fact 4: Sherry-Lehman is known as the leading wine retailer in NYC with a swanky Park Avenue address. Mr. Aaron’s family opened the store in 1934.

Fun Fact 5: Alain Ducasse is a renowned chef. He is the first chef to ever own restaurants with 3 Michelin Stars (the highest) in three different cities. He is also 1 of 2 chefs to hold a total of 21 Michelin Stars!   

Next, time for lunch at Verger des Papes in the village of Chateauneuf du Pape. When the Pope had his residence in Avignon in the 14th century, his ‘summer home’ was in this village (see photo below); apparently the putrid stink in the streets of Avignon was too much for him in the hot months!

After lunch, we visited an artisanal producer: Chateau Mont Thabor. The charming owner Daniel Stehelin works his tiny plot (about 9 acres) on his own. His chateau is a 17th c. building with a rather long and sordid past.

Fun fact 6: Don Pernety, founder of the Illuminés  de Avignon, stayed there on his journey to find the Philosopher’s Stone, a legendary substance, capable of turning inexpensive metals into gold! ~ I don’t think he found it…  The Chateau then became a post house for carriages on the road between Paris and Marseille. In 1881, the Swiss family Stehelin bought the small estate to develop into a vineyard … as it remains so today.A bit tipsy by this point, we ended our glorious day at Domaine Saint Amant, the highest vineyard site (500 meters in elevation) in the whole of the Rhone Valley. It also produces the most highly regarded Viognier (photo below) in the region and their cru wines regularly win top awards. The Jacques Wallut Family still runs it using traditional small scale cultivation by hand. Owner and wine maker Camille Nosworthy was our host. As we drove away this stunning view greeted us — a perfect end to an incredible day. 

Check out this website for the wine tour   www.rhonewineholidays.com
The website for La Madelene is http://www.bighouseinprovence.com
I traveled with Chasing Atlas who puts together custom tours of Provence with an optional stop-over here. I highly recommend them. They create custom culinary and adventure tours of the region. La Madelene is also located just below one of cycling most famous peaks, Mont Ventoux.  Why not combine a great cycling adventure with the best wine tasting? Sounds perfect to me. For more info, contact me or:
http://www.chasingatlas.com

 

Filed Under: adventures, Bike Tours, Clear Blue Sky, Colors, France, France, Inspiration, Mountains, photography, Scenery, travel, travel photography, Uncategorized Tagged With: beetle, Champagne, chasing atlas travel, chateauneuf du pape, Cheers, croatian food, French wine, La Madelene, Provence, rhone wine holiday, rhone wines, The Big House, travel, travel photographer, vineyard, wine cellars, wine tours

Fishin’ Two

March 15, 2014 by Julie Shipman

My last post on the Bahamas! Heading out of Government Dock, we hired Flocker to show us the waters. Flocker knows these seas having spent all of his 8 decades right here. His name was given to him as a schoolboy by his father. He told his Dad that while out on the boat, he saw a huge flock of fish go by! His Dad laughed and the name stuck. To this day, he is known by the locals as Flocker, even thought Dad passed years and years ago.

View of the North End of Harbour Island. Strong currents in the inlet where several have drifted out to the Atlantic…

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Flocker… what a great smile!

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Flocker making some chum out of the old conch shell.

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Preparing the bait.

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Stringing the line.

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And the fish come flocking in!  One after the other!  Little guys, we let them go.

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And back to the Harbour for a beer…

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Next time?  Maybe on the Kiwi Pride with the handsome Captain Craig Doring… of Bahamas Catamaran Charters!

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Filed Under: adventures, Bahamas, Bahamian Culture, Beach, Briland, Clear Blue Sky, Colors, Harbour Island, Vacation

The Most Beautiful Beach in the World

March 2, 2014 by Julie Shipman

I think I can die happy now.  I have seen the perfect beach, with perfect sand and perfect water.  Not a cloud in the sky. Not a beach vendor in sight. In fact, almost no one at all.  I had heard such places existed, but I was stunned they were so close to home. Harbour Island, Bahamas. Awesome.  I cannot wait to return.

Stunning, perfect beach.
Stunning, perfect beach.
Beautiful reflections against the pink-toned sand.
Beautiful reflections against the pink-toned sand.
Deep blue merging into refined sand mixed with coral from the reefs.
Deep blue merging into refined sand mixed with coral from the reefs.
A beautiful minnow in a clear tide pool at Pink Sands Beach on Harbour Island, Bahamas
A beautiful minnow in a clear tide pool at Pink Sands Beach on Harbour Island, Bahamas
Tide pools on Pink Sands Beach in Harbour Island
Tide pools on Pink Sands Beach in Harbour Island
Message in a Bottle? on Pink Sands Beach
Message in a Bottle? on Pink Sands Beach
Off Harbour Island in the Bahamas - blues merge into blues...
Off Harbour Island in the Bahamas – blues merge into blues…
Perfection.
Perfection.
My Chacos demonstrating the clear beauty of the sea.
My Chacos demonstrating the clear beauty of the sea.
My toes again! Lovely starfish enjoying the sea, sand and sun.
My toes again! Lovely starfish enjoying the sea, sand and sun.
Walk forever… fascinating tree.  Haunting.
Walk forever… fascinating tree. Haunting.

Please stay tuned for several more posts on this Gem of an Island. I just had to start with the beach…

 

Filed Under: adventures, Bahamas, Beach, Best Beach Ever, Clear Blue Sky, Colors, Pink Sand Beach, travel, Vacation, White Sand

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