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Vermonter Ed Behr’s New Book Takes Readers On a Gustatory Tour of France

Posted by Guest Author | August 4, 2016

By Hailey Grohman

Vermont is lauded for its beer, cheese, and cider, but those aren’t the only food-related features that set us apart from other states. We’re also the home of several award-winning food publications and writers: Eating Well magazine in Shelburne, author of food and nature books Rowan Jacobsen, and perhaps best known, James Beard award-winner Ed Behr and his magazine The Art of Eating.

Behr, a resident of the Northeast Kingdom, publishes not just a respected quarterly magazine but also books on food culture and history. His food writing reflects the Vermont values of authenticity and quality while exposing readers to tastes from around the world.

ed-behr

This summer, Behr is back with a new book that may have more bearing on Vermont food culture than one might guess from the title. In The Food and Wine of France: Eating and Drinking from Champagne to Provence, Behr takes readers on a culinary tour of a country that is dear to his heart. Each chapter describes a different uniquely French product, from croissants to snails to Comté cheese, and those who make them. He situates each product in context, bringing readers from small town to small town as he meets producers and farmers who have dedicated their lives to the craft of artisan food production.

The book is a love letter to the country and its people no less than its delicious food; Behr sympathetically describes each producer with the utmost respect for their process and philosophies. In this way, Behr shows France as made up of many unique regional cuisines and terroirs, taking readers past the reductive stereotype of Parisian haute cuisine.

A theme that weaves throughout the book is the producers’ struggle between tradition and modernity in their craft—a tension that Vermont producers may well recognize. Behr’s artisans must uphold the quality of the products they make while keeping up with new, innovative methods that may reduce costs and give them advantage on the market. How can farmers and makers preserve the spirit of the patrimoine, or heritage, in a global world? It’s a question affecting almost everyone in the food system. The words of a winemaker in one chapter are echoed in almost every story in Behr’s narrative: “If [we] were young, [we] probably couldn’t afford to make wine in the old way.”

Though this struggle underlies the narrative, Behr writes with a precision and sensuousness that makes the book a pleasure to read. Francophiles will enjoy Behr’s descriptions of the food that he encounters on his journey, and more than once I put down the book suddenly, inspired to cook or seek out the products he enjoys.

Though a map or a recipe might have helped inform the story, Behr is at his literary best with this book and it’s a very satisfying read. Whether you’re familiar with The Art of Eating or just a fan of food or France, you’ll leave both educated and hungry.

-Hailey Grohman is a graduate student in food systems with research interests in food communication and media.

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