Lulu Peyraud, the matriarch of a wine-producing family in the Bandol region of southern France, who epitomized a joyous, exuberant and generous Provençal way of life as a cook and a hostess, died on Oct. 7 in La Ciotat, France. She was 102.
The death, in a hospital, was announced by the Peyraud family’s wine estate, Domaine Tempier.
Through her long life, Ms. Peyraud was known for the sumptuous, extravagant meals she served to friends, family and visitors at Domaine Tempier, in the village of Le Plan du Castellet.
People might reasonably dispute which region of France offered the best cuisine, but few would argue that there was a better invitation than luncheon at Tempier.
“If I have ever been to a home that may suitably be called magic, it must be that of the Peyraud family in Bandol,” the novelist and bon vivant Jim Harrison wrote in 2000.
Guests were greeted with cool glasses of Tempier rosé that were refilled frequently, served with various nibbles and bites. If the weather cooperated, they would be eating outside, the air suffused with the scent of garrigue, the blend of wild herbs, bushes and shrubs that perfumes Provence.
The large, inviting table would be bedecked with garlands of flowers, herbs and heads of garlic; vegetable centerpieces; pitchers of cloudy olive oil from the estate’s own groves; and plenty of glasses for the multitude of wines to come.
What would be on the menu? That all depended. What was the season and how was the weather? What was fresh that morning in the market? What had the fisherman brought in from the sea?
Perhaps one of Ms. Peyraud’s children had gathered some wild asparagus in spring or wild mushrooms in autumn. If it were a celebration, a bouillabaisse might be in order, or perhaps spit-roasted lambs or a hare stew.