Count Montlosier: The Wizard of Auvergne
My life has been…full of events; yet no event, not even the Revolution, has left me with insights so precise and impressions so vivid as magnetism…I found myself producing by my will what, according to ordinary understanding, generally seems impossible… -François-Dominique, Count Montlosier When ambling along one of the many trails that start in Randanne […]
Auvergne Cuisine: An Interview with Chef Adrien Descouls
The landscape of Auvergne is marked by its medieval past and its volcanism, and the Tuscan-like hill town of Le Broc serves as a striking example of how these features often combine to make a bright, visual opera, playing out the melodramas of centuries before the eyes. While the town itself offers much to see […]
The Clermont-Ferrand Metropolitan Library Project: An Interview with Mayor Olivier Bianchi
“This library won’t be just another cultural facility — it will be a true catalyst for the city’s artistic and literary life.” -Olivier Bianchi, Mayor of Clermont-Ferrand For over half a decade, the most hotly-anticipated building project taking shape in Clermont-Ferrand has been the Clermont-Ferrand Metropolitan Library. All mindfully and aesthetically built libraries have a […]
Hidden Clermont-Ferrand: Carmes Cemetery
Gothic, airy, and romantic, Carmes Cemetery is undoubtedly the most beautiful and haunting park in Clermont-Ferrand.
Literary Notes on Auvergne Sculptures: The “Faun” of Ponteix
Those of you who know me know of my passion for fountain grotesques and mascarons, which I see as contemporary genii locorum (“spirits of the place”). When we look into their stony, goblinesque eyes, we are — if only for a moment — drawn upwards into the world of imagination. New thoughts then rush into […]
Occult Auvergne: A Werewolf in Puy-de-Dôme
What happens when you see a werewolf in Puy-de-Dôme? Here’s a fascinating account from a 19th-century travel memoir.
Storytelling in Auvergne: An Interview with Christine Butot
Oral storyteller Christine Butot has been entertaining diverse audiences in France with her repertoire of folktales and legends for decades. I first met her through, a Annie Sauvat, a winemaker and oenotourism promoter who has frequently partnered with Butot for various events in Boudes, a gorgeous village situated in Auvergne’s “Tuscany”. When Butot excitedly mentioned Les Petits […]
Wine-Loving Ghosts: A Haunting in Aubière
In 1908, Aubière — a town bordering Clermont-Ferrand — fell into the clutches of a particularly aggressive group of wine-loving ghosts.
Mapping the Rise of Royat: An Interview with Johan Picot
In the 1800s, Royat become one of the world’s premier spa destinations. Local historian Johan Picot tells us how.
Wine and Wellbeing: A Visit to Boudes with Annie Sauvat
Visit Auvergne talks wine and wellbeing and visits the village of Boudes with Annie Sauvat of the Domaine Sauvat wine estate.
