The making of Mont d’Or

With its snow capped mountains and beautiful meadows, the Jura is of course perfect for cows, and the region is rightly famed for its rather delicious cheeses, such as Comté, morbier and Mont d’Or.

Mont d’Or is easily recognised by its spruce strap wrapping, which is the last process in its production. Before this happens the cheeses are crammed into wooden boxes and left to mature for a few weeks. This allows various natural moulds to form, along with a slightly velvety, mottled outer skin, and the familiar rippled top: all perfectly edible. Once the cheese is aged, the spruce strips are then boiled to soften them, before being strapped around the cheeses ready to be sold.

All the local cheeses are made with the milk of the local dairy cow: the Montbéliarde, sometimes known as the ‘Pied rouge des montagnes’, or the red foot of the mountains. This breed was apparently chosen for their rich, high fat milk, and their ability to cope with the high altitude variations in temperature.

Mont d’Or is a truly seasonal cheese, and is only made between the 15th August and 15th March, when the cows come down the mountain from their high summer pastures. We got to see the cheese making process at a ‘fruiterie’, or cheese producer, who also had an excellent museum of their family history of cheese making going back three generations.

Inside the museum there are short films on all the manufacturing stages of cheese, both ancient and modern, and also a short film on the family business, with a man projected onto a mesh screen between family photos and old cheese making machinery. It’s a very engaging way of getting the story across.

Mont d'or is a delicious soft scoop cheese, one of the few cheeses in France that needs to be served with a spoon. Across the country it is often eaten hot, by baking it in the oven in the box.

How to bake Mont d’Or Cheese: the way I do it.

Preheat the oven to 180/200°C

Remove the lid and pop the box into an ovenproof dish, or onto a baking tray.

Cut a few slits in the cheese and pop some thinly sliced garlic into the holes, along with some fresh thyme or rosemary, black pepper and a few tablespoons of white wine.

Then wrap it in tin foil, and bake for about 15–20 minutes.

Careful when you remove it, it’s very hot and drippy! make sure it’s melted and gooey, stir it up a bit, and serve with a crusty baguette, and you might as well eothe rest of the wine. Yummy.

1463m

We decided we’d have a little break from the bookshelves and take a short trip to an area of France we’d never visited before, the Jura mountains. We were heading for the small village of Métabief, about a 3½ hour drive from us. During the winter there are a few small ski resorts, like Metabief, which seem to do very well keeping a few pistes open for the skiers with very little snow. However, for us, we felt the conditions were more suited to doing some walking.

We’d visited the small, but very helpful, tourist office when we arrived and gained some useful local information. We then planned our walking route using our Outdooractive app. Once we were happy with our plan, we packed up a picnic, dressed up warm, and headed out for the top of le Mont d’Or.

We first needed the chairlift , which was going to take us part of the way up the mountain to Le Morond. I’m really not great on chairlifts, but Brian chatted to me all the way to keep me distracted, and we were soon at the top.

Once off the chairlift we got our bearings and headed away from the pistes, towards the trail which would take us to the summit of le Mont d’Or.

The trails are really well signposted, so we soon found the path and were heading up towards the peak, where we found ourselves touching the clouds.

The weather improved on the way down, and made way for some stunning views across the valley.

That’s scary!

If you visited last year, you may remember we had a pigeon nesting in our barn, which actually wasn’t a big problem, just a bit flappy at times. Ideally though we would prefer Mr & Mrs Pigeon would live somewhere else this year so, to try and discourage them from the barn, I made a couple of pigeon scarers, which I needed Brian to hang from the beams. When I explained this to him he said “Hmm, you do realise their old nesting spot is about 30 ft up, and my ladder is only about 10 ft high”. This was clearly a problem to overcome, but without letting his doubt bother me too much I went and found some drawing pins, thinking to myself ‘I know he’ll find a way’. I gave him the pins, and said I’d go and make some tea. That usually helps.

It wasn’t long before he came in, smiling and looking very pleased with himself, “I’ve done one, come and look”.

he showed me how he’d done it by doing the second one. He fixed the drawing pin, attached to the pigeon scarer, to a piece of sticky tape on the end of a pole.

He then climbed his ladder and swung the pin, stuck to the end of the pole, into the beam.

Hoorah, one glittering pigeon scarer in place. Now we just need to see if it works.

On the spirits again!

With 2 uprights and three shelves already cut, glued, planed and sanded, it was time for Brian to define the heights of the shelves.

The top of the cupboard isn’t perfectly level, so all the uprights need to be a little bit different in height. Because of this it is important that the shelves all work to a fixed level, not just a measure taken from the bottom of the uprights, it seems all very technical. So out came the trusty laser again to ensure a true level.

However, when Brian set the laser in place, and checked the height each side using a tape measure, he doubted the laser for a moment. Being as cautious as he is, he got his old school spirit level out to check the accuracy of the laser level.

Finally convinced, and all happy again that the laser was actually telling the truth, he marked up the shelf positions ready for the next stage.

Plane and simple

After Brian has used his lamelleuse to join the wood, and gone through the process of gluing and clamping, he then needs to clean up the finish.

Sometimes the old school tools are just as effective as the new ones. After Brian has joined two pieces of wood together, to get the flat finish he wants, he needs to simply plane the join to get a smooth surface.

He then sands the whole side, removing any marks or imperfections.

It’s wonderful what finish can be achieved.

It’s a slow process, but he’s completed 3 uprights and 2 shelves already.

It’s magic

This week we booked to visit the opticians in Troyes to order our new glasses. We’d already been into an Alain Affilou store to look at their ‘Magic‘ range of glasses whilst in Dijon, and we liked the way the tinted, magnetic clip-ons instantly change them into a pair of sunglasses. Convinced they were a good idea, we thought we’d go and see if we could find some we liked in Troyes.

What do you think, did we buy any of these?

The Affilou experience is very thorough, and we loved their talking mirror, that helps them measure and get the correct fitting for your face and eyes. I can’t wait to go and pick them up now.

I think Brian was a bit exhausted by the whole opticians thing by the time we came out so, before heading to MacArthur Glen for some retail therapy, we dropped off at a new Boulangerie that has opened near to the retail park. It was a great place for lunch, and a little sugar hit. We did share the rather large eclair.

Good prune

The day had started a bit grey and was a little damp and chilly, but I was keen to tidy up my Christmas bulb pots, and redo them with some spring bulbs. So I popped outside and enjoyed having a bit of a tidy up. I sorted out some hyacinths and mini daffodils for one of my old tureens, and repotted some more hyacinths in a pot to go in the hallway.

The day brightened as I worked, and I decided to start to clean up around an old sewing table I had positioned near the barn. It certainly looked neater when I’d finished. With that done, I thought I’d prune the rather unruly rose bush that greets you as you drive into the courtyard. As it’s raised, it creates a beautiful place to sit under in the summer. We position a bench under it and the branches of the bush produce lots of natural shade.

I’ve given it a really good prune, so fingers crossed it will flourish this year.

That’s the spirit

We decided the top of the cupboard we had bought, to become the base of the bookshelf, needed to be cleaned down of any old wax before we started. I’d given the cupboard a good clean when we’d bought it, but we both felt the top would benefit from a further clean. So before Brian got started today he used some fine wire wool and white spirit to take off the old layers of wax.

With that done, he moved on to marking up where the uprights for the shelves were going to go. Trusty laser at hand, he was soon confident that his marks were going to give him the precision he needed.

Originally we were only going to have three book units joined together, but when Brian brought his drawing together with the cupboard, it seemed only natural that it needed four.

Excusez moi!

For a while now we’ve wanted to buy a couple of fire extinguishers for the house. One to have on the landing by the guest rooms, and the other in the hallway on the ground floor. However we were finding it really difficult to make contact with the local fire safety firms. I called a couple of them and left messages and also emailed, but never a response. So the other week, when we’d stopped off for a coffee before heading home after collecting the wood for the library, I saw one of the fire companies vans in the parking lot. He was about to drive off, so I quickly said to Brian “look there’s a fire safety company, let’s go and talk to him about getting a couple of extinguishers”. These sort of moments always appear way easier than they are, but Brian agreed and followed me as I jogged across the car park shouting, “Bonjour monsieur, excusez moi”. He stopped and turned, looking a little quizzical, and probably thinking to himself ‘who is this crazy woman, trying to get my attention?’.

The conversation started with some difficulty, as I wasn’t really prepared, but luckily Brian came to my help, and for once I was glad he butted in with his way more eloquent French than mine, explaining to the man who we were, and what we think we needed. After a bit of toing-and-froing we seemed to have communicated well, and we all went away very happy, as he’d arranged to visit us on Monday to view our property and discuss exactly what we needed.

As promised he visited as arranged, and we are now the very proud owners of two shiny, red fire extinguishers. We have agreed he will be back next January to service them for us.

Two become one

We’ve both been waiting a rather long while for the proper start of Brian building the bibliothèque shelves. There’s been a lot of stages to go through, a lot of talk, and a lot of planning, but this morning Brian said to me “Today I will start cutting the wood for the shelves”. I think that was a relief for both of us.

I know it’s a really big thing for him, because he’s already put so much thought and work into making sure it goes right, but actually starting to chop the wood is the point of no return for him and it makes it feel more real. My only tip was to not rush anything, and use that well used motto that dad taught us many moons ago - measure twice, cut once.

He chose the piece he wanted to start with and marked it up so that he knew where it was going to be used. He has a rather complex diagram to work to, and I know there is little wood that won’t get used for something.

I noticed, he has printed the diagram and put it on the wall in the workshop. That’s very organised for him.

He carried the first piece of wood out to his workshop and set about cutting it to the approximate length.

Then it was time to use the new jointing tool: his biscuit cutter. He carefully marked the two planks and set about cutting the holes for the biscuits. I was quite intrigued on how this was all going to work.

I could soon see how simple it was, and how it was all going to piece together. It was just a case of applying glue to the surfaces and clamping it. Well, that sounds simple, but there was a lot of clamps needed, and a very steady process of pressure, to ensure the pieces fitted perfectly together.

All done, two become one. This is the first upright for the shelves glued together, and clamped tightly. Quite a time consuming job, but a great piece of carpentry, and very accurate.

Now only 9 more uprights and 16 shelves to fix together and he can start making it into a book shelf.

Biscuit jointer

Today is an important one for moving the bookshelves forward, it’s the day Brian is hoping his new ‘biscuit jointer’ will arrive. For now though he is checking all his measurements to ensure they are correct, which is easier now the cupboard is in its final position.

Whilst that was happening I decided the sunny, if somewhat cold, weather was just right to start the year in the garden, doing some much needed pruning.

The roses were top of the list, but the lavender also needed work. It’s been a bit of a wet winter, and the pruning that should have happened at the end of last year has had to be carried over to now. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than leaving everything to outgrow itself.

We popped in for a welcome cup of tea, and as we did the bell was rung by the delivery man. This could only mean one thing!

Brian unpacked his new jointer, and gave it a check over. Then he proceeded to read the instructions carefully. Precision is important with this tool which is why he bought a better one online than the one that was available locally. So making sure he knows how to use it properly is essential. However, I think he’s quite impatient to give it a go, which should be tomorrow.

Anyway, back to the pruning for me.

Made to measure

With the walls now painted, Brian spent yesterday afternoon cutting and staining a spacer, so that we could push the cupboard into the corner, and that it would fit perfectly without any gaps between the cupboard and the wall.

He did this, by first cutting a piece of wood just wide enough to fit. He needed to ensure it was actually the right shape, because, of course, the cupboard is old and a bit twisted, and the wall is not perfectly straight. Things never are.

Once he knew it fitted, he stained it with a couple of different stains he had to achieve the right colour, then waxed it, before attaching it to the cupboard and pushing it into place.

Made to measure.

First coat

It was a little brisk this morning when we woke, the moon was hanging low in the sky, with the frost looking chilly on the garden and the vines behind the swimming pool.

By the time we had drunk our tea, the moon had tucked himself away for another day, and the sun was up, displaying a beautiful blue sky.

I would have loved to have been gardening, but that needed to wait, I’d committed to painting the walls in the library today. The painting needs to happen so that Brian can progress the bookshelves, which we are both keen for him to get started on. So the painting began. We have chosen Joa’s white by Farrow and Ball. It’s a warm natural colour, which is going to complement the oak perfectly, and help create a cosy environment for our library.

I used my trusty, teflon roller to make light work of the big areas, while Brian followed behind filling in the corners and edges.

First coat on, and it’s looking really good. Farrow and Ball paints have such great coverage, and apply really well, that’s why I love using them. They may be a bit more expensive, but in my view it’s well worth it. I will apply a second coat, as there are a few thinner patches, but this won’t take much, and I will do this at some point over the next couple of days.

A little difference

The stairwell was showing a few scuff marks and areas of wear from the last couple of years. It has been two years since we decorated it. Conscious that we will shortly soon be welcoming guests back to our b&b, we decided to touch up the areas which needed some attention.

It’s surprising how just a little bit of care can make a real difference, it’s feeling fresh and ready to greet our guests again. I love the thought of having guests back really soon.

Out of shape

The oak cupboard that we bought some time ago for the library is in need of a few repairs. The first one that needs looking at is the realignment of the oak planks on the top. This is where Brian will attach the bookshelves, so he needs a flatter base to work on.

First of all he measured to get the right spots for the screws that would be used, then he drilled them all out. Oak is very tough, and Brian always pre-drills it to make sure the screws go all the way in.

His new drill is coming in very handy now, it has way more power and he’s really happy with how long the batteries last. It seems to go for hours, in fact days.

After screwing the planks down he is left with a neat little hole that he’ll plug later. One small job done, and a nice flat surface to work on. This will make building the bookcase a little bit easier.

A perfect start

Two early mornings, with a quick piece of toast were not good for the soul. So this morning we took our time over breakfast to enjoy some beautiful french baguette, salty butter, and honey, followed by a delicious, fresh, flaky pain au chocolat. It was all washed down with a very tasty, milky coffee. Probably not one of the healthiest breakfasts, but what a perfect start to our day.

The plan for today was to get the ceiling painted. Never a particularly nice job, but one that makes you feel good once it’s complete. I was back with the roller, whilst Brian sorted the edges out with a brush. It didn’t really take us too long, but we did have a couple of breaks to help straighten our backs out.

I don’t believe it!

We had another shockingly early start yesterday. We’d almost forgotten what it was like to rise before the sun was up.

It was time again, following a cold winter, to get our car serviced. We purposely bought a French made car when we came to France to make sure we could get it serviced locally, although we still have to wait a good few hours in Bar-sur-Seine for them to complete the work before we can drive home. Yesterday, that seemed a gloomy prospect, as it’s still cold and damp outside, but our plan was to visit the boulangerie, then go and sit in one of the cafés for a while, before heading out for a stroll.

We made sure we arrived first at the garage, to see if it was possible to get the car back before lunch. To our amazement, and very pleasant surprise, the lady behind the counter offered us a replacement car. Suddenly, we had our morning back. Hoorah!

We left our car with them and drove back home in our newly acquired loan car, a little Renault scenic. Not long after arriving home, she called to ask us something, Brian handed me the phone. I listened attentively to what she was saying, grasping some of what she had asked. I think the main thing was the oil filter needed changing, and possibly 2 of the tyres, which we knew were due. But there was something else, which we would need to bring the car back for next week, but I couldn’t grasp it. I agreed with the plan, not totally understanding the whole of what was said, but it didn’t seem like anything major. She would call again when we could come and pick the car up, we would sort the finer details out then.

It seemed just a short while later when we got the second call to say it was ready, so hopped back in the loan car and set off again.

I’d explained to Brian about the filter and tyres, but we knew we needed to try and understand what else was needed.

When we arrived at the garage the lady had quite a bit to say about our cars service. She only talked in French, and way too fast for us, although we’d asked her to speak ‘doucement’. Talking face-to-face I now understood that two types of filter had been replaced and we were in need of two new rear tyres, which they would need to order. However, there was one thing she said that I just couldn’t understand, or rather my brain would not accept it and I doubted my French. She said, “il faut installer un boîtier à ultrasons dans le moteur, pour empêcher la souris d'y faire son nid”. Initially I could hear they needed to install a box for a mouse. Why did we need a box in our car to carry a mouse? I looked quizzically at Brian. He had also heard the word ’souris’ which means mouse. Brian said, “a mouse?”, in a confused tone and the woman nodded. So it was definitely a story about a mouse. It’s amazing how you stop yourself from understanding just because you can’t accept the situation. After we accepted what it was about, the story started to make sense. She explained it’s an ultrasound box that we need. Apparently we need it to be fitted because a mouse had made a nest in our warm engine, and the box would prevent this in the future. Not really what I expect from a car service, but you live and learn. Just goes to show, I must trust my French a bit more in the future.

Seeing straight

We were up early yesterday, as we were driving down to Dijon for the day. It’s such a beautiful city about 1 hour and 40 minutes from us, which is fine for a day trip. Beautiful old cobbled streets, quaint little shops, museums, and plenty to see and do. Today though we were not there as tourists.

Our first appointment was at the ophthalmologist. In France you can have your eyes checked each year, however we had left it two years as all seemed ok, but we both felt we were now ready for a slight revision in our glasses. We parked just near the clinic in a beautiful, tree lined, perfectly straight avenue. It looks like this will be where they start one of the legs of the Tour de France in the summer.

The clinic is super slick, within a modern building and the latest equipment. We were taken straight in, and soon were having our eyes checked and photographed, ready to see the doctor, who advised all was well with the health of our eyes, but confirmed we were both in need for a slight revision to our glasses prescription. We would take this ‘ordnance’ to an optician’s near us to choose the glasses.

We then headed to a paint shop we had found online and arranged to visit to have some colours mixed for us. The lady at the shop was extremely helpful, and we had soon chosen our colours and decided to use the ‘dead flat’ paint base, as this would provide a better finish with the hand painted leaves Brian has planned to include in the library.

Before we drove out to visit the Castorama store, just on the outskirts, we took a little time to wander through the streets of Dijon and find a lovely little bistro for a simple bavette et frites lunch and, of course, some Dijon mustard. Simply delicious.

Foundation

We woke to a very blustery morning. We could hear the wind whooshing around the house and rustling the trees.

We weren’t worried though, because we were going to be inside today, and ideally the plan was to finish off the undercoat in the library.

I was soon back on the roller and Brian was helping by cutting in around all the edges.

It seemed to take way longer than it should have taken, but we were both pleased with the end result. It’s going to give us a great foundation for the top coat.

Sanding back

We woke on Sunday excited and ready to get going with the library. We both chucked on our work clothes and were ready to get started.

A quick breakfast to charge us up, and Brian was soon sanding back some of the plaster used to fill in the joins of the plaster board.

He had a bit of a head start on me, whilst I sorted out the equipment I needed for painting, but it wasn’t long until I was whizzing along behind him, rolling on a coat or two of undercoat.

We need to undercoat the walls as they are all newly fitted plaster boards. I say ‘newly fitted’, but this work was done a few months before we moved over to France in 2020, so newish. This room had never been a priority, as it’s not a room our guests use. We have also changed our minds a few times on how we are styling it, but we now have a clear vision and can’t wait to get decorating. The undercoat dries super quick, as it gets sucked up by the plasterboard. It will help us achieve a good coverage when we apply our top coat.