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This week the Monocle team drops anchor in sunny Seville for modern Andalusian cuisine and stops off at a cliffside retreat in Porto Ercole, where Mediterranean charm is the order of the day. We also raise a toast to the start of the Olympic season with the manager at one of Paris’s best bars and brew a refreshing recipe to sip beachside. At the head of the table is Tyler Brûlé, with a few observations from the Paris Games.
The Faster Lane / Tyler Brûlé
It’s exactly 12 hours since Celine Dion stood on the lower deck of the Eiffel Tower and belted out “L’Hymne à l’amour” while securely tethered to the ironwork in her Dior gown. For the crowds below, hundreds of thousands along the Seine and viewers around the world, it was both a perfect finale and kick-off for this Paris edition of the Olympics. My perch was 15 floors above the stage where Lady Gaga did her mini-set and just down from the Pont d’Austerlitz – the official starting point for coverage of what was truly a four-hour epic. Despite all the negativity in the media about the shutdown of Paris, attacks on soldiers and police over the past weeks and the SNCF sabotage in the early hours of Friday morning, Madame Dion managed to pull it all together with elegance and such a command that some of the ceremony’s more off moments – rain-lashed camera lenses, French singer Philippe Katerine in blue body paint (a performance surely lost on 99.7 per cent of viewers) and a few too many drag queens – could either be erased or forgiven. I promise that we’ll have much more on uniforms, performances and assorted symbolism on Monocle on Sunday with my regulars and guests at 09.00 London time (10.00 CET). In the meantime, here are my 10 observations from Paris since pulling into the station on Thursday evening.
1
A gold medal for ambition. Paris won the Olympic bid for 2024 by promising a game for the city – and it has delivered. It has certainly been complicated. This is new territory for the event, in a city and country that has unique security issues. Many in the service industry are grumpy but despite all the closures and police and army patrols, it’s working. Yes, it’s day one but the concept of using the city as a backdrop instead of building white elephants will probably be a model moving forward when assessing future bids.
2
God bless Americans. They might be too loud on the TGV, consume too much ice and not know how to pack efficiently but where would the Olympics be without their commitment to sport, competition and overall enthusiasm? To be clear, without the world’s biggest economy there wouldn’t be an Olympics. There also wouldn’t be booming hotel rates across much of Europe either. The US has plenty of problems at the moment (which country doesn’t?) but it should not be underestimated – in the pool, around the track or in the boardroom. Americans give added energy to the Games and are ensuring that stagnant European economies will enjoy a very good summer and autumn thanks to their generosity.
3
The French security services are properly fit. There are tens of thousands of police and troops on the streets and there are no additional kilos being carried. To say they keep it tight and trimmed-in would be an understatement.
4
The French security services like a bit of duplication. How many versions of riot and anti-terror intervention does a nation need? Perhaps if you had France’s recent history, then it would be many. BRI, RAID, CRS and GIGN are all out in force. I thought that Monocle could have created a small guide to break down the roles and responsibilities of each service.
5
How does a luxury house find its way to becoming a global partner of the Olympics post-Paris? Given LVMH’s shrewd moves in dressing performers and weaving in imagery of its logos, I imagine there will be a lot of lobbying going on in the run-up to Milan for winter, if not Los Angeles.
6
Don’t think that Ralph Lauren is going to allow Monsieur Arnault an easy ride on his home turf. Indeed, the team has done a super bit of branding with its Ralph’s Coffee at the Team USA House in the Palais Brongniart.
7
Question. Is there too much athleisure in the opening-ceremony uniforms? I think so. There need to be more rules about what passes for appropriate when waving to the world versus what you wear for warm-up before pole vaulting.
8
The Spain moment continues. Having won the Euros and Wimbledon’s men’s final, there is a lot of energy around Spain and its sporting prowess. Its boat got the biggest round of whoops and cheers (France and USA aside) when it floated past. One of the must-visit sites in Paris is not Olympic related at all but Zara Home’s new branch at 117 rue du Bac. Go team Galicia!
9
There’s much talk about the emerging importance of e-sports within the IOC and you can feel that there’s an effort afoot to legitimise gaming. I get it but come on Mr Bach and team! Really? Choose a lane and stay in it. The Olympic movement has plenty to be getting on with and doesn’t need to pander to youth in such a fashion. Get young people out of their bedrooms and on the beach, pitch, slope and rock face and away from screens. Simple. Trying to modernise the Games by amping up screen time feels wrong and also weakens the five rings as a symbol. If electronic gaming is allowed, then why not cooking? Cocktail shaking? Dog grooming?
10
Sit back and enjoy. Also tune in. The Monocle crew is on hand in Paris throughout the Games. Merci.
Eating out / Sobretablas, Seville
Chef Camila Ferraro and sommelier Robert Tetas, alumni of El Celler de Can Roca, were determined to shake up Seville’s somewhat conservative dining scene when they opened Sobretablas (writes Francheska Melendez). Ferraro’s fresh takes on classic Andalusian cuisine, including her squid in whiskey sauce with tentacle tempura, are a reflection of her Sevillian roots.
The 35-cover restaurant, in a historic building that was constructed during the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition, brings a welcome sense of modernity to the city. Meanwhile, traces of Tetas’s Catalan heritage can be seen in the restaurant’s cellar, which pays homage to the wineries of France and northern Spain.
sobretablasrestaurante.com
Sunday Roast / Kevin Rigault
Kevin Rigault is the manager of Hôtel de Crillon’s Bar Les Ambassadeurs, which overlooks Paris’s Place de la Concorde (writes Gabriella Wong). Here, he tells us about the secret to his morning coffee, love for the Californian coast and Sunday disco soundtrack.
Where will we find you this weekend?
On hospitality calls for work.
Your ideal way to begin a Sunday – a gentle start or a jolt?
I usually have a cup of coffee brewed using my trusty Kalita dripper. Then I start reading Winning: The Unforgiving Race to Greatness by Tim S Grover and Shari Lesser Wenk.
What’s for breakfast?
Sundays are for indulgence. Picture fluffy pancakes generously drizzled with maple syrup.
Lunch in or out?
Out. I’ll have a soufflé at Le Pantruche, a cosy gourmet bistro in the 9th arrondissement.
Walk the dog or downward dog?
I mostly focus on unwinding with a light stretching session to soothe any lingering muscle soreness from my workouts during the week.
A Sunday soundtrack?
Nothing sets the tone for the weekend like some funky disco tunes. At the moment, I’m enjoying Change’s “Change of Heart”.
A Sunday culture must?
A wine-tasting session.
Where will we find you during the summer months?
I’ll be at Bar Les Ambassadeurs throughout the Olympic season. Then I’ll be spending two weeks in California for some sunshine on the coast.
Your Sunday-evening routine?
Chilling out after a long day at work. A good night’s sleep is essential if you want to start the week on the right note.
Will you lay out an outfit for Monday?
Absolutely. I always prepare a Crossfit ensemble in the evening to ensure that I hit the ground running on Monday morning.
For more of our favourite Parisian stop-offs, pick up a copy of the‘Monocle Paris Edition’ newspaper, which is available on newsstands now.
Recipe / Ralph Schelling
The sun’s out and the beach beckons, which is why our summer-drinks series from the ‘Monocle Mediterraneo Newspaper’ is here to give you some inspiration for waterside thirst-quenchers. If you’re making this kombucha from scratch, bear in mind that it takes up to 12 days to brew, so be sure to plan ahead. “Elderflower is best hand-picked but a good syrup will suffice,” says Monocle’s Swiss chef Ralph Schelling. You can also freeze the leftovers for granita.
Makes 1 litre of kombucha
Ingredients
1 litre water
5g green tea
1 handful fresh elderflowers
80g pear syrup
20g cane sugar
100ml kombucha scoby (starter culture) with liquid
1 handful ice cubes
1 sprig lemon balm
Equipment
1 litre sealable container, sterilised
Straining cloth
Rubber band or string
Method
1
Bring the water to a boil and leave it to cool slightly. Infuse the water with the tea and the elderflowers for 10 minutes. Add the pear syrup and the cane sugar. If the liquid is too hot, it will kill the kombucha scoby’s good bacteria so wait for it to return to room temperature. Then pour it into the sealable container with the scoby.
2
Close the fermentation vessel with a cloth, using a string or rubber band.
3
Leave it to ferment at room temperature for at least eight days (and a maximum of 12).
4
Remove the kombucha scoby from the liquid and enjoy the drink with ice and lemon balm to taste.
For more summer thirst-quenchers, pick up a copy ofour sunny ‘Monocle Mediterraneo’ newspaper, which is out now.
Bottoms up / Baia’s Wine, Georgia
The pét nat from family-run Baia’s Wine is fermented in traditional Georgian earthenware vessels known as qvevri using the country’s tsitska white grape variety (writes Julia Lasica). The Abuladze family are now in their third generation of wine-making but it was only in 2015 that they modernised production, buying a bottling machine and delivering their first products to restaurants in the capital, Tbilisi.
The brand is led by its namesake, Baia Abuladze. “We’re very lucky to have the unique terroir of the Imereti region,” she says. “The growing season is long, the summers are humid and the warmth is tempered by morning dew.” The wine’s citrus and persimmon notes pair well with summer seafood spreads and fresh, vibrant salads.
baiaswine.com
Weekend plans? / La Roqqa, Porto Ercole
Sometimes dubbed the Portofino of Maremma, Porto Ercole is a Tuscan village on the Monte Argentario peninsula that draws a discerning crowd during the summer months (writes Ivan Carvalho). Ready to greet visitors is the 55-room La Roqqa hotel, a cliffside retreat owned by Swedish entrepreneur Conni Jonsson. The property is on the site of a former hotel that Milan-based architectural practice Palomba Serafini Associati has transformed into an elegant sanctuary.
The interiors are fitted out with a range of Italian design classics such as the Up chair by Gaetano Pesce, while contemporary furnishings match the hotel’s sage-green and Tuscan terracotta colour scheme. The property also has floor-to-ceiling windows that let in plenty of natural light, an outdoor terrace and a rooftop bar. At the Scirocco restaurant, the standout dish is the spaghetto otto pomodori, which features eight types of tomato. The hotel’s Isolotto Beach Club lets patrons linger by the sea and dip their toes in the waters of the Tyrrhenian.
laroqqa.com
Pack this / Palm Heights beach bag, Cayman Islands
Finding the right beach bag can be something of a challenge: it needs to be waterproof, durable and easy to carry around. Palm Heights, an elegant estate in the Grand Cayman, has perfected the seaside companion.
The transparent tote ensures that there’s no need to rummage around for your sunblock and the reinforced structure, shoulder strap and zipper will keep your accessories dry and safe. A stylish choice to leave next to your towel while you go for a refreshing dip.
palmheights.store
For more sunny looks, pick up a copy of Monocle’s latest issue or subscribe today. Have a super Sunday.
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