January 10, 2011

L'Heure de l'Apéro

Un p'tit verre

Rosé and Mona Lisa

French Riviera

L'heure de l'apéro (the French version of the cocktail hour) is a local tradition that we have happily embraced.  It's an invitation to sit down, relax and whet our appetites before the focal point of the evening; dinner.

Our evening apéro gets under way around 7-7:30 and normally lasts about an hour.  I have a glass of white or rosé wine, or sometimes a kir, and my husband either has a mixed drink or a glass of wine. 
Little bowls of pretzels or olives are served to take the edge off, and when we have friends over we serve something a little more substantial, such as little slices of saucisson, a chunk of pâté and another dish or two.

Santé!

Champagne and Pomegranate Liqueur in the Sun

Paris

Kir

Sangria

apéro time

wine bar

Glass of Wine
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16 comments:

aimee said...

So pretty!

Anne in Oxfordshire said...

Fantastic , I love this tradition and embraced it when in Paris too :-)

Betty Carlson said...

What a lovely collection of photos...I'm afraid "l'heure de l'apéro" isn't really part of our lives. "Wine o'clock after work" is, though. There's a difference.

The Field of Gold said...

Here (New Zealand) the family call it 'happy hour'. Early, about 5.30pm, at home

deedee said...

I love apéro hour or wine o'clock as Betty says.

Ann said...

Beautiful and all these outdoor apéro shots are making me miss summer!

Ken Broadhurst said...

Your pictures really are beautiful. Those Lumix cameras are great (I have two of them but neither is the same model as yours). And of course I love everything that has to do with wine! Happy New Year to you, J.

Jennifer said...

aimee
And refreshing!

Anne
You should embrace it where ever you live. :)

Betty
good ol' wine o'clock. A wonderful tradition as well.

Kerry
They do Happy Hour in the States as well. Sometimes as early as 4pm.

ditdit
They are both great ways to end the day.
Alcohol doesn't even need to be involved, just the act of stopping or slowing down and making that transition from work to dinner is a nice idea I think.

Ann
I thought the same thing. My husband and I meet on the terrace at the local bar/café after work during the summer and have something cold to drink. It is a nice way to end the work day.

Ken
Thank you!
I love my camera and we have several friends and family members who swear by them as well.
Happy New Year to you!

Anonymous said...

We have fully embraced the apéro as well. love all the different colors of wine!

Betty Carlson said...

@ditdit via @loulou -- I picked up the term wine o'clock from Loulou, so want to give credit where it is due...

Holly Bruns said...

I'm looking at your photos of bare arms and cold glasses of wine and feeling very envious as it snows out my window.

Jennifer said...

camille
yes, they change with the seasons. :)

Betty
I should credit my girlfriends in New Orleans who coined the term when they were on vacation in Spain.

Holly
Gives us something to look forward to. Not snowing here, but not very warm either!

islandgirl4ever2 said...

Looks like you were sitting right across from the St. Paul Metro.. Not sure, but it looks like it..

Jennifer said...

Leesa
Good eye!

The Chef In My Head said...

Let me know when you are ready to swap houses for a week, I'm serious! Pictures of my kitchen are on my blog and it would love some beautiful French meals prepared in it! I love your blog and feel like I take mini vacations everytime I'm on it! ~Leslie

Jennifer said...

Leslie
Be careful, we just might take you up on that! :)
Thanks for your very nice comment.