Chocolat

One of the many advantages of being in France is their fondness for "chocolat chaud'. There are quite a few different brands of drinking chocolate on the shelves (the most famous is probably Banania, which neither Susan or I particularly enjoy). Poulain is the chocolate you will find in our household for "everyday" use. I prefer it made at double strength, with a dash of creme leger (light creme) for that added hedonistic thrill.

You will notice, though, that this cup of chocolat is made with "Lait Cru Fermier" from a plastic bag. This is often the only fresh milk you can buy around here - for some reason the French seem to have a preference for UHT milk, even though most people now own refrigerators. Even when there is a choice of fresh milk we still prefer to buy the milk in a bag. "Lait Cru Fermier" is crude milk from the farm - unpasturised, un-homogenised, bagged on the farm and delivered by the farmer to the shop. Straight from the udder to your table - and as our milk comes from near le Grand Pressigny - with only 8 food kilometres in between. What's more, the farmer's wife probably delivers it when she drives into town to buy her daily bread. When the green revolution comes it won't be all "hair shirts and hemp knickers"*. It will be fresh milk daily with no mucking about.

Simon

*One of Dick Strawbridge's favorite sayings.