Mustard Madness

I have a bone to pick with my friend Leslie Mansfield, she of chef-amazing and creative-cool abilities (for one of my all-time favorite meals -- prepared by Leslie -- see my post My Cup Runneth over) and co-owner, with her husband, Richard, of Mansfield Winery: because of her love of vintage menus and silverware and such, now I've got the vintage cooking stuff bug. And yesterday I had one of my best scores: two ceramic mustard containers from the legendary French mustard producer Maille. And the brown one (score!) is supposed to be made close to Maille's inception in, can you say, 1720????

Here's the scoop. I was on my way to Bodega Bay to visit my friend J. at the wonderful Sonoma Coast Villa and Spa (if you haven't been there, you should check it out--fabulous). With some time to kill before our meeting, I stopped in the town of Bodega and somehow (?) found myself in the Hamilton Trading Co's antique store. I saw several cool items...but then BAM!!!! -- I HAD to have the light-brown mustard container.

A bit of the Maille history. Antoine Maille was a Marseille mustard and vinegar maker who gained famed by creating a vineagar which, supposidely, protected people from the Black Plague which in the early 1700's was devastating the southern France countryside. Later, he became known as the "condiment artist" for his vinegars, mustards, and oils. (The 'moutarde' on the brown container means 'mustard'.) Anyway, the company has continued since 1720, and today has two stores, one in Paris (at 6, Place de la Madeleine; shown in the pic) and one in Dijon. Anyway, I'm quite excited to have these two beautiful pieces. And hey, maybe I can ask Leslie for a mustard recipe??? Hmmm--stay tuned!