Now it's our tradition to go to the Gourmet Festival at Cagnes sur Mer. This is the biggest one in our region and we prefer to go to one with many vendors. You can try a bigger variety of products and it is easier to find those vendors who are happy to introduce to you their wine and teach you some new stuff about their region.
When we first took Pixie she was too small to taste anything. Now she can pick out those stalls where they have chocolate or marmalade, which she loves and of course eat some cheese and ham too. Although she is always curious about our wine glass she has to wait many more years to find out what it tastes like.
The last couple of times I didn’t really try the wine or any other alcoholic drinks, being pregnant, then on demand breastfeeding didn’t allow it, but it didn’t stop me from trying out all the sweets and other food sold at the festival.
Although do not forget, if you are pregnant ask if the cheese is made from pasteurized milk. At the supermarket, they mostly sell pasteurized products but at these gourmet places they offer you the non pasteurized ones, so always ask before you taste some cheese. My husband was tasting all the different wine, cognac, champagne and other spirits, I was just smelling them to get an idea about them.
We love to find new products, something we never tried before. One of my favourite here was the ice cider. They even offer something like a cider liqueur, it’s delicious and surprisingly strong!
We also tasted here for the first time the crystallized chestnuts, they are perfect! I also recommend to try the chestnut cream, it’s amazing on your baguette or pancake for breakfast! Pixie also loves them! Luckily the vendors are always very nice and give her a spoon as well!
I expected her the like all the different chocolate, I have to admit, she might have eaten more than what she should have, but I was very surprised how quickly she ate all the different ham and cheese. I was always checking to see if she dropped them, but no, she ate them all!
If you want to go with a small baby, I definitely recommend a baby carrier, there are so many people it’s hard to get around with a stroller. Also try to get there early, it’s very difficult to find a parking spot during the afternoon.
If you buy something, make sure to give your details to the vendor, usually, they send out invites to the next festivals, so you do not have to buy the entrance ticket.