Discover something new at the Nice Beer Festival

Grab a stein and head to the Nice Beer Festival this weekend, where eight local brewers will be giving visitors the chance to try artisanal blends while enjoying live music and food trucks. 

Looking for something different to do this weekend? Why not head to the first annual Nice Beer Festival and get the double pleasure of trying some delicious brews as well as supporting local brewers?

Eco-friendly magazine Reversible is co-hosting the event along with the Association of Independent Brewers of the Alpes-Maritimes (BIAM06) on the grounds of Nice-Matin’s headquarters on 11th and 12th September.

Eight artisanal brewers from the area will be on hand to run a bar with 16 beers on tap for visitors to discover. Food trucks with a beer brunch will start at 10am and in addition there will be live music, entertainment, games, a raffle with amazing prizes and even a petanque tournament.

Participating breweries include hometown favourites Blue Coast Brewing Company (Nice), who have become staples of the craft beer movement in the region, along with At La Fût (Cagnes sur Mer), Brasserie Bleue (Nice), Brasserie Berroise (Berre les Alpes), County Brewery (St Martin V.), Brasserie des Ligures (Peille), Craftazur (Antibes) and La Cagnoise (Cagnes sur Mer).

Alongside the festival will be an event by Reversible, who has invited local producers and artisans interested in local consumption and sustainable practices to gather, making it a truly home-grown experience.

In keeping with the theme of sustainability, the organisers are providing, for the cost of €1, a reusable “Ecocup” for tastings. Beers and non-alcoholic drinks are going for €3.

Entry to the event is free, but a health pass is required.

 
 
 

ASM Basketball head to Istanbul after against Lavrio

The Roca team have redeemed themselves by beating the Mega Bolts of Lavrio during a friendly in Greece, setting them up nicely for their next match against Partizan NIS Belgrade in Istanbul for the semi-finals of the Istanbul Cup.

Monaco went up against the Lavrio Mega Bolts in the last of the friendly games played on the Greek team’s home turf on Wednesday, where they won 79 to 63.

Lavrio came out swinging, but it simply wasn’t enough to keep the Roca team at bay. Monaco played with determination, at one point in the first quarter making an impressive run of nine consecutive baskets.

Alpha Diallo, a former Mega Bolt player turned Monaco power forward, was instrumental in keeping the opponents in check, and by the end of the first quarter, the score was a comfortable 25 to 18.

This shifted slightly in the second quarter where Lavrio limited the Roca team to only 11 points, but even this wasn’t enough to take the lead. The two teams headed to the locker room with Monaco leading 36 to 33.

After the halftime break, Monaco scored 10 points off the bat, to the opposing team’s none, boosting confidence and their lead to 46 – 33.

Coach Zvezdan Mitrovic, to his credit, gave a lot of court time to his young new players Diallo and Paris Lee, who both shone. Another bright spot was the return of star point guard Rob Gray.

Now the team heads to Istanbul to take on Partizan NIS Belgrade for the semi-finals of the Istanbul Cup on Saturday 11th September.

 

 

 

Monaco Life with AS Monaco Basketball press release

 

 

Trial into the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks begins

The only surviving member of a group that killed 130 people in a Paris terrorist attack described himself on Wednesday as “an Islamic State soldier” at the start of the trial into the 2015 massacre.
Salah Abdeslam appeared in court dressed in black and with a black face mask, one of 20 men accused of involvement in attacks by gunmen in suicide vests on six restaurants and bars, the Bataclan concert hall and a sports stadium.
Asked what his profession was, Abdeslam, 31, told the court: “I gave up my job to become an Islamic State soldier.”

“I want to testify that there is no god except Allah and that Mohammad is his servant,” he said.

On Friday 13th November 2015, jihadists, later claiming to be part of the Islamic State organisation, started a chain of events that left 130 people dead. It began with terrorists detonating suicide belts outside Paris’s Stade de France where a football match between France and Germany was being played. President François Hollande was in the stands, and whilst he was unharmed, one man was killed.
This was followed up by a group of gunmen, including the brother of the only surviving attacker, who sprayed bullets on half a dozen restaurants in the city’s 10th and 11th Arrondissement, which were packed full of people enjoying an unseasonably warm autumn evening.
The final atrocity came at the Bataclan music venue where the terrorists barged in during a show, killing 90 people.
The sole surviving attacker, Salah Abdeslam, will be in the dock at a facility in the historic court of justice built specifically to house the trial. In addition to Abdeslam, 13 other defendants who are charged with crimes such as providing logistical support and planning and weapons offences, will be standing trial on site, with six more being tried in absentia. Of those, five are presumed dead after being targets of air strikes in Syria.
Twelve of the 20 on trial face life sentences if found guilty.
“We are entering the unknown,” Arthur Denouveaux, a survivor of the Bataclan music venue attack and president of Life for Paris, a victims’ association, told AFP. “We can’t wait for it to start, but we’re asking, How will it be for the next nine months?”
“What I care about in the trial is the testimony of other survivors, people who were in the terraces (that were targeted by the attackers), at the Stade de France, hear how they have been coping over the past six years,” 48-year-old Jerome Barthelemy told Reuters. “As for the accused, I don’t even expect them to speak.”
The trial will go on until May 2022. There will be 145 days for hearings where more than 300 lawyers and 1,800 plaintiffs will testify.
The enormous case file is a million pages in 542 volumes, measuring 53 metres across.
Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti this week described the trial as “historic” and “one of all superlatives.”
The surviving attacker, Abdeslam, who has French and Moroccan nationalities but grew up in Belgium, ran from the scene after abandoning his defective suicide belt. He was found four months later after a massive manhunt in Brussels, hiding in a building close to his family home. He has been uncooperative throughout the investigations, claiming bias in the courts. Thus far, it is unclear whether he will speak during his testimony appearance, scheduled for mid-January.
The opening phase of the trial will be dedicated to procedural issues, then first testimonies are expected to start on 28th September outlining the atrocities experienced. This phase is set to go on for five weeks.
Another aspect of the trial will be focused on how this band of killers entered France in the first place, allegedly using the influx of Syrian migrants pouring in at the time from Islamic State-controlled regions.
Security forces will be on high alert through the duration of the trial.
 
 
Monaco Life with AFP, Reuters. Photo credit Florence Jeux
 
 
 

MYS Series: The Superyacht Shipyard Director

Even superyachts need a touch up, some tender loving care and a lot of attention (superyachts have super egos). And when the time comes to refit or repair, it’s the shipyards that will nurture them back to rude and robust health. 
Tanguy Ducros is CEO of Monaco Marine, a network of shipyards for the refit and maintenance of yachts between eight and 160m +. The company has eight yacht facilities and one marina located between Monaco and Marseille. Over 3,000 yachts undergo refit, repair or wintering at the Monaco Marine shipyards every year. Between them they offer 132,500 sqm of dry land, a haul-out capacity of up to 2,000 tons and unlimited yacht size afloat. 220 employees and 800 contractors work at these sites. The yards specialise in standard maintenance but also big specialist refits. Crew facilities are provided at the larger shipyards, La Seyne, La Ciotat and Marseille.
Ducros has sorely missed the presence of the Monaco Yacht Show (MYS) on the calendar this past year and MYS 2021 can’t come soon enough. He’s keen to actually meet up again with the business associates and clients he’s been zooming, and to get a good look at the yachts that have launched over the last couple of years. “I want to renew ties with the people we have missed seeing during the pandemic and I have great expectations for MYS 2021,” says Ducros. “We chose to act as partners with the show this year to offer our support and encouragement to the organising teams.”
MYS offers up the opportunity to meet with the people from abroad who he has not been able to see due to the travel restrictions, and, as he says, it’s easier to have more intimate and meaningful discussions physically and face to face. “The MYS also gives us the chance to meet new clients who have begun to take an interest in the superyacht industry over the last couple of years,” he adds. Monaco Marine clients are worldwide and come from Europe, America, Asia and Russia.
The majority of work carried out at the yards involves classic maintenance. 30% of the turnover is generated from owners looking to customise their yachts in some way to make it unique. This might involve a paint job, extending the yacht or modernising the technical systems.

Photo by Guillaume Plisson

Ducros has plenty to talk about this year as plans evolve at Monaco Marine: “At the beginning of this year, we obtained the concession renewal of Monaco Marine Antibes and development projects are planned for 2022. Soon, Antibes will be equipped with a new 300 tons travel lift, 9,000sqm of additional hardstanding (17,000sqm in total), a new workshop and guest welcome areas, an ecological efficiency plan and improved electrical capacity for larger yachts.”
Monaco Marine also recently renewed the concession of the shipyard at Beaulieu sur Mer until 2055 and ambitious investment plans will be announced soon. Work is also underway at Monaco Marine Juan-les-Pins in Port Gallice.
Now that the renewal of the marina concessions is complete at Antibes and Beaulieu, Ducros and his teams will concentrate on their development renovation. Meanwhile, he’s always on the ‘qui vive’ for any new and interesting projects throughout the Mediterranean.
 

Close Quarters with Tanguy Ducros:

What’s your advice to someone looking to break into a career like yours?
My top career tip would be to start young at whatever you want to do.
Your worst career moment?
I’m not sure what my worst career moment is, but Covid was definitely a challenge to overcome.
Best part of your job?
Travelling, meeting people and visiting shipyards throughout the world.
What are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of Monaco Marine and its people who work everyday serving and assisting our customers.
Favourite meal and a figure you admire?
I’m a Mediterranean man and I love Italian cuisine so in an ideal world I’d share a bowl of pasta with the two men I admire most: on a personal level, my father, and more globally, Nelson Mandela.
If you weren’t director at Monaco Marine, what would you be?
I think I’d be an entrepreneur. Not necessarily in yachting but in an industry that offers some kind of service to people. That’s what I like most, customer service and helping people.
 
 
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Photos by Guillaume Plisson 
 
 

Harrison Ford: “Damn it, it’s not alright”

Prince Albert has joined Hollywood actor Harrison Ford and other high-profile personalities and world leaders in raising their voices to drive action for the preservation of the planet at a major conservation congress in Marseille.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress is being hosted in the south of France from 3rd to 11th September. This year’s congress is a key environmental milestone ahead of the United Nations conference on biodiversity and climate, to be held in Kunming and Glasgow, in the coming months.
It brings together several thousand leaders and decision makers, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Prince Albert of Monaco, as well as nonprofit, Indigenous and civil society members from more than 170 nations with the goal of conserving the environment and promoting nature-based solutions to global challenges.
These congresses are held every four years, but the focus of this one in particular is how to achieve a nature-based recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and the post-2020 global biodiversity framework currently being negotiated under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
On Tuesday 7th September, Prince Albert of Monaco opened the session on oceans, highlighting the essential role that the ocean plays in human health and livelihoods, and the blue economy’s potential to restore ocean health, transition to clean energy, and create jobs.
The IUCN’s Minna Epps ended the session highlighting the key outcomes that included supporting the call for achieving the 30-by-30 target, protecting at least 30% of the global ocean as Marine Protected Areas and other conservation measures by the year 2030; and adopting a legally binding instrument on marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Restoring ocean health was just one of a number of themes to be explored during the nine-day high-level congress. Others include conserving freshwater to sustain life, leveraging economic and financial systems for sustainability, and managing landscapes for nature and people.


 
The One Planet Summit also formed part of proceedings, the aim of which is to offer a new, pragmatic and effective framework for action.
One of the most high-profile speakers at the congress was Hollywood acting legend Harrison Ford, who evoked plenty of emotion in his speech, saying: “It’s hard to devote yourself to a cause that is so urgent and not be able to get the traction needed to make the change that is absolutely necessary. It’s hard to read the headlines: floods, fires, famines, plagues, and tell your children that everything’s alright. It’s not alright. Damn it, it’s not alright. We’ve got to make things happen; we’ve got to make it happen now. Come on everybody, let’s get to work.”
 
 
Top photos sourced from the IUCN
 
 

New pairings announced for Monaco’s ‘Festival of Stars’

SBM’s Festival des Etoilés, a unique event pairing local and international Michelin-starred chefs, will continue well into autumn with new collaborations between September and November.
The new round of pairings kick off on 9th September at the Monte-Carlo Beach Hotel with a decidedly feminine pairing at Elsa Restaurant. Chef Manon Fleury welcomes L’Argine a Vencò’s award winning Italian chef Antonia Klugmann.
This is followed up by the exquisite pairing of the legendary Alain Ducasse with three-starred chef Michel Guerard from les Prés d’Eugénie, where they will offer both a lunch and a dinner at Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris.
The final duo puts Marcel Ravin of Blue Bay together with Argentinian chef, and former Ducasse disciple, Mauro Colagreco, of the three-starred worlds-best restaurant 2019 – Mirazur on 5th November as a pre-holiday treat.
Two collaborations have already taken place, during which Franck Cerutti and Marcel Ravin respectively welcomed Riccardo Camanini of Lido 84 and Michel Sarran of the Restaurant Michel Sarran in their kitchens to prepare meals to the delight of foodie guests in the Principality.
The grand finale of the Festival is one for the history books, as all of SBM’s Michelin-starred chefs gather together for one night only in the Salle Médecin of the Casino for a gala evening on 27th November.
On this occasion, Manon Fleury, Marcel Ravin, Franck Cerutti, Dominique Lory and Yannick Alléno will together create a dinner comprising of their signature dishes. The six-course menu will be a journey through the world of the Société des Bains de Mer, where guests will be able to watch the dishes being made directly in the room thanks to a “live pass”.
Singer Nicole Magolie will entertain the crowd of roughly one hundred guests with soul and jazz tunes accompanied by a quartet.
The Festival des Etoilés, which has been going on since May, is potentially going to be a yearly offering by SBM.
 
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Photo: Marcel Ravin, Dominique Lory, Alain Ducasse, Franck Cerutti, Yannick Alléno Mauro Colagreco, Michel Guérard, Manon Fleury, Antonia Klugmann. Source: Monte-Carlo SBM