You know the saying: “<Insert Trendy Thing Here> is the new black.” Meaning that it’s hotter than hot, coveted by those in-the-know, and welcomed, perhaps even de rigueur in chic circles everywhere. Sounds a bit like French wine, n’est-ce pas? Have you ever seen a quality wine list without at least a few bottles from France?

There’s a reason French wines are held in such high esteem: for years they served as the benchmark against which all other wines were compared. After all it was the infamous Judgment of Paris, in which several American wines outshone their French counterparts, that catapulted California wine onto the international stage. And, let’s face it: whichever wine first tempted us to explore the wonders of the vinous world chances are that, at some point in our escapades, a French wine stole our heart.

Each month, the #Winophiles dive into a particular aspect of French wine that intrigues us. Sometimes it’s a geographic region like Bordeaux or Burgundy; other times it’s a style of wine (e.g., sparkling) that can be made using a variety of methods. Regardless of the topic, we discuss food and wine pairings, favorite producers, and travel tips. In April, we pack our suitcases with French wine and head across the border in search of Cross-Cultural Food Pairings for French Wines.

At first this might seem to contradict the menu-planning maxim that “what grows together, goes together.” And when you think about such fabled pairings as raw oysters and Muscadet or white truffles and Nebbiolo, the rule makes sense. But it also limits us to tried-and-true ideas rather than letting our imaginations run wild with possibilities. So, on Saturday, April 15^th, we will unleash our creative impulses and tamper with tradition. We’ll mix things up by pairing our favorite French wines with dishes from Somewhere Else.

Would You Like to Join Us?

It’s super-easy to do:

Contact me to tell me you’re in: Include blog url, Twitter handle, and any other social media details. We’d just like to get a sense of who’s participating and give some shout-outs and links as we go. You can send your details to me here.

Send your post title to me by Wednesday, April 12th to be included in the preview post. I will prepare a preview post shortly after getting the titles, linking to your blogs.

Publish your post between 12:01 a.m-8:00 a.m. EDT on Saturday, April 15th. You can always schedule your post in advance if you will be tied up that morning.

Include links to the other #Winophiles participants in your post, and a description of what the event is about. I’ll provide the HTML code that you can easily put in your initial post — which will link to people’s general blog url.

Get social! After the posts go live, please visit your fellow bloggers’ posts to comment and share. We have a Facebook group for participating bloggers, too. If you need an invitation please let me know.

Sponsored posts are OK if clearly disclosed. Please be sure to mention if your post is sponsored or if you are describing wine or other products for which you have received a free sample.

WINOPHILES IN 2017

Please accept our invitation to join us on the third Saturday of each month. If you are a blogger, please welcome this opportunity to be a part of the French Winophiles. If you are interested in wine, food and travel in France, please join our Twitter chats at 11 am eastern using  #Winophiles.

Our schedule for the year is as follows:

Janvier: Savoie

Février: Corsica

Mars: Champagne

Avril: Cross-Cultural Food Pairings for French Wines

Mai: A drive thru Bourgogne (the Maconnais,Cote Chalonnaise, Cote de Beaune) PART 1, hosted by LM at binNotes | redThread™

Juin: A drive thru Bourgogne (Cote de Nuits, Chablis) PART 2, LM at binNotes | redThread™

Julliet: Southwest France (Sud-Ouest), hosted by Jeff at FoodWineClick!

Août: French Wine Finds Under $20

Septembre: My French Wine Memory: Travel Stories from Wine Writers (pick your own!)

Octobre: Languedoc-Roussillon

Novembre: Beaujolais hosted by Jeff at FoodWineClick!

Décembre: French Dessert Wine