"We are all wanderers on this earth...our hearts are full of wonder, and our souls are deep with dreams." ~ Gypsy proverb

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Chambord and more

Are you in the mood for a short history lesson?  Grand and gorgeous, Chambord château is something out of a fairy tale. Pictures never do justice to such a place, at least not with my camera. It's construction began in 1519 with King Francois I who wanted it primarily as a hunting lodge. He actually only visited the château for a total of 72 days during his 32 yr. reign, and never finished the construction. His sons, Henry II and Louis XIV finished the château in the 17th century. Inside, the château's 4 floors and 90 rooms are connected by two grand stone staircases that spiral around each other to the roof terrace. Carved into the stone, in the ceilings and the walls are salamanders and the monogram "F". The King chose a salamander, a mythical animal, for its ability to live in fire.

AND, I never knew that the Chambord black raspberry liqueur originally came from this chateau. Made on premises, the liqueur was introduced to King Louis XIV in the 17th century and remained a staple for their stately dinners.

Via wikipedia:

"Whole raspberries and blackberries are steeped in French spirits for a period of several weeks to produce a fruit infusion. This infusion produces a distinct raspberry flavor and aroma. After the infusion is extracted, a second set of spirits is added to the fruit and allowed to rest for a few weeks. After this second infusion is drawn off, the remaining fruit is pressed to obtain the natural sugars and juice. The fruit-infused spirits and juices from the final pressing are then combined, and finally, the berry infusion is married with a proprietary blend of cognac, natural vanilla extract, black raspberries, citrus peel, honey, and herbs and spices. and steeped in cognac for weeks to create the sweet infusion."  Don't you feel like having a taste right now?!!!

The rest is just randomness from the past several days ...

A Nutella wall--DANGER DANGER

Rosebud tea infusion
M's French feather collection so far

Wishing you a sweeeet Wednesday!!!  Bonne journée!!

xoxo

6 comments:

  1. WOW!! that was built as a hunting lodge?!?!? goodness. absolutely beautiful.

    I LOVE M's feather collection!!! And, yes, I wouldn't mind a glass of Chambord right now. ;)

    xo

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  2. just a wee hunting lodge... LOL! gorgeous.
    and the rink sounds quite delish too.

    omg, a whole wall of nutella!!!!
    what a fab feather collection! so varied.

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  3. After that description, I really do want some Chambord! Can you imagine, a 90 room chateau as a hunting lodge!? Your pictures are incredible and I love seeing the way you've managed to connect with nature in the land of chateas. Such Assn impressive feather collection!

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  4. Ooooh, you had me drooling with that Chambord talk! Love the feather collection; what would a trip abroad be without a collection started?

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  5. Ooooh! pretty! I've been there...did you go up the stairs together...you can't see each other until you get to the top!

    ~Have a lovely weekend!

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  6. We never had a chance to visit Chombard but it looks lovely and wonderfully French!

    I'm really coveting M's feather collection too!

    xo
    cortnie

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“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
~ George Bernard Shaw