Ortolan. Wheatear. A bunting. A small bird regarded as a great delicacy in southern France, especially in the Landes. Traditionally, it is eaten with the head of the diner covered with his napkin. It is not known, through the mists of time, whether this is to concentrate the aromas rising from the bird, or to hide such gluttony from the face of God. It is clearly nothing to do with the fact that these birds, trapped in their thousands and sold at enormous prices, are drowned in high quality Cognac. François Mitterand is famously said to have requested these for his last meal before he died. Although the trapping of these birds is against the law, as this is an endangered species, the practice continues in France and elsewhere, with frozen ortolans being sent to the US market.
