It’s one of those unsung heroes of French gastronomy and heritage. The picturesque town of Brive-la-Gaillarde, often called just Brive, nestled 300 miles (480 kilometres) south of Paris in the rural Corrèze region of France, and its surroundings are home to some of the country’s most beautiful natural and architectural sites as well as a fabulous wealth of gourmet goods ranging from apples and black truffles to foie gras, fattened ducks and geese (the famous confits), walnuts, local cheeses and nice, original wines.  Gastronomy is a year round feast in Brive and the surrounding area with local markets bursting with regional produce and products and restaurants doing much of the same for myriad fine dining experiences. 

Left: A foie gras and vin de paille tasting workshop in Brive. Photo:©Malika Turin. Courtesy Brive Tourisme. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette. Right: Regional specialties: walnuts and local cheeses including the Rocamadour AOC. Photo:©Malika Turin. Courtesy Brive Tourisme. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette

But the fall and winter markets and food offerings are a particularly special time with wild mushrooms, apples  and the uncanny fat markets typical of France’s southwest. For from November until March the time is ripe to enjoy foie gras and fattened duck and goose, often in the famous confits, the potted duck or goose which have been marinating in their own fat. The Brive market is one of the finest in the region whose virtues were extolled by French folk singer George Brassens and the market place is named after him. Walnuts, too, abound in the autumn and winter markets. 

Don’t miss a visit to the family-owned house of Denoix which makes a superb walnut liqueur, a walnut wine and the violet mustard (made with wine must) of Brive. You can even visit the distillery right in the heart of Brive where visits and a tasting are on the house. The Apple Festival is slated to be held on October 21st in Brive featuring activities, workshops and a giant apple pie made by local Correzian bakers. Local restaurants offer up dishes revolving around apples. The Limousin golden which thrives in the region is the only AOP, Designated Label of Origin apple in France, a label which requires strict growing conditions. 

While you can find foie gras and duck and goose confit throughout the year, it is all the more in season in the winter months, much in tune with the natural migrating cycles of geese and duck who heartily feed down before taking their long migration routes in the springtime. Brive hosts fat markets — Les Foires Grasses de Brive — from November through March, this season’s dates not to be missed: November 18th, December 2nd and 16th, January 6th, February 3rd and March 2nd. Some 30 local producers gather in the town of Brive with their finest fattened ducks, geese, capons and foie gras. These fat fairs, once called winter fairs,  have been part of the local landscape since the 13th century. A competition is held of course with a special jury handing out the prizes to the winning producers. Another advantage is that many of these products are vacuum packed and easy to travel with, check regulations for your individual countries. 

Left: Veal served with local vegetables, wild mushrooms and the local potato cake. The veal of Corrèze is famous throughout France as it is raised exclusively on its mother’s milk. Photo:©Malika Turin. Courtesy Brive Tourisme. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette. Right: A local specialty the mique, a type of raised country bread cooked in wood-fired ovens upon which local vegetables and traditionally pork belly are served. Photo:©Malika Turin. Courtesy Brive Tourisme. Handout via The Gourmet Gazette

And then there are the wines. Original and unique wines of the Corrèze. Winemakers in the southwest corner of the region obtained their Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC), in English the Protected Designation of Origin or PDO, which means they must adhere to strict and verified production conditions while the wines of the Brive region received  between 2009 and 2017, the IGP  (Indication géographique protégée label), in English the protected geographical indication specifying its geographic location. 

And some of these wines are wonderful and assuredly good value like the local sweet vin de paille which has been a tradition in the region since the Middle Ages, a sweet wine, it is perfectly paired with the local foie gras. Meanwhile the Coteaux de la Vézère offers a complete palette of dry whites, reds and rosés and semi-dry or sweetish whites. This vineyard was revived in the 1990s and early 2000s when a group came together to form a cooperative to bring this vineyard and its wines back to an exciting new life. The vineyards are about 20 minutes from Brive. 

While the feasting is fabulous fun be it in the markets or Brive’s excellent restaurants, including one Michelin-starred restaurant, La Table d’Olivier, the region is teeming with natural and architectural wonders. In Oz it was the Emerald City, in the region of Brive it is the ruby red city, Collonges-la-Rouge, but it has gotten so popular that the tiny and fragile town has had to limit entries so look into your visit ahead of time. Meanwhile the town of Saint-Robert up on a hill is an enchanting journey into medieval times. ©Trish Valicenti for The Gourmet Gazette. https://www.brive-tourisme.com/fr/

To enjoy specialties of the region in Paris the excellent Le Domaine d’Olléac and its country-home atmosphere is the place to go located at 20 rue Rousselet, 75007 Paris, France, tel +33 (01 45 66 88 23. http://domainedolleac.com/en/presentation-en/