Maison Malaucène: Ménerbes & La Bastide de Marie

We stalen een dagje vertier uit onze drukgevulde agenda en belandden op een zonnige oktoberdag in het schilderachtige Ménerbes. Voortaan en op menige vraag schrijven we ook enkele stukjes in 't Engels bij onze blogposts.

***

Early october in Provence, so on a sunny morning we took our Deuche and drove to beautiful Ménerbes. This little town in the Luberon is most famous because one of its former inhabitants, the English writer Peter Mayle, whose bestselling book has turned into one of our favourite movies: 'A good year'. With autumn just around the corner, the views are clearer and have a zillion tones of golden colours. When we parked, we first stared at our home so close and yet a bit far away, Mont Ventoux (see also here).

We strolled already many times through this peaceful little town and yet it never bores us. With the magical autumn light on and greens turning into hints of yellow, orange and red, this must be the most beautiful time of year to visit.

We enjoyed a simple coffee in the morning sun and agreed why this town is on the list of 'the most beautiful villages of France'. Reading the gazette had been a while so we discovered some interetsing things, ha!

Façades, façades, façades... the most photographic ones are definitely here!

With october in mind, we always seem to find a new breath... thanks to clear blue skies, warm temperatures and empty streets.

This must be our life motto since ever: LA VIE EST BELLE!

We made reservations for lunch at 'La Bastide de Marie', a 2minute drive away from the old town of Ménerbes. When Julia Engel passed by last year and she took the most romantic pictures of this iddylic place, we really wanted to pass there aswell.

As for lunch, we started with an apéro. Just a critical note (we don't often to that) To be honest, for that price (€20 for a H. Bardouin pastis with water and €12 for a simple kir), we would have expected something more than just a nut and an olive to go with that. Being experienced in apéros at several of the nicest restaurants in the Vaucluse (just follow along here on the blog, there are many more to come!) and the rest of Provence, this proved to be the most simple and most expensive of them all. Nevertheless, we enjoyed our view to go with it.

When having our own B&B here in Provence (Les Oliviers du Taulisson), we do not tend to sleep anywhere else in te region. However, when we read that lunch, a spa day or even dinner at the property is possible (when paying an annual €3 fee to join 'Le Club de Marie'), we made immediate reservations for the two of us.

We choose different starters (tartelette of courgette & tomates-burrata), main dishes (fish & pork) and dessert (framboise tartelette) à la carte. The restaurant does not offer menus at lunchtime. The quality of the food is high and the tranquillity of the setting does the rest. We ate inside even if the weather outside was wonderful with clear blue skies and a nice 25°C but the Mistral wind was blowing every now and then, making it chilly and not that peaceful. It definitely was an extensive and delicious lunch as we stayed for over 3 hours. We had coffee outside on their terrace, all alone, and with no wind sweeping us of our feet anymore.

The site is true Provençal perfection, with delicately sourced antiques and fine arts. The authentic building and Provençal details does the trick.

We got inspired by their beautiful orangerie, something we have dreamed of for a very long time now! How great that would be to install here on our own property aswell.

We wandered around their impeccable garden with views up the Luberon hills, throughout their own vineyards, perfectly alligned with plane trees & cypresses, towards their rose alley (inspired again!) to the Domaine de Marie, where they were havesting their grapes to make more of their excellent wines.

We saw pictures of the rose alley in full bloom but then again, even now, with the flowers slowly disappearing, we had a romantic stroll through them and savoured every moment of it.

I was very happy to have a little extra of an autumn feel, wearing my new Quintessence dress with details in ocre & blue, going well together with my new handmade purse of Quincaillerie pour Fifilles (I only have purses made by her, in Villes-sur-Auzon!). To be exact, my entire outfit was french (even my shoes and underwear!).

To end our tour, we took a tour at their guest's house. Such an -yet again!- inspiring place. We love the textures and the way they selected all authentic items from white to blue to wood.

It just takes your breath away. It is astonishing how they created a cozy and true familyhouse.

When looking at all the details inside, we saw a detail outside we very much liked aswell... look at this tranquil older couple we made acquaintance with, savouring the day, the lady reading a book, the husband taking a nap. Oh yes, life is good in Provence!