Discover Provence: A Shopping, Wine, Antiques, and Festivals Guide to the South of France

By Georgeanne Brennan

Visit the Most Popular Destinations in Provence, France

#1 New Release in Flowers and Bed & Breakfast

Discover why Provence, France is the best place for your next wanderlust-fueled quest and lose yourself to sunny beaches, lush vineyards, and historic architecture.

Take an unforgettable tour of this treasured southern region of France. Soon to be your favorite of all tour guide books, author Georgeanne Brennan uses her insider’s view to take you on the getaway of a lifetime. With engaging text and gorgeous photos, she paints the perfect picture of the many gems of Provence. Beauty abounds as you travel through the sunny Côte d’Azur to the mountains of Haute Provence; to lavender, poppy and wheat fields; through bustling markets; to fisherman-filled harbors; over vine-covered hills; and into ancient castle ruins.

A guide for travelers, wine lovers, dreamers, and anyone interested in Provence, France.Discover Provence is also for those who want to be a part of something picturesque and historically significant. One of the most visited areas of the world, Southern France is famous for its beautiful views, flavorful foods, and opulent French wines. Turn the pages of Discover Provence to immerse yourself in this magical region.

Inside this perfectly curated Provence book, you’ll find:

• Indispensable driving tips for stress free way-finding
• An insightful guide to understanding French wine
• Intimate knowledge of Provence’s villages and their traditions

If you enjoyed travel destination books such as A Year in Provence, Rick Steves France, or Adventures on the Wine Route, then you’ll love Discover Province.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Feb 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9781642508864

Georgeanne Brennan

Georgeanne Brennan is a James Beard award-winning cookbook author and journalist. She and her work have been featured in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Gourmet, Food and Wine, San Francisco Chronicle, Edible magazines and elsewhere. Her books have been translated into multiple languages, including her memoir, A Pig in Provence. In 2014 she founded La Vie Rustic: Sustainable Living in the French Style, a product line and on-line store. She lives in Northern California and travels several times a year to her long time home in Provence where she once lived, keeping goats and pigs and making and selling goats milk cheese.

Book preview

Introduction

I’ve lived in Provence on and off for many years, even buying a house there in 1970, and the region and life there has been a huge, even defining, influence on me ever since. I first encountered it as a student at the American University in Aix-en-Provence. I had requested housing in an independent apartment, and I was assigned one on the rue Aude, just a just off the Cours Mirabeau. The day I arrived, Madame Ladort, who owned the dressmaking shop next door, escorted me into the apartment. It was an eighteenth-century building with a large and beautiful interior staircase and what was to be my home was a cold-water walk-up flat on the third floor. Madame quickly showed me around and left me a key. The flat had two main rooms, one with two beds, a round dining table with chairs, and a few scattered tables. The other room was unfurnished with polished wooden floors and somewhat faded blue and gold wallpaper. The rooms had high ceilings and multipaned windows that overlooked an interior courtyard. The kitchen was outfitted with a double gas burner set atop an ancient coal-burning stove. There was no refrigerator, and when I asked, Madame said that one puts food that needs to be cold on the windowsill.

I had no sooner begun my inventory, slightly bemused and wondering what in the world I had done, when the apartment door swung open and in came a slim girl about my height and age. She had brown hair and green eyes and was holding a bouquet of flowers in one hand and a string bag with a saucisson, a baguette, and a bottle of wine in the other.

Isn’t this exciting? she beamed, handing me the flowers. We’re in Provence in our very own apartment!

I’ve often wondered if I would have had a different relationship to Provence, or perhaps no enduring relationship at all, had it not been for Joanne Kauffman’s unabashed enthusiasm for the place and for what it promised us as young women.

And, it hasn’t disappointed us, not even half a century later.

Discover Provence is a series of short essays in eleven chapters, dense with photos. In this book, I’ve given an overview of the special elements that make up the enduring essence of traditional Provence for me, from its diverse landscape to its food and wine, tile roofs, and patterned fabrics. Each essay is followed by a visit to a specific town or village that reflects the content of the chapter. Throughout, I’ve tried to present a glimpse into the heart of Provence—the small things as well as the larger ones—and all that makes it such a magical place for me and so many other people.

CHAPTER 1

The Taste of Provence

NOWHERE IS THE DISTINCT CHARACTER OF PROVENCE MORE CLEARLY APPARENT THAN IN ITS FOOD AND WINE. Le terroir—the confluence of soil, climate, and sun—is responsible for the characteristic flavors of the varied Provençal regions from the Mediterranean coast north to the Rhône River Valley and across to the interior highlands below the lower Alps.

From the vineyards, groves, and orchards come grapes, olives, almonds, figs, peaches, and nectarines. The forests supply wild game, mushrooms, herbs, and black truffles, and throughout the year thousands of market gardens and potagers produce fresh, seasonal vegetables. Sheep and goats roam the rugged hillsides, feeding on the