The Spring Salon Saveurs - the twice-annual gourmet artisanal marketplace - opened today in Paris and will run three days - through Sunday night. And yes, there are tiny tastings galore - from cheese to pastries to wines to French foodstuffs you didn't even know existed - much less have ever gobbled up like some kind of foie gras goose. This season there's an emphasis on olive oil - and one of my favourites is by CastelaS - yes, that is spelled with a capital S. It's an AOC, Gold Medal-winning oil of the "fruite vert" - or green fruited variety. Fresh, grassy aroma; long but clean on the palate; with a peppery finish on the back of the throat. Catherine Hugues - who makes the oil with her husband Jean-Benoit - always has a special little gift for returning clients. She said that this year she had trouble thinking of something good - so she just put together little baskets of freshly picked flowering thyme and rosemary from their property - down in the Valley of Baux de Provence. As if we needed any further incentive to buy their wonderful oil.
Salon Saveurs, 20-23 May 2005, Paris, Espace Champerret
CastelaS, 04 90 54 50 86, info@castelas.com
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