A Flavour of Spain

A new artist to welcome to the team

2012-01-23T16:57:00.000-08:00

Looking forward to welcoming another well known artist teacher Kindrie Grove coming to teach at El Molino for the first time from 7-17 May.

As she explains:

The El Molino Studio Session in Andalucia, Southern Spain, in a peaceful valley surrounded by olive groves, will be an in-depth workshop exploring your own interests and direction as an artist. All levels of skill will benefit from critiques and discussions as well as fundamental instruction on painting and drawing concepts with demonstrations and exercises to help you learn and with time to work on your own projects in your chosen materials with personalized support and mentoring from me. The fun part is the exploration!

El Molino garden

www.kindriegrove.com

more information of accommodation, Chef prepared meals and escorted excursions at:

www.flavourofspain.net or contact cindy@trvlconcepts.com

Alfonso Tejada at El Molino May 7 to 17

2012-01-17T12:09:00.000-08:00

Alfonso Tejada plein air workshop in Andalucia
7-17 May, 2012

We're delighted he's coming and can't wait towelcome Alfonso, as he says:

‘For me thisworkshop takes me to the roots of my cultural heritage. I know that in this workshop we will discovertogether the real sense of the warmth and flavour of Southern Spanish cultureand its people as our experiences will be heightened by our freshness andnaivety about what we think we know and what we will learn and by thesurprising discoveries and encounters every day. Come join me on this fascinating journey.’

For more information and registration please email - Cindy@trvlconcepts.com

www.alfonsotejada.com

www.flavourofspain.net

Gaye Adams for 2012

2012-01-09T13:49:00.000-08:00

Spring 2012

We’re excited to be welcoming Gaye Adams from Sorrento BC coming to teach participants at all levels from 26 April to 6 May 2012 in Andalucia.

"It is my goal as an instructor to help students learn how to take the visual elements in the landscape and produce a compelling and convincing painting on location with strong design. This involves learning to see shapes, values and colors with a degree of accuracy, and to simplify down to the most important visual elements. It is a very valuable method of creating rapid growth in painting skills. In addition, the experience of plein air painting is exhilarating.” says Gaye. While encouraging her students to work hard and fully experience the unique setting and flavour of Southern Spain she thinks “it should be the best fun ever."

this testimonial tells it all:

"In her workshops Gaye spends a majority of her time working one-on-one to help artists at all levels
develop great composition, color value, tone and light and shadow in their work.
Having taken art classes and workshops over many years, Gaye Adams' workshops rank number one in amount learned for time spent."

Bill Hull, Santa Barbara, CA

2012 Already!

2012-01-06T12:23:00.000-08:00

We're off to a cracking start with some wonderful artist teachers in 2012

Starting with Nancy O'Toole who we are welcoming back for the third time at El Molino 26 April - 6 May.

Nancy says ....."What a joy to spend to be spending 10 wonderful days painting the essence of Spain while living, eating and breathing all of its charms!. Spring, poppies in bloom, so many images. Come savour and paint these with me as you experience the quintessential spirit and culture of Andalucia"

With excursions to Priego, Ronda and Cordoba (including a flamenco performance)this should add
to a creative and fun experience.

advanced yoga

2011-12-03T09:09:00.000-08:00

Here is a shot of Bosco leading the yoga class on our last course with Suzanne - don't you love it!

Bosco - estudiante de la yoga del numero uno - El Molino Octubre 2011

Love from us both

Mike and Lari

Olives Part 2

2011-11-04T03:54:00.000-07:00

So the rain came and we have now picked the fatter olives. They have been soaking in fresh water for a while now and after about 3 weeks we will make up the brine solution so that they will be on hand just in case we need the odd glass of wine when we get back from Vancouver at the end of February.

Love to all

Lari and Mike

Lari and Mike

Olive picking time

2011-10-26T04:22:00.000-07:00

Hello again

October 26 and the trees here in the valley are just so overloaded with olives and the branches are hanging down to the ground, groaning with their bounty. Tomorrow we are due for heavy rain, which is just what the olives want, so that they can fatten up a bit before being picked.

This year should be a bumper crop, which is just as well as the market price for olive oil is way down - the farmers get about Euros 1.50 ( about 2$) per litre for cooperatively farmed non denominational oil - ie not from a specific area. Think of the mark up when you buy your next bottle - somebody's coining it!

Be that as it may - it's still so good for you, and remember to use light olive oil for cooking at high temperatures.

So, bring on the rain and let's start picking!

Love to you all

Lari and Mike

Ambrosio's Abundance

2011-10-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

Ambrosio is the son of Dona Antolina, the previous owner of the farmhouse we bought some 2 years ago. He picks the olives and almonds off the land at harvest time, and last year gave us 3 huge 5 litre bottles of olive oil, which must be more than the amount of the whole crop - we have about 30 olive trees. We said that was far too much but he insisted, and he also cleared all our land of giant weeds which had overtaken the land in the spring. So by way of thanking him Lari bought some small gifts from Canada for his wife, his mother, and his 11 year old daughter, and gave them to his wife last weekend.

Today he arrives with this enormous amount of vegetables, fresh from his garden - kilos of fresh sweet tomatoes, purple aubergines, 3 melons, and just loads of shiny red and green peppers all brimming with health and vitality.
So now we have to come up with a way of thanking him for this - and so it goes on.
There is a financial crisis here, just as everywhere else, and just like everywhere else there is a shortage of money, but you would never know it here for the generosity of the spirit that seems to be everywhere.
Muchas gracias Ambrosio!

Ambrosio's abundance

2011-10-01T08:34:00.001-07:00

The Venetian App

2011-08-17T16:54:00.000-07:00

Wow - just downloaded The Venetian by Nick Bantock and it lifts his intrigue and mischief up to a new height. It's a great electronic read and the art-work, as always, is so richly done. For me, as a miniaturist, all I can say is WOW! - can't wait for his next workshop with us next year at El Molino
All for the price of a cup of coffee - say no more!

Off to Spain next week so we'll be in touch from there

Love to all

Mike and Lari

Storks Flying Club

2011-08-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

Hi again

Just before we left to come back to Canada we went with friends to the town of Osuna - away from Antequera and on the road to Sevilla. A really beautiful little gem of a town.

We had a wonderful sight on the bell tower of a church that day where there was a storks nest, and two storks, presumably mum and dad, were jumping up and down and flapping their wings, as if they were on a trampoline, showing their young 'uns how to fly. It must have been hard work not to take off as they waved their enormous wings, but a wonderful sight nonetheless.

Enjoy the summer

Love to all

Lari and Mike

Suzanne Northcott in Spain again!

2011-07-13T15:58:00.000-07:00

Press the arrow!

October 4-15 -Now here's a great artist - and a chance to paint with her in Spain. Just a few places left now so book as soon as possible. More info on our website.

Don't miss this one!

Royal Stables show off their style

2011-07-12T17:29:00.000-07:00

Hi there
Here are a couple of videos from the newly opened Royal Stables in Cordoba, Spain

We'll have to try and include this when we go there with our groups

Gotta love something like that!

Take care

Mike

Next artist in October 2011

2011-06-27T17:33:00.000-07:00

Hi there
We've been back in BC for well over a week now and have been busy catching up with things, and on Saturday met up with one of our favourite artists - Suzanne Northcott.

It was lovely to see her again and we caught up with her busy schedule over coffee in Fort Langley, and we are all really excited about her workshop in Spain - Oct 4 - 15, which will be her third time back with us.

Some of the paintings from Suzanne's last course at El Molino

As always she will be using her yoga skills every morning for those of you who are interested, and this time we will be visiting the agricultural fair in Tapia with her to see the wonderful Andalucian horses and hopefully the exciting 'Cintas' riding competition. This will be as well as visiting Ronda and Cordoba with its stylish flamenco show

Places are limited and are filling up, so, to avoid disappointment, call Cindy toll free at 1-888-661-7176 to reserve a place with this talented artist.

Lots more to tell you all later on.
Love to you all
Lari and Mike

SEVILLA!

2011-04-25T01:18:00.000-07:00

Yes, that great city of Sevilla, and we have spent 3 days here, after coming down from Merida on our round trip.

It was too early for the jacaranda trees to be flowering yet but there was the wonderful pungent aroma of orange blossom and jasmine in the air as we made our way into the Santa Cruz area to stay at the Casas de la Juderia.

We took a ride on their silently gliding trams and took the river cruise up the Guardalquivir, past the Torre de Oro where the galleons off-loaded their golden treasures and paid a large proportion of it to the king. It was a lovely day for it and well worth the trip.

The Alcazar was amazing and in many ways like a smaller version of the Alhambra as it was easier to take in and absorb. The trick is to get there at bang-on 10 o'clock and get in before the mass of tourists. We managed to get an almost private tour of the upper apartments, with only 1 other foreigner, just before they closed them off for the day. As it's still used as a royal residence Charles and Camilla were visiting later that day.

We really must try and spend more timer in this vibrant city

                                      Until next time

                                      Love to you all

                                      Lari and Mike

Toledo, Sharpe's rifles and Roman Spain

2011-04-05T04:08:00.000-07:00

Hello again
We've just come back from a week away on a little round trip.

First up we had 3 lovely days in the wonderful fortified city of Toledo, with a side trip to the palace of Arranjuez, and this time we went to the beautiful Casa del Labrador. You have to get an appointment to go round this marvellous, very user-friendly hunting lodge or 'country getaway for the Royals'. We were the only ones there on this occasion and we were shown round by a very enthusiastic custodian

On our way from Toledo to Merida we stopped by the city of Talavera to see some of their very distinctive blue and yellow ceramics.
While I was waiting with no place to park while Lari slipped away to see a great pottery store I looked around at the enormously thick city walls.I noticed the signs of an old building which abutted the castle walls. I could see the lines where some stairs used to go up, and the jagged ends of some wooden rafters jutting out, with a few old disfigured tiles on the wall, and it didn't take much of a stretch of the imagination to see Sharpe and his riflemen, and their real-life equivalent storming this massively important stronghold back in the Pensinsula War around 1812. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera to hand.

On the same theme, as we drove across the undulating plains of the Extramadura we wondered how it was possible to march across the great country with cannons, carts, and all the paraphenalia of war in the searing heat, as well as having the odd battle or two. I don't think they imagined that, one day, it would be a lot quicker on the motorways!

Arriving in Merida, the Roman capital of Iberia BC and in the first millenium, the modern town itself was not very imposing, but the Roman remains were astonishing, with a large amphitheatre and by its side a theatre with seating for 5 thousand. All over there are still many remains of the Roman city, to be found dotted around the town, together with a wonderful museum, where, amongst many of the fine displays, there were several almost perfectly preserved samples of mosaic flooring, some measuring about 20 feet by 60 feet. Statues, baths, and a large forum, as well as aqueducts and the general layout showed the skills of Roman engineers, using concrete and stone on buildings that were meant to last. Quite different times.

Off to Sevilla, so that's coming next.

Hasta pronto

Lari and Mike

Back in Spain again

2011-03-25T04:03:00.000-07:00

Hi there -
We've been back a week now and just getting organised.

One of the nicest things has been to eat the oranges off our own trees this year - so very sweet and moist. The mandarins also have been very tasty, as have the limequats.

So it's getting on with setting out and planting our herbs for the upcoming courses- so far we have curly and Italian parsley, chives, Asian and green basil, and two sorts of mint. The Coriander has self seeded from last year, and the thyme, tarragon and oregano have had to be well cut back. We also bought 2 cherry and one nectarine trees, as well a lovely bougainvillea and jasmine.

So, we're starting to get organised a bit before we are go for a week's holiday to Toledo, Merida and Sevilla, then back on Sunday April 2, when we shall get back to a major Spring clean and painting. Such is life

Love to all

Lari and Mike.

Orange trees and spring in the air

2011-02-10T15:30:00.000-08:00

Hello there

Nick, from El Molino , has just kindly taken a shot of our orange tree by the front gate, and we felt we had to just share it with you. When we were doing the renovations it was just the stub of a tree that seemed isolated and forgotten. So we gave it quite a bit of tlc and now it's really paying us back, looking really healthy and full of life.

The lower shot is of an orange tree that we planted in our courtyard last April, and we took the shot just before we left in December.

Love
Lari and Mike

Video of our favourites in Andalucia

2011-01-17T16:28:00.000-08:00

Hello again and welcome to 2011

We´ve just posted a video with a few pics that you might not have seen yet.
There are lots more but these are some of our favourites.

Soon we'll put some on about our trips to Salamanca, Segovia, Toledo and Merída.

Lari and Mike - please press this link Lari and Mike's Andalucia

Happy New Year

2011-01-02T16:25:00.000-08:00

Hello there

Now we're back in Canada and we've been thinking back to the wonderful selection of honeys we have back in our pantry at Entre Molinos. Until now we have been under the impression that most honeys taste roughly the same. That was up to the time that we tasted Spanish honey - and they are remarkably different!.

Difficult to describe the taste but they range from the Chestnut ( second from the left), which is strong and quite unsweet really to the Orange Blossom Honey ( second from the right) which is very exotic and clings to the roof of the mouth.

This is the house as we were packing up to leave at the beginning of December.

Back in Spain everyone is getting ready for the Three Kings ( our 12th Night) which is really the time when they celebrate It's a big night over there and yet another reason to party!.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year - Feliz Ano Nuevo

Lari and Mike

new artist in the team

2010-11-22T03:01:00.000-08:00

We’re very excited to introduce you to a new artist in our team , Kathleen Gray, and she will be with us in Spain 23 September to 3 October next year.

Kathleen is from the Pacific North West and, having spent her childhood in Spain, has very strong connections with the country and it is where she discovered her calling to be an artist. Her course will be called ‘The Soul’s Mythic Journey’ and the themes of her artwork are personal mythology and the collective unconscious. She uses transparent images, colour overlays and collage to create her expressive art, creating an intimacy for the viewer. This will be for 11 nights, so please check out our website for more information and get in touch with Cindy at Travel Concepts – Cindy@trvlconcepts,com

While we are in Cordoba with Kathleen’s group next September we will be visiting the Madinat al Zahra – ancient ruins of a fabulous city just outside Cordoba, from the 10^th century, which they say was more wondrous than the Alhambra. After 100 glorious years it was unfortunately sacked by the hard-line Berbers, but restoration is now well under way.

So, later on this week we are going to see the ruins again to check out the on-going excavations as it is two years since we were last there, and we already know that they have unearthed a whole lot more

Hopefully we will have more photos of the Madinat next week

Till then, hasta luego

Lari and Mike

QUINCES

2010-11-01T09:01:00.000-07:00

November 1st

Hello there

The white flesh of the quinces turning a lovely amber as they cook

Well, now we thought that quinces were just a bit ordinary and eaten with runcible spoons in pea green boats, but now we know different!

Today we’ve been cooking and bottling our quinces and when you walk in the kitchen you immediately conjure up heady visions of exotic sultans’ palaces, Tales of 1001 Nights, sultry, smouldering Arabian starlight and faraway places. The perfume given off by these extraordinary fruits is amazing, with hints of orange and rose water and a lot of very sexy under and overtones too, but of course the vision crashes to the floor as your eyes stray to the rest of the kitchen with pots and pans, syrup, quince peel and cores – the price of preparing food!

Now don't these quinces look good enough to eat? Maybe with a slice of mature Manchego cheese?

Be that as it may, the quinces are now bottled and ready for next year, and if you haven’t experienced quinces, or pomegranate molasses, or preserved lemons, fresh almonds and tangy olives from our garden then any of the courses next year are for you - because they will all be part of the exciting menus we have to offer. – So, go for the Cooking, in April, CoreBody or Nick Bantock in May or with Kathleen Gray in September or Suzanne Northcott in October. Bring your tastebuds as well as your paints....

This is how they look on the tree - rock hard and astringent

We are getting more excited about the Arabic influence in Spanish cooking, and the affects of sweet, sour, bitter, salt, pungent, and hot on how foods are perceived. But all that will be revealed, and much much more, in our Cookbook which is forging ahead now. Hopefully we will have all the photos done by the time we leave in December

At the Mill - Nick photographing a basket of just-picked-pomegranates for the Cookbook

So, now back to the photography for our Cook book and must try to get out in the lovely sunshine.

Keep well

Love to you all

Lari and Mike

Iznajar Feria

2010-10-23T06:25:00.000-07:00

Lots of colourful flamenco dresses

It’s amazing how the time goes around as here we are heading for the close of October

The weather has been gorgeous all month although we have decided to stop the courtyard cinemas as the evenings are a little chilly now. Time now for log fires and central heating in the evenings.

Lots to do here as I’ve just picked a load of quinces which I am going to preserve for next year, the olives have been partially picked and are already soaking in water to get rid of the bitterness. Also we've picked loads of pomegranates down at the Mill so that means I can get down to the hard work of shelling them all and making some pomegranate molasses for next year's courses. This is, of course in between Nick and ourselves working on some long sessions as he takes shots as we prepare platefuls of luscious food for the cookbook which is finally taking shape.

We really enjoyed the agricultural fair in Tapia this year. There had been heavy clouds just before the fair and everyone thought the worst, but the clouds rolled away and the sun stayed with us. So all the tents went up and we had a great display of local cheeses, dried fruits, mountain hams, olive oils, and some lovely goats, not to mention all the agricultural machinery on display. I’ll have some photos but at the moment they are too large and I have to process them down to jpgs.

Meantime here are some photos of the feria in Iznajar just recently, which we also enjoyed - lots of music and so many different flamenco dresses. The noise of everyone talking was quite unbelievable, and at times made the brass bands hard to hear!

My Hero!!

ready to party!

Even the little ones dress up

Everyone headed down the hill for the ceremonies

Saludos from still sunny Spain to you all

Mike and Lari

October in Andalucia

2010-10-08T09:12:00.001-07:00

The weather is now just perfect – bluest of blue skies and the atmosphere as clear as a bell. There is just a tinge of cool in the evening now and we have to have a blanket handy for the evenings when we have our courtyard cinema after/or during supper. The evening are getting darker sooner now and dusk begins at 8, so we can start watching then and stand a chance of getting a reasonably early night. Last night we watched one of the Foyle’s War series, which we love.

So, earlier in the month we went down to Ronda with Nick and Amanda to search out a new winery. We found a lovely one and are looking forward to taking our cooking group round there in April. It’s in an old monastery which was set up to look after the wounded when the Catholics finally took Ronda back from the Moors in 1489. It has a great history, and after being privately owned and finally abandoned it was taken over by the present owners who took it over in 1989 and are restoring it bit by bit as they produce some lovely wines. There is a great sense of peace about the building, being set in the high cliff face overlooking the great plain below, where the grapes are grown

In the old chapel the stainless steel vats are now producing lovely wine

Nick and Amanda and ourselves going round the grounds of the bodega

The black grapes on the start of their journey

More pics soon

Mike and Lari

Back to Spain

2010-10-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

Hello there -

Better late than never I suppose - we're having so much fun here we thought we should share it

It was a very warm evening when we arrived at Malaga almost 24 hours after we had left our home in Walnut Grove. We went straight to El Molino in our hire car where Nick and Amanda were closing down their Friends week with a birthday party for Josh. It was great fun chatting and relaxing over a glass of wine, and we went back at about midnight to unload our suitcases only to find that there was no water, and boy, we really needed a shower, but that, apparently, was not meant to be….. read on tomorrow!

Sept 3

So we found a full kettle of water and managed to clean our teeth, get a quick lick and a promise, and crashed out. Saturday morning – we woke at about 6 and started unpacking, The re-learning curve was beginning - have to make a note to always have scissors to hand when we have breakfast outside in the courtyard, so that we can cut a bunch of fresh, very sweet, grapes from the vine above us. We went over to the Mill for coffee and. Nick has phoned about the water for us. They say it will be back on soon.

So now we’re off to shop for the weekend and it’s hot outside

Get back and, miracle of miracles, the water’s on. Quick salad lunch and I make a quick dressing with a handful of fresh-picked from the courtyard -parsley, tarragon, basil with some grainy mustard, salt, pepper, honey, cider vinegar and a good splurge of tangy extra virgin oil. We sit and enjoy the shade in the courtyard, under the vines, looking out at our two laden orange trees and the distant view of Fuente. Washing up – have to take care with the solar hot water when washing up as it’s too hot, but it’s free hot water from now on! Then we take a great and luxurious shower together after an hours’ zizz. I think we’re settling back in.

Sept 4

All our figs seems to be ripe now and most of them had fallen before we got here, giving the ground a heady, sweet smell, so we must work hard and pick the rest as we’ll need some for photographing for the cookbook. This is the day for unpacking and trying not to turn the ( immaculate when we arrived) house into a tip. We’ve been enjoying sleeping in the cooler downstairs bedroom and we’re both wishing that we had the pool already installed as it’s still very hot today again. So today it’s a simple roast game-hens and potatoes for lunch and a snack for supper. Courtyard cinema tonight with the family- so it’s The Jungle Book I’ve just been informed by Josh.

I will carry on with this diary asap and hopefully put some photos in - at the moment they are too high in pixels to put in.

So, All the best from Lari and myself

Mike