I have been living in Bordeaux studying for my Masters in Vineyard and Winery Management. While I'm here, I have had the opportunity to see a number of our former interns. Some of them are working in the wine industry, while others visit Bordeaux for vacation. I've enjoyed dinners with them, worked for one and even run into another on the streets. Alexander Valley can feel far away, but anytime I see one of them, I feel instantly at home. It's been very fun to continue the friendships with them - some for over two decades. 

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As you may know, I moved to Bordeaux last September, and while I moved here to get my Masters, I really moved here for the food (and the wine). I’ve spent much of my time here exploring the different neighborhoods, basically eating and drinking my way through the city. My parents came to visit for a few days in July, and we tried a number of my favorites and even some places I hadn’t been! I’ve put together an itinerary of my favorite things to do in the city, but really, you can’t go wrong here. 

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At the start of September, I moved to Bordeaux to study Vineyard and Winery Management through Bordeaux Science Agro’s Master of Business and Science program. One of the things that I was most excited about my move, in addition to the copious amounts of cheese I was going to eat, was the family of interns that I would get to see. Since 1985, Hafner Vineyard has had a French intern from a university in Toulouse to help with harvest. The young man lives with my parents (and me when I was younger!) and usually is between 19 and 21 years old. Growing up, our interns were always big brothers to me. Soon after arriving in Bordeaux, I started meeting up with them, and so far, I’ve checked seven off the list. 

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Our Grandmother (Mary) taught us the fun of shopping local and “eating with the seasons”. She shared her love of the farmers’ market with us, so this Spring when the market opened, we found ourselves continuing the tradition. Kate (who works at Hafner Vineyard and lives nearby) visits the market most every Saturday, while Grace (who lives in San Francisco) shops at many markets - the Ferry Building, Fort Mason or her neighborhood one. With the bounty of produce, we are inspired to create dinners with as much from the market as we can, just like Grandmother did. We thought it would be fun to share how we both build a meal around the farmers’ selections.

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