Pleasures of Bordeaux

String quartets serenading, then foie gras for dinner
Grapey spa treatments and aged Bordeaux sipping,
Gardens of chateaus and vistas of green
These are a few of my new favorite things!

The Bordeaux area is packed with all of the marvelous things that have drawn travelers to France for centuries – unequalled wine, gorgeous scenery, superb cuisine, chateaux rising like mirages in the vines, and charming villages. This setting is the home of the Orpheus & Bacchus, a musical house party experience, where we enjoyed the extraordinary privilege of hearing world-class classical musicians playing in a private salon and wining and dining with the musicians when they were not performing.

Memorable performances, with exceptional artists performing in the relaxed elegance of a renovated 18th century beamed stone salon, the top floor of a stylish barn conversion, deep in the vineyards of the most famous wine-growing area in the world are the centerpiece of the Orpheus and Bacchus experience.

The Steinway piano, previously a treasured possession of pianist Alfred Brendel, stands sleek and elegant at the end of the concert hall and springs to life under the magic fingers of British pianist Anthony Hewitt, who says it sounds so good in the small concert hall that he wants to record his next CD in this very room.

During the evening concerts, each piece is preceded by a short explanation of what to listen for and why the composer wrote it.

It doesn't seem to matter how extensive our musical background is – all the guests, around forty in all, enjoy listening to chamber music as it was originally meant to be heard, composed and played for small, select gatherings.

One evening as we sat on a comfortable sofa, just steps away from Dmitri Sitkovetsky and his string quartet who had just given an exhilarating performance of his transcription of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, I leaned over to my husband and whispered “This is as close to heaven as I’ve been on earth!”

From the music-filled salon, we walked down to the candlelit dining room, where movie-star-handsome chef Georges described the delicious dinner he had prepared for us. With wines chosen from the astoundingly well-stocked cellar the multi-course meal left us in awe of Georges’ mastery.

Then back up the stairs to the cozy concert hall, where we collapsed into the cushy sofas to enjoy a few selections of light music before returning to the dining room for a vast and varied cheese board, complete with another specially-chosen wine, then dessert and digestifs.

With an evening like that, you might want to sleep late each morning – but you’d miss the morning camaraderie at breakfast and the daily excursions! Day trips are to nearby vineyards, or memorable villages such as extravagantly charming medieval St. Emilion, or countryside chateaux, or even as far-afield as the oyster beds of the Bay of Arachon on the Atlantic. Oyster sampling is accompanied, of course, by a well-chosen Bordeaux white!

A particularly memorable trip was to Chateau Sardy, where the owner walked us through his fabulous gardens, designed to showcase a single perfectly arranged view along a stone-rimmed oblong pond with terraces of greenery and flowers reflected in the water.

Following our garden exploration, we enjoyed a delicious lunch in the parlor, then a four-hand concert on a rare double grand piano – with a keyboard at each end! The piano and rousing performance were a treat enough, but the story that Poulenc, Debussy, and Ravel had played this very instrument in the fashionable Paris salon of the owner’s great aunt, made it even more delightful.

St Emilion Palais
Convent of Jacobins

As wonderful as Orpheus and Bacchus is, we like to include a little more pampering in our visits with a trip to Les Sources de Caudalie in the impressive château of Smith Haut Lafitte near the city of Bordeaux. Caudalie pioneered "vinotherapy" - grape-based health and beauty treatments, and offers everything from red wine soaks to honey and wine wraps to “Pulp Friction” massages. After a treatment or two, we relaxed by the pool – then enjoyed a delicious country inn meal in the beautifully restored Table du Lavoir. Acres of grapevines surrounded the inn and spa, studded with eye-catching bronze sculptures – a temporary open-air display that drew us to a leisurely stroll through the vineyards after dinner

Besides wine whose name is a synonym for the finer things of life, the southwest of France is also renowned for other “ Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” goodies – foie gras and truffles. The lanes of the town of Ste- Foy-la-Grande, another daytime excursion, overflow with farm-fresh bounty, tastings a-plenty, during its weekly open-air market. We always find room in our luggage for several tins of foie gras or rillettes, a delicious duck or goose spread, and perhaps a little vial of truffle oil, along with the bottles of Bordeaux to keep the memories alive back home

The French have such a unique way of enjoying life that you can’t even describe it in English. Joie de vivre, bon vivant, or chic - a continual invitation to find new favorite things to enjoy!