Montlouis, France, Day #2 and Day #7

When in France, what you should do in the first morning you're waking up? Go and buy some wine, of course!

Our lovely hosts sent us to Montlouis, a village across the river Cher, to buy wine directly from the producers. 

We visited the caves and chose some great bottles: a Cuvée Reservée de Montlouis (a sparkling wine, similar with Champagne, but much cheaper) and some red Saumur (soft and fruity). Next door to the producer's cave it was The Cave Restaurant, we noticed it, but it was in a real cave, so at the time we didn't even consider eating in it. 

We wanted to breath fresh air, and on the Loire Valley, the air is really fresh!

But, in the last evening, we couldn't find any seat in our favorite restaurant in Cormery (see? we sat only 7 days and we already have a favorite restaurant!), so we tried our luck in Montlouis. And we were lucky indeed!

 

The menu was amazing, we took the Clos de Cray menu, with food and also wine, a combination between nouvelle cuisine and fusion, but with four courses, it was more than enough.

I loved the decoration in the cave, low lighting for intimate dinners, candles and roses.

 

In the middle of the piece was a huge cheminée (fire place) in brick and stone.

The cheese table was fully assorted, with cow, sheep and goat mix of cheese.

 

In the back of the room was the four, exposed.

 

The aperitif was not in the menu, it was some nut mousse with warm and salted biscuits.

 

The simplest dish had the name formed from at least fifteen words, above was some pasta for Bogdan.

 

Here is my salmon with crust, wasabi and beetroot mousse (it was something with this mousse, every dish had some mousse around).

 

For the main courses Bogdan had chicken and I had fish, both with mousse (vegetables - carrots), of course.

 

The cheese at dessert, with rosé wine. 

Raspberry mousse...

 

Boule-de-neige for me, no mousse. Finally. 

In France, is mandatory to have in the car the alcohol test. 

In France, is also mandatory to have wine at lunch. At dinner, too.

Sometimes, champagne for breakfast.

Uhm, I love France.