About the location:
Approximately twenty minutes east of Nyons, the olive capital of France,
lies an 18th century farmhouse, "Moutas," nestled in the hills outside the
village of Condorcet. This is a breathtaking rural location with a microclimate
said to be among the most agreeable in all of France. All bedrooms have en-suite bathrooms,
and the stream-fed pool is an ideal place to relax. Your hosts Anne and David Reinauer will
insure you every need is attended to. Anne, from Lake Charles, Louisiana, is a retired French
teacher, and David, a real estate developer, bought their French "Mas" 17 years ago as a
seasonal retreat. In the mid-1980's, the Reinauers, along with their two youngest children,
lived year-round in the farmhouse while they painstakingly restored it and immersed themselves
in French life and culture. In 2000, Anne, with her love of France and food, along with her
personal friendships with several top New Orleans chefs, decided to open her Provençal
home and share her love of French cooking and culture.
 A Week in Provence is
a fantastic opportunity to experience a spectacular region of France and truly engage in the life, culture and cuisine of the country. Although cooking classes form the cornerstone of the program, we are offering a truly unique mix of activities with the aim of showing participants the origins of traditional ingredients in French cuisine and exposing our guests to many facets of French culture. All is taught and mastered here, from picking cherries, apricots or plums off the trees outside for a clafoutis or tarte, to a daube Provençal or duck confit or salmon mousse, with rosemary and thyme wild for the taking.
 About the cooking
lessons: Your instructor, Master Chef Daniel Bonnot, is a superb teacher, both charming and knowledgeable. Born in
France, Chef Bonnot worked under Parisian chefs for seven years, followed by a stint at the five star Savoy Hotel
in London and La Caravelle in Guadeloupe. Seventeen years again he made New Orleans his home, where he was chef/owner
of Chez Daniel and Bizous. He has been named Chef of the Year in both 1980 and 1995 and Bizou was named one of the 10
best new restaurants by Esquire Magazine. You will experience the benefit of his vast talent in five, 3-5 hour cooking
lessons.
French Cooking Classes: A Week in Provence
Condorcet, Provence
Itinerary
- Your cooking vacation begins with your arrival in Condorcet Tuesday afternoon, either with the pickup transfer
from Montelimar or Valence or by car.
- Time to settle into your room and get to know your surroundings before the first dinner.
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Wednesday through Sunday, each day is designed around 3 - 5 hours of hands-on culinary
instruction and excursions into this sun-drenched and historical corner of Provence.
Depending on the availability, season and local village festivals, you will experience some of
the following activities throughout the week:
- Visit a local goat farm and goat-cheese producer
- Visit a duck farm to buy meat for "confit" and observe the "gavage"
- Visit a 250 year old factory where olive oil filters are still made the old fashioned way
- Visit a trout farm - select fresh fish for the table
- Tour a Chateauneuf-du-Pape chateau or an area wine producer with a special lecture and tasting
- Bottle our own wine (with an extra to tuck into your suitcase)
- Experience a bit of French/Roman history - tour a medieval village - visit remarkable Roman ruins
- Tour an olive oil mill founded in 1847 with special tasting, or the famous Nyons olive co-op
- Tour an old style lavender distillery and participate in a perfume workshop
- Find time to shop for those beautiful Provençal fabrics and ceramics
- Explore the renowned, sprawling and animated open-air market in Nyons
- Enjoy a special chocolate workshop, taught by a classically trained and immensely popular “Chocolatier”
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- In your free time, you have a myriad of possible activities to while away the time:
- Relax by the pool,
- Read on the terrace,
- Hike up the mountains through the wild lavender and thyme,
- Ride horses up into the hills,
- Bicycle,
- Star-gaze or simply nap in your room.
- Sleep with windows open.
- Soak up the ambiance of Provence.
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- The program ends Monday morning after breakfast. Bon Voyage!
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2008 Price Per Person
US$3250 per person based on double occupancy in room with private
full bath
US$350 for roundtrip transfers for two people
US$250 for roundtrip transfers for one person
US$790 single supplement
This Program Requires a Deposit of 50% Per Person and Final
Payment 5 Months Prior to the Start of the Program.
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2008 Tour Dates
Summer
June 3 - 9 (sold out)
June 10 - 16 (1 room left)
Fall
September 2 - 8 (1 room left)
September 9 - 15 (sold out)
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 Included in the Program:
- 6 nights accommodations
- Breakfast daily
- 6 dinners with unlimited selected local wine
- Three lunches, including local wine
- All planned group excursions
- 5 cooking classes (lasting three to five hours)
Public transportation is not readily available to Moutas. The easiest
accessibility is train (the high speed TGV) from Paris’ Gare de Lyon train
station to Montelimar, and a rental car for the one - hour drive. Or, we are
about a three hour drive from Nice; two hours from Marseilles. If you are
coming direct from the Paris airport, we recommend you stay a night in
Valence or Avignon, and pick up your rental car there. If you prefer not to
rent a car, we will arrange for a taxi to meet you and return you to
Montelimar for the TGV. The supplement for such service is $250 per single
person, or $350 for a couple.
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Cooking Vacations 
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