FOOD
Naturally-reared Meat - Certified ‘de Lozère’
M. Attrazic - A Basket of Tasty Morsels
Jeanne Strang - Cookery Recipes from the Lot
Manoir Alexandre - All Things Duck
Nuts about Nuts - Walnut Liqueur & Oil
Yves Combe Roquefort - Cheeses
Pebeyre - Truffles and Foie Gras
Rocamadour Farmhouse Cheeses
La Quercynoise - All things Duck
Nuts About Honey - La Douce Abeille
Lou Cantale - Cantal Cheeses

Le Lévéjac - Traditionnally made Sheeps Cheeses

Au bois de Pech Brut - Goodies from the Farm

Plumy Prunes - Pruneaux de Monredon

La Ferme Gourmande - Delicacies from the Farm

Carrier Catering - Regional French Specialities

WINE
Domaine de Laurens - AOC Marcillac
Clos de Gamot - AOC Cahors
Clos Triguedina - AOC Cahors
Château Latuc - AOC Cahors
Château de Salles - AOC Buzet
Sud-Ouest Millésimes/Caves d'Olt - AOC Cahors Wines

Domaine d'Homs - AOC Cahors & Vins de Pays

Château Bladinières - AOC Cahors & Vins de Pays

Domaine de Lancement - Vins de Pays de Thézac

Wine of the Tsars

OTHER DRINKS
Saveurs du Lagast - Fresh Apple Juice
The Couderc Distillerie

CRAFTS
V. Desplanche - Watercolours of the Lot Valley
Mme Gerbail - Crafts, Arts and Gifts
Cazelle - Beauty Products
Stained Glass - Chantal Jean
Poterie des Cloches - Lilian & Gavin Bell
Textile crafts - F. Houette
BJ - Lot Valley Photographs
By the Light of the Bees

Designs on Pottery for the Home

Lyseth Creations - Handcrafted Jewellery

Handcrafted Mohair

The ‘Viande de Lozère’ certification is part of a special programme of the département/county of Lozère to produce meat of traditional quality and to raise animals in a humane and natural way. One of the best races of cows in France, the ‘Aubrac’, is indeed grazing on the high Aubrac plateau which is straddling the Lozère, Cantal and Aveyron counties. The flocks of ‘Agneaux du Gévaudan’ (lamb from the Gévaudan area, the old name for the Lozère) have also always been a traditional sight in these stunning arid sceneries (and the wolves that go with them! - Click to find out about the Gévaudan Nature Reserve).

The ‘viande de Lozère’ certification is awarded to cows that are born, raised and killed in Lozère and where the farmer respects the following criteria:

• traditional cycle of pasture/stable
• feeding on grass, fodder or cereals (with no anabolic steroids, animal food etc.)

They are also killed in a way that avoids as much as possible stress as well as pain.

Years ago, Jeanne Strang published what remains a definitive cookery book  to the recipes of The Lot Valley. Called 'Goose Fat and Garlic', it covers South-west France as a whole, but  she herself lives in the Lot Valley and it is an exhaustive guide packed with all the local recipes. You can buy it in good high street bookshops, or online (ie. on amazon) or, of course, at the Lot Valley Fair.

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(Exhibitors List Summary)

This small producer from the Aveyron produces a whole range of traditional foods, almost all of them based on duck and all of them of the most amazing quality. Here you can buy duck breast (perfect for grilling), sausages and even the famous Cassoulet (a hearty winter dish, the staple food of the whole of the South West of France). They also make wonderful foie gras (which won a Gold Medal at the Concours General Agricole de Paris - the highest recognition in France). All their products are strictly home made and preserved naturally by the cooking process rather than by artificial preservatives. They are all produced under the very strictest standards of hygiene.

Le Manoir Alexandre
Village artisanal
Avenue d’Estaing
12500 ESPALION
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 48 05 01
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 48 37 37
Web: www.manoir-alexandre.fr

The pure nut oil is produced following old methods which involve gently heating the crushed walnuts before they are pressed so that they release their oil freely.

Ideal for use as a dressing for salads and raw vegetables, or to flavour cooked vegetables. M. Andrieu also produces walnut wine or Vin de Noix: a blend of red wine, grapes, green walnuts and just a little brandy, this amazing aperitif is left to infuse slowly over two months. This is one of the most traditional aperitifs of the Aveyron.

Tout sur la Noix
La Borie
12700 NAUSSAC
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 64 62 87

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(Exhibitors List Summary)

The Combe family has made cheese in the small town of Roquefort since 1923. It is now the smallest Roquefort cheese producer. Its 9 employees making the cheese and 22 farms providing the milk produce around 150 tons of cheese every year.
The particular taste of Roquefort comes from the Pénicilion Roquefortis, a bacterium which can only be found in the maturation caves dug into the cliffs overlooking the village of Roquefort.
The hand-made and traditionally produced cheeses of Yves Combe outshine the likes of Papillon and Société. They have won a Gold Medal in 2000 at the Concours Agricole de Paris (the top competition for farm produce in France). They are milder than you somehow expect, and very creamy. The flavour is extraordinary clear without being aggressive.

NB: for more info about Roquefort, go on the village of Roquefort English Website: www.roquefort.fr

SARL Yves Combes
Vincent Combes
Avenue du Combalou
12250 ROQUEFORT SUR SOULZON
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 59 91 48
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 59 96 90
E-mail: vieux.berger@wanadoo.fr
Web: www.le-vieux-berger.com

If you're interested in buying the cheeses in the UK, please contact:
Premier Cheese
Amnon Paldi
124 Gregories Rd
Beaconsfield
BUCKS HP9 1HT

Pebeyre is the only company in the whole of France to specialise in all things truffle: truffles themselves, and truffle products like truffle-flavoured oil, butter with truffles, truffle-flavoured balsamic vinegar, duck foie gras with truffles, etc... The current owners are the grand-son and great-grand-son of its founder, and the passion is still much alive!

The whole truffle trade is crammed with secrets and curiosities: did you know that there are three ways to find truffles in the woods (a pig, who just naturally loves it, a dog, that you have to train, and a bunch of flies, who are drugged by the smell and usually hover just above ground nearby a tree). Did you know that the truffle is sold on special markets with rituals that would remind you of going to the horses in Dublin…to find out more, go to their very interesting website, or visit them 'en personne' in Cahors.

The Fermiers du Rocamadour is a cooperative gathering 25 producers of cheese, including 15 farmers, around the area of the beautiful village of Rocamadour north of Cahors. All together they produce 4 million cheeses, all of them farm cheeses and 1 million of them made by hand. Every step of the production of the farm cheeses is carried out on location.

Their main cheese, the Rocamadour, is a type of Cabécou (local name for goat’s cheese), one of the oldest traditional products of the area. It’s a tasty little cheese which can be eaten young or kept in a cellar for a week or two, then the outside dries and a stronger flavour develops.

They also sell a wide range of other 100% non-pasteurised goats milk cheeses, in every shape or form (heart, ingot, pavé or log), each with its own taste and particularities.

La Quercynoise is a cooperative of 185 producers of ducks and geese, located in the heart of the “Parc Naturel Régional des Causses du Quercy” in the Lot, near Rocamadour. La Quercynoise adheres to a strict environmentally-friendly policy (officially certified norm ISO 14001). It celebrates this year 30 years of know-how in the preparation of duck and goose specialities: foie gras, confit, smoked breast, regional dishes such as cassoulet, pâté with foie gras, etc. Products are guaranteed of origin from South West France (STSO) and have won many prizes: 13 medals at the Concours Agricole de Paris - proof, if proof were needed, of their excellent quality. This year alone, their “Foie Gras de Canard Entier STSO” (whole duck foie gras) won the bronze medal, while their smoked duck breast won the silver medal. La Quercynoise produce a wide range of products and will have a good selection for sale at the Lot Valley Fair. You'll find La Quercynoise and their UK representative, Julien Couget, again at the Vive La France show at London Olympia (20/22 January 2006) where you'll be able to enjoy a regional meal and buy duck specialities to take home.

La Quercynoise
Route de Figeac B.P. 51
46500 GRAMAT
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 10 15 15
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 10 15 28
Email: infos@laquercynoise.com
Web: www.laquercynoise.com

La Douce Abeille                                                                  

Bernard et Nicole Assié

Le Pouget
46130 ST GERMAIN DU BEL AIR
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 31 04 56

GAEC Le Lévéjac is a small family-run operation, using traditional methods to make their sheeps cheese and using only the milk from ewes bred on the farm. This is real, farm produced cheese. Two types of cheese are produced - both of which will be available for sale and tasting at the Lot Valley Fair. Le Lévéjac: a soft cheese made of unpasteurised ewe's milk to which no additives or preservatives are added; the cheese is left to mature for a month and develop a natural rind with a light bloom; like most sheeps cheese, it has a well defined taste. La Tomme is also made of unpasteurised ewe's milk, with no added preservatives; it is pressed to produce a harder cheese, and allowed to mature for three months, developing a natural rind with a light bloom; the taste is more pronounced than that of Le Lévéjac.

GAEC Le Lévéjac

Mr Francis Roujon

Soulages

48500 ST GEORGES DE LEVEJAC

Tel: +33 (0)4 66 48 81 32

Au Bois de Pech Brut - Goodies from the Farm

Serge's family have been farmers in the area around Villeneuve-sur-Lot for many a generation. It's no surprise that he chose the beautiful Bois de Pech Brut family holding to set up his own operation. Pech Brut is tucked away in the wooded green hills overlooking the Lot Valley, between Agen and Bergerac. He grows sunflowers here and his own cereals (15 hectares - absolutely no GM ) for feeding his free range geese and ducks. It is the special variety of “Pruneau d'Ente” (used for making the famous A.O.C. Agen Prunes) that Serge grows in his 13-hectares plum orchard, with his geese and ducks pecking their way around the trees. Serge follows a ‘sustainable farming' policy designed to protect the environment, the surrounding landscapes and quality of water. Serge will be bringing a good selection of his produce (all made and packaged on the farm) to the Lot Valley Fair - his duck-based pâtés, rillettes, confits, cassoulets and foie gras, as well as plums in syrup and Agen Prunes.

Au Bois de Pech Brut

Mr. Serge COMPTE

Bois de Pech brut

47300 VILLENEUVE-SUR-LOT

Tel: +33 (0)6 81 10 17 21

Email: louisrg@aol.com

Web: www.pechbrut.fr

Pruneaux d'Agen (Agen prunes) are a much sought after gastronomic speciality in France. Only the ‘Ente' variety of plum is used, blossoming from late March and harvested from mid-August to mid-September.

The Doumares family have been producing their famous Pruneaux d'Agen for several generations now at the Ferme de Monredon. The whole process here is completely artisan, from harvesting to drying. They use only the highest quality plums grown within a tightly defined geographic area - an IGP (Indication Géographique Protégée not dissimilar to an AOC). The plums are then heat-dried for just 24 hours to produce the most succulent of prunes. But it doesn't stop there. Not only do they do simple sachets of prunes, but there are also prunes in Armagnac (hic!), prunes stuffed with crushed prunes (yes!), prunes enrobed in chocolate, prune jelly, jams, and spreads, and their very own speciality - l'Agenade (defies description but it's a spicy prune sauce to accompany meats or to spread on toasts and serve with an aperitif).

La Ferme de Monredon

Mme Gilberte Doumares

La Ferme de Monredon

47150 SAINT-AUBIN

Tel: +33 (0)5 53 41 66 08

Email: claude.doumares@wanadoo.fr

Web: www.haut-agenais-perigord.com

La Ferme Gourmande belongs to the rich gastronomic traditions of Gascony and Quercy. The ‘Coquille St Jacques' conch shell (symbol of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela) over the main farm building is a reminder of the historic importance of this part of France and its traditions of hospitality. The farm has been run by the same family for five generations now. It is surrounded by lush vegetation, fields of sunflowers and prune orchards; it is a delightful place to come and relax - and even picnic. You can make an appointment to visit the farm (usually Wed am or Sunday pm). The farm shop is open between May & Sept (from 9am-12pm & 2pm-5.30pm; other times by prior arrangement). The farm shop is in the former dovecote with its vaulted ceiling. Here you can taste farm-produced specialities before you buy. Duck and poultry are all free-range, reared in the best farming traditions and free to wander the surrounding meadows. European Union standards apply throughout. But it is the recipes, cooking and preparation methods of the family's Gascony ancestors - simple, natural, authentic - that remain at the heart of Babeth's cuisine. Poultry is cooked with artisan methods, not industrial.

La Ferme Gourmande is open all year. It is open for lunch every day (best to book in May to Sept), with a choice of ‘ assiette de la ferme ' from 10 Euros (including aperitif). In summer, you can even go for a Gascon brunch at 9.30am on Wednesdays (6 July to 31 Aug); or for a buffet lunch or dinner, with music, on Sundays (10 July to 28 Aug).

La Ferme Gourmande

Elisabeth and Michel Armillac

"La Goure"

Campagnac - Le Ledat

47300 VILLENEUVE-SUR-LOT

Tel: +33 (0)5 53 01 75 53

Fax: +33 (0)5 53 41 15 33

Email: fermegourmande@wanadoo.fr

Web: www.lafermegourmande.fr

Hotel-Restaurant Carrier, an owner-run Logis de France establishment, will be bringing over a number of regional specialities for you to taste and buy at the Lot Valley Fair. These specialities are:

• Aligot: potato purée, fresh Tomme cheese, garlic and salt; can be served on its own or as an accompaniment to a main course.

• Estofinade: not unlike a brandade, using dried fish (known locally as ‘stockfish') as its base, with potatoes, eggs, sunflower oil, salt, parsley, garlic and black pepper

• Farçous: a sort of savoury ‘cake' made of sausage meat, bread, chard, milk, eggs, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper; can be served as a starter or accompaniment to a meat dish

• Pounti: a speciality of the Auvergne made of sausage meat, bread, chard, milk, eggs, prunes, garlic, parsley, salt and black pepper. Traditionally served as a supper dish, it can also accompany roast poultry.

And after you've tasted and bought a few portions to take home for supper, why not think of a little trip down to the Lot where Hotel-Restaurant Carrier do half-board stop-overs (bed & breakfast & evening meal) from just 39-42 Euros per person (sharing room). There are just 12 rooms, all with en-suite facilities.

SARL Carrier Restauration

M. Fabrice Carrier

Quartier de l'Etoile

12300 ALMONT LES JUNIES

Tel: +33 (0)5 65 64 15 99

Fax: +33 (0)5 65 80 69 24

The 150 ha of Marcillac vineyards are situated on steep slopes in between Rodez and the Lot river. The vineyard achieved AOC status in 1970. The soil is of a deep red (from the local clay); the vineyards are almost entirely of Fer Servadou grape - also called Mansois. The wines have a highly individual flavour of crushed redcurrants and raspberries, of an intensity not found in any other region, even though the same grapes are planted all over the south-west. The vineyards were started by the monks of nearby Abbey of Conques and are claimed to be particularly good for the heart (confirmed by the current National Institute of Agriculture!).

Domaine de Laurens wines come from a vineyard of 21ha, owned by the Laurens family for several generations, near the small village of Clairvaux. All the harvesting is done manually and chemicals are avoided as much as possible. They have won awards at many competitions and tastings, including at the highest level in France, the famous Concours Agricole in Paris.

Examples of wines:

• Domaine de Laurens Rouge: 100% Mansois. A deep colour with violet highlights. Characteristic flavours of crushed red fruits deriving from the iron-rich red soil of the region. Grown on steep terraces, so the yields are small. The 2002 vintage won the Gold medal at the prestigious Toulouse South-West Wines competition (this follows on from the triumph of the 2000 vintage, which won a medal in Paris in 2002).

• Domaine de Laurens Rosé: 100% Fer Servadou. Cherry colour. Intense aromas on the nose of red-fruit sweets. Round in the mouth, with crunchy red-fruit flavours.

Domaine Laurens
7, avenue de la Tour
12330 CLAIRVAUX D'AVEYRON
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 72 69 37
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 72 76 74
E-mail:  info@domaine-laurens.com
Web: www.domaine-laurens.com

This is the typical small family enterprise, with links with the wine-making industry (or rather wine-making ‘craft’) going back a long time. The ancestors of Maryse and her sister Martine Jouffreau were vignerons in Clos de Gamot for centuries, and it’s the father of Maryse and Martine, Jean Jouffreau, who bought the Chateau du Cayrou in 1971. Maryse, Martine and her husband Yves Hermann are now in charge of both properties, 12 hectares for the Clos de Gamot and 30 for the Chateau du Cayrou.

Examples of wines:

The Clos de Gamot (100% Auxerrois grape) comes from vineyards aged between 40 and 117 years. No chemicals are used and the grapes are picked by hand. The result is a beautiful dark red Cahors, high in tannins, in the purest tradition of Cahors wines.

The Chateau de Cayrou is made of a blend of Auxerrois and other varietals, which makes a very fruity wine with notes of blackberry, plum and a hint of cocoa.

They also produce a delightful white Vin de Pays du Lot. Light and crispy.

Maison Jouffreau
Clos de Gamot
Château du Cayrou
46220 PRAYSSAC
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 22 40 26
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 22 45 44
Web: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/music.olt/jouffreau.htm

The Clos Triguedina is a charming 'domaine' on a direct line between Cayrou and Latuc, west of Cahors. One can visit the cellars, the vineyards and the small family museum. The name comes from the Occitan saying "Me Trigo de dina" ("I'm longing to dine"), dating back to the times when the pilgrims walking to Santiago de Compostela might have said as they stopped in the village to eat and rest.

The 57 ha of vineyards are planted on limestone and clay soil. The Triguedina wine-makers have always been among the best in Cahors: the 'domaine' is one of the most ancient in the Cahors 'appellation' and the only one that still makes a 'black wine' in the style of the nineteenth century.

They give an attention that is quite extraordinary to the quality of the grapes and even to each individual grape. Grapes are not just picked by hand but they are spread out on the table to be individually sorted. This means that the workforce is very large and so is Mr Baldès's investment in equipment. It is the emphasis on quality and manual work as opposed to cost cutting machinery that accounts for the high quality of these wines. Many wines have won prizes in French competitions and are listed in eminent French and English guides (such as the Decanter).

Examples of wines:

• Clos de Triguedina 2001: 80% Auxerrois, 15% Merlot, 5% Tannat. One third new barrels. 30 years minimum vine age. A traditional Cahors wine with an intense nose. The tannins are soft and supple. Drink now or keep for 10 to 15 years.

• Prince Probus 1999: this wine is named after an enlightened Roman Emperor who lifted a planting ban in the third century. 100% Auxerrois aged in new Allier oak. Mr Baldès' bestseller. This shows ripe, sweet fruit with a spice and coffee blast from the new oak. Very classy and intense - quite exotic. Hugely concentrated; spicy, chunky palate with the new oak blending delicately into the Cahors flavour.

• Prince Probus 2000: opaque red/purple colour. Nose of roast coffee, spice and sweet fruit. Exotic and rich. The palate is hugely concentrated with ripe berry fruit and firm, very smooth tannins.

The New Black Wine 1998: this is the only wine in the Cahors vineyards today to be made in the style of the days when spirits were added to the artificially heated wine. 100% Auxerrois, the grapes here were heated for a day to evaporate some water. However, there is no added alcohol. The finished product has aromas of dried fruit and crystalised black and red fruits. It goes very well with sweet and sour dishes.

Vin de Lune - Sweet White Wine ('moelleux'): the Vin de Lune is made from Chenin Blanc grapes harvested very early in the morning, when the temperature is still cool. The name comes from an old story: back in the seventeenth century peasants used to steal some grapes during the full moon from the lords of Cahors in order to produce their own wine. The result today is a beautiful 'liquoreux' wine, which was served to Tony Blair during his visit to the French Prime Minister and President in Cahors in 2001.

SARL Baldès
Triguedina
Les Poujols
46700 VIRE-SUR-LOT
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 21 30 81
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 21 39 28

Email: triguedina@laposte.net
Web: http://www.puy-leveque.fr/triguedina.htm

Coming from Alsace, the Meyan family recently bought the Domaine de Latuc from an English grower who had already established a high reputation with his fellow countrymen. The wines have already won prizes at France's main wine contests. The vineyards are planted on a south-facing hill near the river Lot, 40km west of Cahors. The soil is limestone, typical of the Cahors region, and the grapes are a mix between Auxerrois (which gives the deep colour and ageing capacity) and Merlot (for softness and bouquet).

The Meyans are following their predecessors in trying to produce a style of Cahors which is easier to drink, suitable for all occasions and able to mature younger.

Examples of wines:

• Château Latuc Cahors 2003: This was the Meyans' second vintage, the year drought. Deep red in colour, with a fragrant aroma and a taste of very ripe fruits, blackcurrant and bilberry, and smoky. Château Latuc Cahors is a superb accompaniment to red meats, pâtés and cheeses. It is best served at a temperature of about 18ºC and decanted.

• Château Latuc Prestige 2000: Château Latuc Prestige is aged in new Allier oak barrels giving a rich ruby wine with hints of violet. A first nose of soft red fruit gives way to spices. Perfect for a special meal, it goes particularly well with mushrooms and truffles, blue cheeses and nuts as well as with red meats and game. This promising wine is becoming more subtle and will go on improving until 2010.

• Rosé d'une Nuit 2004: the Rosé d'une Nuit is so called because it's taken out of the maceration vat after only a few hours. It has a delicate perfume and a generous flavour reminiscent of fresh strawberries with a hint of lychee; wonderful served chilled on a warm day. Or try the recipe for Kir Anglais (Put 2 ice cubes in a glass of wine and add 1 measure of strawberry or raspberry liqueur).

• Présence 2003 - Sweet ('moelleux') White wine: this sweet wine is extraordinary: full of flavour without the sweetness being overpowering. Made naturally, without benefit of Noble Rot, it is produced from a mixture of Chardonnay 40% and Sémillon 60% grapes. This wine is delightfully light and refreshing. The colour is pale gold. The aromas are of pear and quince. It was judged an outstanding partner for the Roquefort from Yves Combe at a pre-show tasting here in London in July 2004.

• Vin de Pays Blanc 'Sémillon' 2004 - Dry White Wine: this surprising wine is the opposite of what you would expect from a Cahors.  It is 100% Sémillon, not oaky, and dry. Quite a unexpected lively and fruity white to drink as an aperitif or to accompany white fish.

Château Latuc
Jean-François et Geneviève Meyan
46700 MAUROUX
France
Tel: +33 (0)5 65 36 58 63
Fax: +33 (0)5 65 24 61 57
Email: info@latuc.com
Web: www.latuc.com

The Château de Salles is a tiny ‘vignoble’ of just 5 hectares, right in the centre of the Vins de Buzet appellation, east of Agen in the Lot Valley. The gravelly soil is made of clay and limestone.

Château de Salles belongs to Henri de Batz de Trenquelléon who is a direct descendant of d'Artagnan. De Batz was d'Artagnan's name before he went to Versailles and felt he should change it to something more court-like. The vines here used to be almost entirely merlot but de Batz started experimenting very successfully with Cabernet Sauvignon for the 2002 vintage. All grapes are picked by hand to avoid bruising the flesh of the grapes, and then hand-sorted so that only fully ripe and healthy grapes are used. Spraying only occurs when and if it is essential against diseases, but no weed-killer is ever used as it leaves a residue on the grapes.

Examples of wines:

• Château de Salles 1998: this is a superb vintage, fuller than the 2001. It has a deep ruby colour and aromas of ripe fruit, cherries soaked in brandy, leather and brushwood. It has more tannins than 2001. A wine that is maturing very slowly but very well - will last for 7 to 8 years - very drinkable now. Mentioned in the Hachette wine guide (the authority on the subject in France).

• Château de Salles 2000: this wine was listed in the Guide Hachette, and is a very good vintage. Fruity as well as flowery. Notes of blackcurrant and then spice are apparent on the tongue, with soft and friendly tannins.

• Château de Salles 2001: a deep red colour with violet highlights. The nose is of ripe fruit with nuances of vanilla and toast. A round, fruity taste, with excellent length. The tannins have now softened and melted. It's a light and fruity wine that would keep for 5 to 6 years. Listed in the 'Petit Futé des Vins 2004' (good French guide for wines).

• Château de Salles 2002: this is his first wine to contain Cabernet Sauvignon at 25% (the rest is Merlot). It tastes of wild blackberries, prunes and cherries in brandy. After aeration notes of liquorice and prune seeds appear.

Château de Salles

Henry de Batz de Trenquelléon
47230 FEUGAROLLES
France
Tel (evenings)/fax: + 33 (0)5 53 95 27 49
Mobile (all day): + 33 (0)6 83 42 69 93

250 wine producers work with the cooperative 'Côtes d'Olt' in Parnac, which represents 25% of the Cahors vineyards. Côtes d'Olt cooperative has established a partnership with Sud-Ouest Millésimes who are in charge of selling the wines. They represent a variety of original and high quality wines right across the spectrum. As will be seen they represent very good value for money.

Wines include the ‘stars of the show’, eg. the Impernal, vintage 1998 which won Bronze Medal at the ‘Concours des Grands Vins de France in Mâcon – 2000’ and the Excellence Prize at the ‘Vinalies 2001’, or the Comte André de Monpezat 2000 which won the highest prize in this field in France, the Gold Medal at the ‘Concours Général Agricole de Paris’ in 2002. But there are less ambitious wines, still of a very good quality, like the lively and sweet Vin de Pays du Lot Rosé 2003.

The 10-hectare Domaine d'Homs produces three AOC Cahors wines (red) and a Vin de Pays de l'Agenais (rosé). Their top of range is the cuvée ‘Chevaliers d'Homs' - 100% Malbec grapes from vines that are over 45 years old which are harvested by hand. Since 1999 these wines have each year been accredited with the much prized “ Cahors Excellence - Charte de Qualité ”. The Domaine d'Homs is the only wine not matured in oak to receive this accreditation. [Its sister cuvée, the ‘Chevaliers d'Homs de Favols', is matured in oak.] The ‘Domaine d'Homs' is a fruity, traditional Cahors, for drinking within 5-6 years. The Rosé d'Agenais is a blend of Malbec and Merlot, best drunk chilled as an aperitif or with a meal. With the exception of the cuvée ‘Chevaliers d'Homs de Favols', all of these wines will be available for purchase and tasting at the Lot Valley Fair.

Domaine d'Homs

Daniel or Charlene CAUZIT

Maux

46800 SAUX

Tel: +33 (0)5 65 24 93 12

Email: scea.domaine.dhoms@wanadoo.fr

Château Bladinières is in the famous, long-established CAHORS vineyard. Arnaud Bladinières' grandfather, Serge, worked at what is now the Château Bladinières estate when it was bought in 1922. The estate was then purchased by the Bladinières family in 1981, and they began to concentrate on a single crop - vines! Thus the Château Bladinières vineyard was born. Arnaud will be bringing to the Lot Valley Fair five of his wines:

• Cahors (12.5º) - 100 % Malbec grape, red, matured in oak casks for 15 months.

• Vin de pays du Lot (12.5°) - 100 % Malbec (red).

• Vin de pays du Lot (12°) - white, Chardonnay Sauvignon.

• Vin de pays du Lot (12.5°) - Rosé, Malbec grape.

• Cahors (12°) - blend of Malbec and Merlot grapes.

Château Bladinières

Arnaud Bladinières

Le Bourg

46220 PESCADOIRES

Tel: +33 (0)5 65 22 41 85

The 4-hectare Domaine de Lancement was bought by the Annibal family in 1993. The vines date back to 1986 and 1990. At the time of purchase, the Domaine's wines were sold to the local cooperative. After much refurbishment of the vineyard and its cellars (in a 17thC barn), the wines are left to mature on site, in temperature-regulated stainless steel vats. The main production is red and rosé, blends of Merlot and Malbec grapes. The wines are fruity and smooth. They accompany white meats beautifully or can be drunk as an aperitif. Sandrine Annibal will be at the Lot Valley Fair, bringing with her the 2003 and 2004 vintages (red) for tasting - and buying, of course! She joined the family enterprise in 2003 after many years working in the wine trade both in France and in the UK. Domaine de Lancement is in the small Thézac-Perricard vineyard close to the vineyard of Cahors.

EARL Andel

Sandrine Annibal

Grands Champs

47370 THEZAC

Tel: +33 (0)5 53 40 76 05

Email: s_annibal@hotmail.com

These are wines with an aristocratic history. Though tiny, the vineyard of Thézac-Perricard was widely famous at the turn of the 19th/20thC for the high quality of its wines. Full-bodied yet with a delicate nose, the wines graced the best banquets in France - from Napoleon III to the President. Tsar Nicolas II was so impressed that he instantly put in such a massive order that everyone talked about it in the country. To the point that, over the years, the wine of Thézac became known as the wine the Tsar chose, the one he wanted - and hence the name Vin du Tsar. The vineyard covers 35 hectares and was replanted in 1983 with Côt (also known as Malbec or Auxerrois) and Merlot vines. Sunshine is plentiful and the soil is stony and rocky - ideal conditions for great wines. The wines are best decanted, or opened an hour or so before serving. The vineyard produces one rosé and three reds:

- “Rosé des Pierres” - light and fruity

- “Tradition” - a characteristic Thézac red, light

- “Le Bouquet” - fruity, rounded, lively

- “Cuvée du Millénaire”