Gérard Isirdi paints Château Barbebelle. Photo by Christine Isirdi
The À Table Project!
À Table! was one of our first major campaigns to raise awareness about PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcus). It was conceived in Lourmarin, a tiny village in Provence that Alex dearly loved, and matured in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where Alex was born and raised. Friends and family rallied together to bring this project to life.
Provence artist Gérard Isirdi and Madeleine Premmereur of Château Barbebelle
In Provence, we worked with Madeleine Premmereur, owner of Château Barbebelle, to secure some of the (2017) production of Cuvée Madeleine Rouge wine and with Gérard Isirdi, local Provençal painter with an extensive international following, who painted the image that became the label for the bottle. In Portsmouth, we sought help from Susan Kress Hamilton, co-owner of the now closed Phineas Press, who designed the lower label and the booklet of information about PANDAS and PANS.
Our hope was that people would take this bottle of wine to their respective tables (or other types of gatherings) to share with friends and family and that it would engender conversation about PANDAS and PANS. Guests would learn about PANDAS and PANS à table and then continue to spread the word about these disorders to others and awareness would grow organically. We have many anecdotes to support the success of À Table!
Coming to the table was our family tradition. It’s where Towny, Alex, and I – along with many of our friends and family – recounted our day’s activities, expressed our joys and our disappointments, solved problems, talked politics, and had many laughs.
Originally, À Table! included plans for fund-raising dinner parties to be hosted by friends and family around the U.S. (and beyond). We had already secured hosts around the United States and beyond, including France, Sweden, Morocco, and Canada. The idea was that Alex’s wine would be served at the dinners, sparking conversations and awareness about PANDAS and PANS. That is, guests would learn about PANDAS and PANS à table and then return home with bottles to share with their friends, thereby continuing to spread the word about PANDAS and PANS. We had to scrap the hosted-dinner part of the plan when COVID-19 raised its ugly head and a full-fledged pandemic ensued, keeping most of us tethered to our own tables.
Over 600 bottles were sold with proceeds going to support the mission of TAMF. The wine is no longer available for sale, but we saved enough bottles in our cellar to include in fund-raising auctions and for other special occasions.
More about the Wine and Label
The wine was produced by Château Barbebelle is one of the oldest estates in the Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence appellation. Evidence of farming dates to Roman times and the château itself dates to the 16th century.
The winery has been owned by the same family for four generations. Madeleine Premmereur (née Herbeau), in her early thirties, took the reins from her father close to 10 years ago and, today, works with her father and husband to produce a range of award-winning wines.
Cuvée Madeleine (2017) Red is a well-integrated blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon from the estate’s best vines. The grapes, picked in the early fall 2017, go through a long maceration, followed by fermentation and élevage in traditional Provençal concrete vats, and bottling in January 2020.
A lovely array of earthy and black fruit aromas intermingles with notes of garrigue, cherry, and raspberries and wafts from the glass. A very appealing palate is dominated by blackberry and licorice.
The label depicts Alex walking through Lourmarin, the charming Provençal village that she so dearly loved and where she said she felt most herself.
Gérard Isirdi, local painter with an extensive international following, created the original gouache from which the label is made. Gérard’s iconic scenes of village life, especially as observed from Café Gaby, are revered around the world. Several of his paintings grace the walls of our home.
Gérard Isirdi and Alex Manfull at his studio in Lourmarin
Alex and Gérard developed a relationship that solidified during our six-month sojourn in Lourmarin. Alex was just seven years old when she had the pleasure of painting with Gérard at Café Gaby. As she grew older, she loved to stop by Gérard’s atelier on rue Henri de Savornin to catch up with him and his wife Christine.
Gérard thinks her spirit visits Lourmarin. We like to think she does, as well.
The À Table Project!
The À Table Project!
À Table! was one of our first major campaigns to raise awareness about PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorder Associated with Streptococcus). It was conceived in Lourmarin, a tiny village in Provence that Alex dearly loved, and matured in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where Alex was born and raised. Friends and family rallied together to bring this project to life.
In Provence, we worked with Madeleine Premmereur, owner of Château Barbebelle, to secure some of the (2017) production of Cuvée Madeleine Rouge wine and with Gérard Isirdi, local Provençal painter with an extensive international following, who painted the image that became the label for the bottle. In Portsmouth, we sought help from Susan Kress Hamilton, co-owner of the now closed Phineas Press, who designed the lower label and the booklet of information about PANDAS and PANS.
Our hope was that people would take this bottle of wine to their respective tables (or other types of gatherings) to share with friends and family and that it would engender conversation about PANDAS and PANS. Guests would learn about PANDAS and PANS à table and then continue to spread the word about these disorders to others and awareness would grow organically. We have many anecdotes to support the success of À Table!
Coming to the table was our family tradition. It’s where Towny, Alex, and I – along with many of our friends and family – recounted our day’s activities, expressed our joys and our disappointments, solved problems, talked politics, and had many laughs.
Originally, À Table! included plans for fund-raising dinner parties to be hosted by friends and family around the U.S. (and beyond). We had already secured hosts around the United States and beyond, including France, Sweden, Morocco, and Canada. The idea was that Alex’s wine would be served at the dinners, sparking conversations and awareness about PANDAS and PANS. That is, guests would learn about PANDAS and PANS à table and then return home with bottles to share with their friends, thereby continuing to spread the word about PANDAS and PANS. We had to scrap the hosted-dinner part of the plan when COVID-19 raised its ugly head and a full-fledged pandemic ensued, keeping most of us tethered to our own tables.
Over 600 bottles were sold with proceeds going to support the mission of TAMF. The wine is no longer available for sale, but we saved enough bottles in our cellar to include in fund-raising auctions and for other special occasions.
More about the Wine and Label
The wine was produced by Château Barbebelle is one of the oldest estates in the Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence appellation. Evidence of farming dates to Roman times and the château itself dates to the 16th century.
Cuvée Madeleine (2017) Red is a well-integrated blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon from the estate’s best vines. The grapes, picked in the early fall 2017, go through a long maceration, followed by fermentation and élevage in traditional Provençal concrete vats, and bottling in January 2020.
A lovely array of earthy and black fruit aromas intermingles with notes of garrigue, cherry, and raspberries and wafts from the glass. A very appealing palate is dominated by blackberry and licorice.
Gérard Isirdi, local painter with an extensive international following, created the original gouache from which the label is made. Gérard’s iconic scenes of village life, especially as observed from Café Gaby, are revered around the world. Several of his paintings grace the walls of our home.
Alex and Gérard developed a relationship that solidified during our six-month sojourn in Lourmarin. Alex was just seven years old when she had the pleasure of painting with Gérard at Café Gaby. As she grew older, she loved to stop by Gérard’s atelier on rue Henri de Savornin to catch up with him and his wife Christine.
Gérard thinks her spirit visits Lourmarin. We like to think she does, as well.