Agen in South-west France. Home to the Agen Prune, the Gold Standard in Prunes.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

 

The Municipal Theatre, Agen.
Photograph courtesy of Jean-Louis Zimmermann.
www.flickr.com/photos/jeanlouis_zimmermann/4764950765/
  
Agen and its history

Agen is a beautiful small town and the capital of the department of Lot-et-Garonne in Nouvelle Aquitaine. It is situated on the River Garonne and the Garonne Lateral Canal. The town of Agen was already a city during the Roman occupation 2,000 years ago. Later it would be governed by the English King Henry II and his Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine. English kings ruled most of old Aquitaine from 1152 – 1453. Agen has a 12th-century cathedral and is a walkable town with narrow streets and medieval houses in the center. Just outside, Agen are impressive chateaux, castles, fortresses, and some of France's most beautiful villages.

The Garonne River
Photograph courtesy of camilo g. r.
www.flickr.com/photos/47188333@N00/14657242777/

   

The Pruneaux d’Agen – The Agen Prune.
The gold standard in prunes around the world

The Agen prune is what placed this town on the medieval map and has kept it there ever since. Monks developed the prune from the nearby Benedictine Abbé de Clairac. The monks crossed local plums with Syrian plums that had been brought back from the crusades. These plums could be dried without losing flavor and could be kept for a year or more; now, the citizens could have fruit in winter. The Agen prunes were on their way to becoming a worldwide industry. Dried plums, prunes, were historically very important for the city dweller and the sailor. The city dweller saw little fruit in the winter, and sailors on a voyage of over one week could only use food that could be stored. The dried Agen plum changed their diets. If you are into the history of plums and prunes, visit the Prune Museum of Agen.

N.B.: Do not get confused with the French for plums and prunes as I occasionally still do. The French for plum is prune, and the French for a prune is pruneau (pronounced prune-oh).

The Agen plumb and prune
Photograph courtesy of irqualim
  
Agen and Armagnac country.

Agen is in the heart of Armagnac country, and so you should know better than to ask for a Cognac as a digestif in an Agen restaurant.  Unfortunately, without thinking, I did that! The locals can get quite upset. After a wonderful meal, I asked the sommelier, (the wine steward), "What Cognacs are available?". The sommelier cringed, and then, realizing what I had said, I did the same. However, the sommelier remained polite but offered a very fixed smile. He said: "I am sorry sir, but we keep no Cognacs here. However, we do serve the best Armagnacs in France and I think I can help you choose one." He went on to recommend an aged but not overly expensive Armagnac, which was terrific; I chose that excellent Armagnac again the following night.

Aging barrels of Armagnac.
The date on a bottle of Armagnac is its bottling date. However old the Armagnac was when it was bottled, it does not age or improve in the bottle. An excellent ten-year-old Armagnac bottled in 1965 remains an excellent ten-year-old Armagnac fifty years later. That is if the cork has not dried out.
Photograph courtesy of VisitFrenchWine

   

The chefs in and around Agen

The chefs in and around Agen are highly skilled, and menus in Agen restaurants will include at least one dish with Agen prune accents. Some diners dislike prunes as they associate then with a fruit chosen for those with dietary problems; however, prunes are just dried plums. Despite that, nearly all the other dishes will not even have a sniff of prunes/dried plums for those who do not like prunes. 

 

Agen Cathedral.
Photograph courtesy of kristobalite
www.flickr.com/photos/art_roman_p/8044695946/

   

The chefs have at least 70 other local fruits and vegetables, all excellent, to choose from. In season, make a note to enjoy their incredibly fabulous Label Rouge, red label, strawberries. Along from here come three AOP cheeses, more usually associated with other departments but also made here; they include Rocamadour AOP, Bleu de Causes AOP, and  Ossau-Iraty AOP. The land around Agen is a veritable garden of Eden. Those who like plumb brandy should try one of Agen's: Eau de Vie de Prune d'Ente with 46% alcohol.

Vieille Eau de Vie de Prunes d'Ente
Agen Plumb brandy.
Photograph courtesy Distillerie la Salamandre

Lunch or dinner in Agen with prune accents:

Champignons Farcis aux Pruneaux d’Agen – Mushrooms stuffed with Agen prunes.

Crumble aux Pruneaux d'Agen, Glace à l'Armagnac - A prune crumble served with Armagnac brandy flavored icecream. Crumble is as popular in France as it is in Britain. The dish came to France along with British soldiers in two world wars. The original recipes were apple and rhubarb crumble, and then the French took off on their own. Armagnac, one of France's two most famous grape brandies (the other is Cognac), is just as important to the Cuisine of Lot-et-Garonne as the Agen prune. 

Civet de Canard Aux Pruneaux D'Agen.
Wine braised ducks' legs with Agen prunes.
Photograph courtesy of Saveur

Magret de Canard, Confit de Pruneaux d'Agen Cuit au Vin de Noix Pommes de Terre Sautées Piment d'Espelette - Duck breast served with a jam made of prunes cooked in walnut wine, accompanied by sautéed potatoes spiced with the Basque Country's Espelette AOP peppers. Many of Nouvelle Aquitaine's departments are renowned for their ducks and duck dishes. Around Agen and in its neighboring department of Dordogne/Perigord there are ducks galore, so duck will be on nearly every menu. Vegetable confits are made by slowly cooking the vegetables with wine, vinegar, and sometimes added sugar and oil. The resulting jam is frequently called a chutney, but here a prune confit might accompany the main dishes with its slightly sweet taste. If oil is used, it will probably be walnut oil, and the walnut wine, which is not really a wine, will counteract the sweetness. Walnut wine is made in this region by macerating green walnuts in wine and a liquor.

Pruneaux d'Agen ou Vin de Bergerac et Glace Vanilla  – Agen prunes cooked in a Bergerac wine and served with vanilla icecream. Bergerac wines come from the neighboring department of the Dordogne/ Perigord and include reds, roses, and white wines. No doubt, the Bergerac wine accompanying this dish will be one of their excellent sweet white wines.

Bergerac is in Purple Périgord, the wine-growing center of Périgord/Dordogne, hence the name. Here the most important town is Bergerac itself, and the surrounding area is called the Pays de Bergerac. Apart from being home to the Bergerac wines, Bergerac is another center of Cuisine Périgourdine.

Do not ignore the IGP wines of Agenais. These were previously the Vin de Pays de l'Agenais. The Agen IGP wines are whites, roses, and reds; they make an enjoyable change. If you prefer AOP wines, try the Côtes de Duras AOP with red, white, and rosé wines, the Buzet AOP red and white wines, and the Côtes du Marmandais AOP red and white wines. All are very different wines from close to Agen. Their vineyards face those of Bordeaux across the river Garonne; the city of Bordeaux is just 141 km (88 miles) from Agen. Some of the grapes that make the Cahors red wine, from the town of Cahors in the neighboring department of Lot, just 85 km (53 miles) away, come from close to Agen, so Cahors will also be on many wines lists.

Ris De Veau Croustillant, Boudin Noir, Choux, Pommes, Jus au Porto et Pruneaux d'Agen - Crisply cooked veal sweetbreads served with black pudding, cabbage, and apples. The dish is served with a sauce made with port wine and Agen prunes. The boudin noir in this dish is a pig’s blood sausage, called black pudding in English and Irish kitchens. In France, cabbage is an important vegetable will be in every French restaurant kitchen, and the sauce here is made with the natural cooking juices flavored with Port wine and Agen prunes.

Boudin Noir with Choucroute.
Photograph courtesy of Robert
www.flickr.com/photos/rdpeyton/4116911187/ 

For more about other fruits and wines in Lot-et-Garonne, use the French language website with Google or Bing Translate. Click here:

Around Agen

The area around Agen is called Agenais; it covers two valleys, three rivers, and the Garonne Lateral Canal. The Garonne Lateral Canal connects to the Canal de Midi canal that connects the Mediterranean at the fishing port of Sete, while in the other direction, the canal leads to the northwest and Bordeaux. You may rent a motorboat with bedrooms, bathrooms, and kitchen and sail to the Mediterranean via the canal.

The Agen Canal.
Photograph courtesy of Jean-Louise Zimmerman
www.flickr.com/photos/jeanlouis_zimmermann/4765010335/

However, to see and taste Agen and its surroundings, take the map from the local Tourist Information Office called: Les Circuits en Agenaise, D'une Vallée à l'Autre. This is the Agen Tourist Information Office Route for all the best stops around Agen in one day.

Les Circuits en Agenaise - The route around Agen
Courtesy of the Agen Tourist Information office

The map has explanations for each stop and to those, you may add your own side trips, of which there are many choices. This map is an easy way to get to know the area around Agen; it covers, altogether, 100 kilometers (60 miles) and is a fantastic way to pass a day. Traveling with this map will introduce you to the countryside, its fruit farms, duck farms, cheese producers, prune growers, vineyards, wineries, a chateau, and a castle or two, and the Abbey of Clairac. As may be expected, the map for Les Circuits also directs you past many restaurants.

The Agen tourist information office has a French-language website that can easily be read using Google or Bing Translate:

  http://www.destination-agen.com/
 
The French adventurer named Louis Pellier
and the California fruit and wine Industry.

 Louis Pellier from Agen came to the USA from France in 1849 when he heard the news of the California gold rush. After some success in the goldfields, Louis built a nursery and orchard for apples, peaches, and plums in the Santa Clara valley. In 1854 on a return trip to France, Louis brought cuttings of the Agen plum trees and cuttings from some of France's most famous grapevines. At one stroke, Louis Pellier established the California French Prune industry and the California wine industry.

Louis Pellier's park will be rebuilt here.
Map courtesy of Pellier Park

The site of Louis Pellier's original nursery in San Jose was reduced to a rather small one-acre park, now an uninteresting piece of grass. That one-acre park in memory of the founder of California's fruit and wine industry is supposed to be rebuilt, but it has no adequate budget. Few in the USA, in California, or in France, will even have heard of Louis Pellier. America owes Louis Pellier a little respect; maybe the industries involved could organize one annual joint (USA and France) Louis Pellier wine and plum festival…..anyway, back to Agen prunes.

The Grand Prune Shown in Agen.

Every year, on the last Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of August, (except 2020) Agen's town puts on Le Grande Pruneau Show de Agen, the great prune show of Agen. They have parades, decorations, concerts, special programs for kids, and of course, prune/dried plum enhanced menus in all local restaurants. Click on their website for this year's dates of the Grand Prune Show, Pruneau Show d'Agen)

Agen and Rugby

 Agen is a rugby crazy town, playing 15 a side rugby union rules. On the right weekend, you will be able to watch a game; check ahead.

The Agen team playing in Toulouse.
Photograph courtesy of Pierre-Selim  
www.flickr.com/photos/pierre-selim/7958788650/

Rugby lovers can follow their favorite sport in Agen and the three towns close to Agen famous for their wines: Duras, Buzet (Buzet-sur-Baïse,) and Marmande.  Marmand is also renowned for its Marmand AOP tomatoes. All these four towns are absolutely rugby crazy.

The Agen French language rugby website is:

   

http://www.Agen-rugby.com/cms/ 

How far to Agen?

   

719 km (447 miles) from Paris. (Four hours by TGV fast trains).

135 km (84 miles) southeast of Bordeaux.

137km (85 miles) from Perigueux,

91 km (57 miles) from Bergerac and their AOP wines

--------------------------------

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2015, 2020

--------------------------------

 

Are you searching for the translation or meaning of words, names,

or phrases on French Menus?

 

Just add the word, words, or phrase you are searching for to the words "Behind the French Menu" and search with Google. Behind the French Menu's links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases that are seen on French menus. There are over 480 articles that include over 4,000 French dishes with English translations and explanations.

 

------------------

 

Connected Posts:
 
What are the AOCs and AOPs on France's Foods and Wine labels?
 
Armagnac one of France’s two fabulous AOP grape brandies.
 
Basque Cuisine. The Basque Cuisine of the Pays Basque. Ordering Basque Dishes.
 
Bleu de Causses the Blue, Mild to Spicy, Creamy Cow’s Milk Cheese from Aveyron in the South.
  
Bordeaux and Bordelaise on the Menu, and Bordeaux AOC Wines on the Wine-List.
 
Boudins and Black Puddings on French Menus. The Sausages of France II.
 
Cabbage; Cabbage in a French restaurant? Of Course, Cabbage is very important in French Cuisine
 
The Cahors AOC Wine and Cahors the Town. Cahors Wine in French Cuisine.
 
Canard – Duck. Duck on French Menus.
 
Choucroute and Choucroute Garnie. Choucroute from the Alsace in French Cuisine
 
Civet – A traditional French stew associated with small wild game. Civet on French Menus.
 
Cognac the Town, and Visiting Cognac and Tasting the Product. Cognac IV.

Cuisine à la Périgourdine - Dining in the Four Colors of the Dordogne-Perigord. 

Dining in the Five Departments of Old Aquitaine: the Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, and the Pyrénées-Atlantiques.

Glace – Ice-cream. Ice-cream on French Menus. Glacé and Glacée are Desserts That are Frozen, Iced, Chilled or Glazed.

Fraises - Strawberries. The Wild Strawberry and the Story of the French Strawberries From Plougastel.
 
 Jus – Fruit or Vegetable Juice and/or a cooked dish’s natural juices on French Menus
  
 Magret de Canard or Lou Magret, Duck Breast Dishes and Recipes on French Menus.
  
 Mushrooms in France I, The Champignon de Paris, the Button Mushroom.
 
Noix – The Walnut. France’s Beloved Nut. The Walnut on French Menus.
 
Ossau-Iraty AOP. One of France’s Two AOP sheep’s cheeses.
 
Piment d’Espelette - The Pepper from Espelette in the Basque Country. Pimenete d'Esplette is Most Popular Chili Pepper in France.
 
Pommes Granny Smith – Granny Smith apples. Granny Smith Apples on French Menus.
 
Port or Porto - Port Wine in French Cuisine. Port on French Menus
 
Ris de Veau (d'Agneau) - Sweetbreads on French Menus. When sweetbreads are on the menu in France do not pass them by.
 
Rocamadour Goat’s Cheese, AOP and the Medieval city of Rocamadour.
 
Sète (Sete) and its Cuisine. Sète is the Largest Fishing Port on France’s Mediterranean Coast.
 
Sucre – Sugar. Sugar on French Menus and Sugar in French Cuisine.
 
Tastevin – A Sommelier's Odd Looking Cup, Worn on a Neck Chain Around the Neck.  The Sign of Wines from Burgundy.
 
The Aging and Blending of Cognac, France’s most Famous Brandy. Cognac II.
 
The French Connection and The English Kitchen
 
The New French Wine Labels. What has changed in French wines? What is an AOP, an IGP, and a Vin de France.
 
Tomate – Tomato. France’s Greatest Tomato, the Tomate de Marmande AOC. The Tomato in French Cuisine.
 
Vanille – Vanilla. The story of Vanilla and Vanilla in French Cuisine.
 
Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine
 
What is a Confit? All About That Confit on Your French Menu.
 

 

 

 

Bulots, Bourgets or Buccins - Whelks. Whelks are Very Tasty Sea Snails and They Will be on the Menu in France .

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

The common whelk.

Photograph courtesy Akuppa John Wigham

   

Bulot or Bourget or Buccin – A whelk; a tasty sea snail.  If you enjoy bigorneau, winkles; coques, cockles; conuque, conch; or  palourdes, clams, then whelks should not seem strange. They are all a part of the same family, and their taste and texture are very similar. 

 

Whelks, and sometimes winkles, a British favorite, are an important part of most French seafood platters. In France, whelks may be inside the ravioli or part of a salad or another dish.

Fifty years ago British seaside holidays on the Atlantic coast were never without a cup of winkles and whelks to eat on the spot; a few places continue that tradition. The winkles and whelks in the UK were eaten cold with salt, pepper, and vinegar. They would have been previously boiled in water with vinegar, usually malt vinegar. The best way to eat them was cold with more vinegar while accompanied by bread and butter.

  

Cooked bulots, whelks, in a French market.

Take them home, make some fresh mayonnaise, and then serve them with French fries or add to another seafood dish.

Photograph courtesy Susan (NYC),

  

In London, a Jewish immigrant Joseph Malin, a descendant of a  Marano family expelled from Portugal in 1496, opened a shop in London’s east end. He was selling the  Marono specialty of fried fish to which he added a Belgian import, French fries, chips.  Success was instantaneous, and soon there were tens of shops and then tens of thousands of shops selling fish and chips. In short order added to the menu were winkles, whelks, cockles, mussels, shrimp, jellied and smoked eels and more. Then this was good and inexpensive food for the poor and lower classes. These were not just sold from shops, but from wheeled barrows that visited the pubs.  From that came the UK tradition of selling seafood by the pint. In the pubs and on the barrows there were no scales, so a pint glass was the standard.  Until twenty years ago many fishmongers still offered to sell shrimps and seafood in pints if they were asked. N.B.: Fried fish as a Jewish specialty was recognized already in a book written in 1774 by Hannah Glasse, “The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy”. It includes the earliest reference on Jewish recipes for fish: “The Jews’ way of preserving salmon, and all sorts of fish”. I bought the facsimile version of the book that was available for $8.00 from Abes Books.

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?sts=t&tn=The+Art+of+Cookery+Made+Plain+and+Easy

 

Whelks may not be as popular today in the UK, but that is now being addressed by many of the best chefs. They are creating new dishes where whelks star. In France, whelks have never been out of fashion and to satisfy its local market 50% of the whelks must be imported.  The UK is a very important source of whelks for export to France.

  

English whelks from Weymouth ready for export to France.

Photograph courtesy of Stephen and Helen Jones

    

Seafood on sale along the coast in the UK.

Photograph courtesy of Laura Mary

   

Whelks include a whole family of cousins that will be on menus in North America, Japan and elsewhere. In Japan, whelks will be served as sashimi and sushi.

Whelks on the French menu:

 Whelks served with fresh mayonnaise. These are generally served with a plate of French fries, chips and fresh mayonnaise on the side. If the fries and mayonnaise are not included, then order them separately to make this dish perfect. Accompany this dish with a dry (brut) sparkling crémant wine, or in Normandy and Brittany accompany the dish with a dry sparkling cider. 

Assiette de Bulots et Crevettes  - A plate of whelks and shrimps with fresh mayonnaise.

Bulots Mayonnaise- Whelks served with fresh mayonnaise.

Photograph courtesy of Sébastien Barré

   

Bulots à l'Aïoli – Whelks served with Provence's famous garlicky mayonnaise.

     

Toasted ravioli stuffed with whelks and served with a sweet and spicy sauce.

Photograph courtesy of jayne vidheecharoen

        

Plateau de Fruits de Mer  (crevettes rouge, bulots, moules, huîtres). A serving plate with seafood. In this case the  Northern pink shrimp, whelks, mussels and oysters.  In France plateaus de fruits de mer can be amazing creations. Some come with two or three stories overflowing with the wonders of the sea.

    

Le Plateau de Fruits de Mer

(crevettes rouge, bulots, huîtres).

A plate of fresh seafood, Northern pink shrimp.  whelks, oysters.

Photograph courtesy HS Seidelin,

      

 Salade de Bulots Ravigote – A salad made with whelks and served with a sauce ravigote. Ravigote is a thick vinaigrette/mayonnaise sauce made with mustard, eggs, olive oil and herbs. The sauce is a favorite with fish and shellfish, poultry and veal tongue.

   

Cassolette de Fruits de Mer, Coquillages, and Buccins de Normandie -  A cassolette is a small cooking bowl. French menus often include the name of the bowl or pan used in the preparation of a dish. Here shellfish and whelks from Normandy have been cooked together. Coquillages is one of the French words for seafood. Cassolletes are not to be confused with cassoulets. Cassoulets are an extensive group of tasty and heavy winter stews that mostly originated in the historical province of Languedoc.

   

Salade d'Escargots de Mer « buccin » -  A salad of sea-snails, whelks.

  

Spicy shrimp and whelk stew.

Photograph courtesy of su-lin.

    

Whelks, in France, are very popular, so much so that France only manages to supply 50% from her own resources. France imports over 20% of the whelks they consume from the UK, the others come from other sources.

  

Whelks ready for the pots.

Photograph courtesy of P.Gikaa

   

The pinkish meat of the whelk tends to be chewier than that of smaller whelks. So it is often prepared in a recipe that calls for conch; for example salads, and chowders.

Whelks in the languages of France’s neighbors:

(Catalan - botzina), (Dutch – wulk), (Italian - buccino, lumache di mare,scungilli), (German -Wellhornschnecke ), (Spanish –bocina), (Latin - littorina littorea).

   

Connected Posts:

  

Anguille, Anguille d'Europe - Freshwater Eels in French Cuisine.

    

Cassoles, Cassolettes, and Cassoulets. Along with Four of the Most Famous Cassoulets on French Menus.

   

Coques. Cockles. Coques on Your French Seafood Menu. 

Cremants are the best value in French sparkling wines.

French Ciders, Including France's Fabulous Sparkling Ciders.

Frites or Pomme Frites - French Fries in the USA and Chips in the UK. French Fries on French Menus.

Mayonnaise Fraîche - In France all Mayonnaise is Fresh Mayonnaise

  

Moules - Mussels. Moules Frites and Much More. Mussels on French Menus.

 

Ordering mussels in France. More than just Moules Frites, and How to Order Moules Frites

Palourdes – Clams. Clams on French Menus.

  

Huitres - Oysters I. Ordering, Eating, and Enjoying Oysters in France.
   

Shrimps and Prawns Among the Many Tasty Crustaceans on Your French Menu.

Behind the French Menu’s links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases that are seen on French menus. There are over 400 articles that include over 2,500 French dishes with English translations and explanations.  Just add the word, words or phrase that you are searching for to the words "Behind the French Menu" and search with Google.

    

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2015, 2017.