Wander Wonder Discover: Chambord

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?!!!