Wednesday, July 7, 2021

Wine & Food of Le Tour 2021, Stage 11: Sorgues to Malaucène

Where are we? In the Vaucluse to do some climbing.
Sorgues: Le Tour is feeling arty: Picasso loved the tramway and that is how he arrived in Sorgues with his new companion, Eva Gouel, in June 1912. The discovery of this green town just outside Avignon and the picturesque market decided them. They settled in a discreet villa, Les Clochettes, opposite the town hall. Georges Braque joined Picasso in Sorgues at the end of July with his young wife, Marcelle. The couple settled on the road to Entraigues, in a Japanese-inspired house, Villa Bel Air.
The summer of 1912 promised to be prodigious. Sorgues, a peaceful town, was an invitation to simple joys. Picasso and Braque concocted cooking recipes such as ajo blanco, a sort of Provençal dessert soup made with local garlic, almonds and grapes. This mixture has the virtue of "making people laugh a lot" and of radically killing flies.
Cubism, which was in its analytical phase, showed its limits. Braque and Picasso were aware that their paintings were moving too far away from the model, tending towards abstraction, and this displeased them. To reconnect with reality, they introduced real or descriptive elements directly into their paintings. This was the birth of synthetic cubism.
It was in Sorgues that the first glued paper in the history of art was created. In Avignon, Braque found a roll of wallpaper imitating oak wood. He cut it up and placed it in his canvas, creating new spaces between the illusion created by the shadows and charcoal drawings and the reality introduced by the glued paper. Picasso painted Ma jolie on one of the walls of the Les Clochettes. After the artist's departure, art dealer Daniel Henri Kahnweiler had the surface of the wall on which this oval painting was painted removed. Seduced by the Sorgues countryside, with its cypress trees and numerous streams, Georges Braque returned every summer from 1913 to 1916. It was there that he took refuge to forget the war, his wounds, his trepanning and his anxiety at the idea of returning to his brushes.

Malaucène: Le Tour tells me that: The Groseau chapel, nestled in a remarkable landscape at the foot of Mont Ventoux, remains the heart of a place that has been humanised for two millennia... The Groseau spring, which flows close to the chapel, was used and channelled by the Romans to supply water to Vaison-la-Romaine (Vasio) in the first century AD, thanks to a ten-kilometre-long aqueduct. Built between 1150 and 1200, the Notre-Dame du Groseau chapel is the only vestige of a former Benedictine monastery founded in the 7th century and now totally demolished. Pope Clement V, the first Pope of Avignon, made it his favourite place to stay during the summer months at the beginning of the 14th century. As an essential passageway to the Ventoux, the rehabilitation of the chapel (closed due to danger since 2018) is part of the revitalisation of the Groseau spring, to allow the reopening of the place and its development through exhibitions and concerts. (Appeal to popular patronage with the Fondation du Patrimoine and Bern mission underway).
Nature and heritage lovers will discover the first edition of an organ festival (listed organ in the church of Saint Michel) the week of July 12 to 17, 2021 with activities, concerts, visits to an organ builder... and small organ concerts every Wednesday during the summer season.

Le Tour specialties:
Sorgues: pistou soup, aïoli, tapenade, Châteauneuf du Pape (geographical area of the appellation)

Malaucène: Ventoux wines, Ventoux cherries, fruit. Organic pomegranate juice, Ventoux black truffles

Christian Prudhomme says: Five years after a windy visit, the Tour returns to the Giant of Provence that has become a Regional Natural Parc, for a double climb (including the almost unprecedented one going through Sault) and a finish at the bottom. A fine way to salute the initiative of the Conseil départemental of Vaucluse that refurnished the summit road for cyclists.



The stage: One wonders exactly why they are climbing Ventoux twice. Particularly when one would really like Mark Cavendish to make it through the stage within the time cut. Indeed, he was struggling early, as his teammate, Alaphilippe, led at the front of the race. Also, early, an ugly crash for Tony Martin. He would abandon the race.
The ace situation at kilometer 60 was :
- Alaphilippe, Perez, Rolland and Dan Martin in the lead
- Stake Laengen, Bernard, Mollema, Politt, Meurisse, Sbaragli, Durbridge and Pacher at 45''
- Van Aert, Elissonde, Van Avermaet, Cosnefroy and Périchon at 55''
- Peloton led by Ineos at 1'45''.
Eighty kilometers done and the quartet had one minute over the chasers and 4:30 over the main peloton. Meanwhile, Cav watch had ramped up, as he dropped from the peloton with company. The more company, the better.
Abandonment of Ven der Sande, one of yesterday's breakaway duo. Ahead, the chase group had closed to forty five seconds. Next to DNF, Scotson.
Nice field art. Back on the road the chasers had caught the lead quartet as they reached the foot of the first time up Mont Ventoux. Meanwhile, I was watching a reel of Casper Cavendish saying "I don't want daddy to ride up the mountain," which seemed just about right.
A question: Two more abandonments: Dan McLay and Tiesj Benoot. One hundred and fifty eight riders remained. First to the top: Alaphilippe.
The descending speed was rather terrifying.
Meanwhile on Cavendish watch, his group was almost nineteen minutes back, but people better at math than I am seemed very confident that they would make it in time.
Thirty six kilometers to go and Elissonde attacked his breakmates to go solo. He was followed by Van Aert, Mollema and Alaphilippe.  Van Aert would surge and catch Elissonde. Way behind, another abandonment: Campenearts. Looking like he wished to be almost anywhere else, Alaphilippe as he was dropped by Mollema.
Ahead solo, Van Aert.
Behind, many really struggling, including O'Connor, who could be losing his podium chance. Left in the yellow jersey rgiup were  Tadej Pogacar, Rafal Majka (UAE Team Emirates),Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma), Richard Carapaz, Michal Kwiatkowski, Richie Porte (Ineos Grenadiers), Michael Woods (Israel Start-Up Nation), Enric Mas (Movistar), Wilco Kelderman (Bora-Hansgrohe), Guillaume Martin (Cofidis), Rigoberto Urán (EF Education-Nippo), Alexey Lutsenko (Astana-PremierTech). 

Seven kilometers to to the summit and Van Aert had forty seconds over Elissonde. Alaphilippe had cracked hard and was caught and passed by the yellow jersey group. Cavendish update: almost twenty eight minutes back.
Finally an attack: Vingegaard. He would be followed by Pogacar, briefly, before dropping him. Ten kilometers to go and Van Aert had 1:17 over the closest chasers. He would hold on for the stage win! Well done.
An important update:
Though Bernie Eisel thought they would make it, which was very reassuring. Because, really, he would know all about getting Cav in before the cutoff.

Stage:


 Updated GC:

Finally:  

The wine: Domaine de la Bastide Les Figues Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2020
Les Figues is reference to the massive, aged, fig tree which dominates the landscape of the main house on the estate. From the Southern Rhone, “Les Figues” Blanc is a luscious blend of 45% Viognier, 40% Roussanne, and 15% Clairette, grown in calcareous clay soils. Fifty percent (50%) of the wine is aged briefly in oak, then blended back into the remaining tank wine, just before bottling. The vineyards are in the process of being certified organic.

The food: Time for some fruit: Ventoux cherries
With nearly 4,000 hectares planted, and an annual harvest of 15,000 to 20,000 tonnes, Vaucluse remains France's leading producer of cherries. The Ventoux region has become the preferred area for table cherries, with 1,144 hectares, i.e. 55 pc of the area planted in Vaucluse. The cherry season begins in mid-May and, thanks to the diversity of varieties, lasts until mid-July. Batches of freshly picked fruit are sent to the distribution network and are available on the consumer's table the day after picking. Created by a group of producers, the Monts de Venasque cherry, juicy, fleshy and crunchy, is the first top-of-the-range cherry brand in France. Cultivated in 21 communes in the Comtat Venaissin and Mont Ventoux by 110 producers, it is distinguished by the care taken in the orchards, the pruning techniques and the selection of the fruit. 2,000 tonnes of this red diamond, with a minimum size of 24 mm, are sold each year.
 
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