The Food and Wine of France: Eating and Drinking from Champagne to Provence

by Edward Behr

In The Food and Wine of France, influential food writer Edward Behr investigates French cuisine and what it means, in encounters from Champagne to Provence. He tells the stories of French artisans and chefs who continue to work at the highest level. Many people in and out of France have noted for a long time the slow retreat of French cuisine, concerned that it is losing its important place in the country's culture and in the world culture of food. And yet, as Behr writes, good French food remains very, very delicious. No cuisine is better. The sensuousness is overt. French cooking is generous, both obvious and subtle, simple and complex, rustic and utterly refined. A lot of recent inventive food by comparison is wildly abstract and austere. In the tradition of great food writers, Behr seeks out the best of French food and wine. He shows not only that it is as relevant as ever, but he also challenges us to see that it might become the world's next cutting-edge cuisine. The Food and Wine of France is a remarkable journey of discovery. It is also an investigation into why classical French food is so extraordinarily delicious--and why it will endure.

Genres: France, Food, Nonfiction, Travel, Food and Drink, Wine, History

320 pages, Hardcover

Published June 14, 2016

Reviews

[Yodamom · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love France, their food, their flavors, their wines and their zest for enjoying these things, this is the book for you. This is a foodie's roadmap to heaven via French delights. The author travels across the country meeting the famous makers of greatness, baking, cheese making, candies, wines all the delicacies and more. He visits the historical food landmarks, meets with the greats and discusses their philosophies on the specialty item they are famous for. It is a fascinating read for a traveler, foodie, or chef.
I have gift a few copies to friends, and mapped out the must stops for a trip to France. If I follow it I'm sure to gain excess pounds but I will enjoy everyone.

[Eli - Bookworm & Vine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book flowed really well. I was hoping it would have been more geared to the cooking of French food than making wine, bread, and cheese. But then again those three things are France.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars very interesting but not compelling.

[Colleen Chi-Girl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this on audiobook and just loved it. Edward Behr takes us with him from Champagne to Provence and shares local specialities from cheeses to bread to wine, peasant dishes, haute cuisine, and it is pretty amazing. I admit to being a Francophile and can't wait to get back again to sample again and again. This novel in book form would probably be even better as a guide book! However, part of the reason I rated it 5* is because of the easy to listen to, talented French accented narrator (or faked it well) named Graham Halstead.

Halstead read with such expertise, I would think he was a Frenchman. I think he actually lives in Brooklyn - lol. A narrator who takes such care, a publishing house, Tantor, who expects it, along with Behr's creative genius is worthy of 5*.

One of the parts I really enjoyed was learning more about Alsace in the NE of France, which is one group of people that are my ancestors. I came away wanting to buy Alsatian wines and make some of their food. And how do you go wrong with learning more about the people and their regional cultures, for instance in Champagne (YUM - best bevy ever)?!

I don't often reread a book because the pot out there is just too big, however, if I had this one in print....I would surely go back and highlight places... and maybe even put post-it notes on it. YES, that good.

One more pro: if you ever want to really know how to pronounce some of the most common foodie and wine French words, Halstead does a fantastic job.

One con: there was one overly lengthy chapter on a lot of smelly cheeses - can't recall which ones - but like I do, turn the speed up or speed read if you really have lost interest in one area. Not a deal breaker.

[Tima · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was browsing the shelves at the public library looking for books about wine. this was the only book i saw. anyone who eants to understand why the french apparently have such a cultural connection ro what they eat and drink should read this book. each chapter corresponds to a reguon and/or foodstuff (including vinegar!). the author does an excellent job of presenting technical information in flowing language. i will be purchasing this book.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love France! I enjoyed reading this account of the food and wine of the country. Behr's book is so lovely to read and brings back so many fonds memories... I really need to return to the country and explore some more of it's food and wine!

[Justin Woody · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read about the different regions of France and what they produce culinary wise.

[Carol Bakker · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded up

What is French food?

I'm not familiar with Edward Behr's work; in preparation for my dream trip to France, I put "France" in the search engine of Hoopla. I'm glad this came up! It's part travel memoir, part instructional (why a certain process requires a certain procedure), part delightful thumbprint biographies of artisanal geniuses.

One theme that carries through each story is the difference between the old techniques and modern machine-aided methods. How has industrialization changed French cuisine?

Here's some (but not all) of the food and drink covered in the book:
→ French bread from the 6th Arrondissement, Paris
→ Vegetables from Versailles
→ Croissants from 14th Arrondissement, Paris
→ Champagne from Epernay
→ Sausage from Troyes
→ Kugelhopf from Alsace
→ Comté cheese from Labergement-Sainte-Marie
→ Vin Jaune (yellow wine) from Château-Chalon
→ Vinegar from Orléans
→ Parsleyed Ham from Dijon
→ Wine from Beaujolais
→ Sea Salt from Ars-en-Ré
→ Snails from Saintonge
→ Blackened Cheesecake from Poitou
→ Foie Gras from Gascony

One quote I transcribed into my journal:

"What most of us want most when we travel are those moments of contact — with landscape, people, art, architecture, food — that feel intensely personal, or authentic, for lack of a better word. Those experiences are almost always unforeseen and they occur less often in the company of countless others with the same purpose."

As soon as I finished listening to this book, I started over and listened again. I will probably try to get my hands on a print edition in order to marinate in the stories.

[Penny · Rating 4 out of 5]

A culinary Tour de France, Edward Behr's book recounts his journeys to various French cities and towns to learn about the foods that make France the culinary and gastronomic capital of the world. Each chapter is devoted to a specific iconic, sometimes famous, sometimes less well known, cheese, bread, wine, or specialty. Behr explicitly takes notes as he interviews the craftspeople who make these divine foodstuffs and shares what he learns of their history, processes, and what makes their particular product special. He devotes significant space to describing the flavors and textures of the foods he's documenting, some of which are likely to disappear as more time passes and to the people and terrain that produce them. Significantly, he shares what he's learned about the precursors to what is available today, what essentially has already been lost.

Two chapters I particularly enjoyed deviate a bit from the others. One is devoted to his culinary mentor, Richard Only, an American expatriate who became a champion of French gastronomy. It prompted me to take my copy of Olney's Simple French Foods off the shelf to spend more time with. The final chapter is a summation that raises the question, "What is French food?" It provides food for thought about the future of French cuisine.

This is definitely a book for Francophiles and those who wish they could travel around France sampling its many amazing foods.

[Rebecca Wilkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from my daughter. I like food literature but this is not one I would read again and obviously it took a month to finish so was not something I just couldn't put down. He covers a lot of French food, croissants, cheese, sausage, vegetables, foie gras, etc. He also talks about several different wines. There were some interesting tidbits here and there but he just isn't up there with MFK Fisher or A.J. Liebling. I kept wishing there were photos. I guess with all the food shows on TV nowadays someone has to be a really good writer to write about food, we'd rather watch food porn than read it. I did learn that it takes 1 minute 40 seconds to milk a ewe! We got the book for $6.98 on the discount table and that is about right! Readable but nothing to write home about!

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the detail that went into showing all the facets of what makes traditional French food so unique and exploring why it may have fallen out of fashion. It also made an excellent point of how tourism tends to be a double-edged sword for local cuisine and culture in general, while at the same time pointing out that the decline of French cuisine is in part embedded into the culture. While it might not be top of mind currently, I feel like Behr's writing makes the argument that French food has had a lasting influence on cuisine in the western world.

That being said, this prose was neutral to the point of being dry. I feel that's partly why it took me so long to get through this one.

[Theresa Connors · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a lucky find on a sale table at an indie bookstore. Written as a foodie road trip through France, Behr seeks out the best, most authentic producers of the wines and foods he writes about, often in small villages. As much time was spent on the Holy Trinity (bread, cheese, and wine) as on traditional French dishes you would expect to read about. This book will stay on my Keeper shelf and has inspired me to experiment more with French cuisine.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides insight into regional foods and drinks across France. Like many other books that are similar, his reviews are his opinion and provide some descriptions and background, but not comprehensive information about the what and where of his wanderings around the country. For anyone who is interested in the regional cuisines of France, it is informative but not stellar.

[Mark Fallon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish this book wasn't out of print, as I would be ordering copies for my friends who love the cuisine and culture of France. This is almost like a tour, as the author crisscrosses the country, west to east and back, slowly heading south.

[Brian Ferguson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm going to France next month, now I'm ready.

[Lorri M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love it but found it a bit dry!

[Andrea]

dng

[Dianne Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of details, but I guess I didn't feel much passion or charm in the writing.

[Les Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

A series of disconnected chapters or vignettes. Some of them were enthralling, some were uneven.

[April Capil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this one - makes me want to plan a trip to Alsace and inspired me to try Compte cheese in an omelet (delicious!). The borders of Eastern France are calling, and I must go!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent overview of French food and cooking. Bread,wine, and cheese are its center points.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a highly readable and enjoyable book. In Each short chapter, the author takes you to a region of France and shares his visits with artisanal--old and new--chefs, bakers,cheese makers, winemakers, and other craftspeople in the French food world. The author is able to give you history and also how the food makers are or are not changing and updating their techniques, tools, ingredients, to keep up with modern tastes while maintaining the traditions that make French food the best and most important in the Western food world. If you love French food, or France or just want to learn about real France and its cuisine of today, this is for you. Highly recommend.

[Montessahall Montessahall · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for diehard foodies.