Qob Elias: A Historical Village in the Heart of the Bekaa. "History, Farmers Market, Wineries"

It was a bread bakery
and it became a Manakish bakery.

Hello Anthony, how are you?
Good? I hope so, happy holidays.

You are at Chafik Bou Assali Bakery
in Qob Elias.

This is a thyme Manoucheh.
We are making it now.

This is a mixed Manoucheh.

Mhammara Manoucheh.
This bakery has been here since 1958.

Since the times of my late father.

First, it was a bread bakery.
Then it became a Manakish and pastry bakery in 1965.

Good morning.
Good morning Anthony, welcome to Qob Elias.

We're happy that you're here.

We're happy that you're here and we
are recording the oldest things present in Qob Elias

and we allow people to know Qob Elias,
and the beauty of the village and the area.

So we're on.
Ahmad, tell me about you.

Thank God, good.
I've been here for almost a year and a month.

From Canada. I liked to come and see Lebanon, and get my kids to Lebanon.

Because Lebanon is the most beautiful
country in the world. I follow you a lot.

Because you excited us to come to Lebanon,
and i've been here for a year and a month.

I am working in Lebanon.
We have about 6 stops today.

We will see the oldest bakery in Qob Elias
and in the area.

We will see another bakery for one of
the most charismatic people in Qob Elias.

We will see the largest vegetable market
in the area, in the Middle East.

We will see Domaine de Chouchene because it is very amazing, Anthony, you're going to love it.

We will start with the thyme Manoucheh.
Soft soft soft.

Large and filling.

I loved it a lot.
Maximum soft.

Filling, generous,
the thyme is good.

It is not chewy.
Very fluffy.

The dough is properly soaked
with oil.

Great start.

Then they have this.

What is this! About a kilogram.

3 kinds of cheese.

A mix.

Wow.

That is something.

Super something.

All these.

Enjoy enjoy.

This is a big thing.

Abou Alaa Bakery.
You're close to my heart, I respect you.

All kinds of Manakish.

Welcome.
You're close to my heart.

Yes, I've been in this business for 50 years.
Specifically in this place, I've been for 17 years.

This is the thyme. The bakery is related to thyme,
they initially say, a thyme bakery.

Then, the other kinds come. But originally,
they say that this bakery is a thyme bakery.

You're welcome a hundred times.

One for me and one for you.

The Manoucheh is wrapped like
a sandwich, like a school sandwich.

You have to try it.

Super soft.

Super smooth.
Super simple.

Light and clean, delicious,
uncomplicated.

Comforting.

Unbelievable.

I memorized the location.

For sure I'm coming back.
Let me go inside to tell him thank you and bravo.

We are at Qob Elias Central Vegetable Market.
Now, I work as a guard in this market.

I am responsable for the market and now
I will take you to

Sheikh Wajih Al Amoury,
he will tell you more about the topic.

This vegetable market was established
in 1997.

A group of traders, in agreement
with the municipality, made this market

with effort and energy and it is from
the best Lebanese markets

and from the most organized Lebanese markets.

The market is made up of 121 garages
or doors,

and about 60 corporations are there.

This market, almost all production
of Al Bekaa,

comes to this market.

The market during summer,
all Lebanese markets come take from this market.

Even for traveling and exporting,
this market gives the products.

Traders sell everything in this market.

It is organized.

There is a committee or union for this
market.

There is another market in Ferzol. It is parallel to
Al Bekaa market, but our market is bigger.

It can fit more amount of products.

Just come and fill your sight with colors.

From a place to a place to a place.

All kinds of vegetables.
Very good condition and very clean.

Some are in plastic boxes,
or carton boxes, or bags.

You can find all what you need
in very good prices.

As you can see, the organization,
cleanliness, calmness, there is no shouting.

I was not expecting that.

Very nice.

It is the biggest in the Middle East,
and I have not came to here before.

Oops.

Very very professional.
Very professional.

Impressive. And I am still walking and
I do not feel like stopping.

From a place to a place to a place,
there is not a tiny bit of trash on the floor.

Our prices here are very good,
package prices. Our products are very clean,

products with clean water,
most of it is clean water, artesian.

Qob Elias products.

Look, there is a very old
Sun Temple.

Of course, we will go there later on
and talk about it.

If you want to capture it from here,
the picture would look very nice.

How many of you did know that there is
a Sun Temple in Qob Elias?

We pass through this road

always, we all pass through this road.
We all go all the way

to a beautiful area called Ammiq.
Did we ever look to the right at this mountain?

A temple, they say that it has been
here for more than 6,000 years.

Wow, we will go and see it together
later on.

So next, after the vegetables market, I will take you to my uncle, who is the eldest mayor in the village.

Mahyidinne Toufic Hatoum.

I have been a mayor since 1985.

Yes.

And in the village, there are almost

70,000 person.

Its history is very old.
Its history, there's Haidar remains, as they call it.

This dates back to the Romans era.

And maybe the Phoenicians.

It was more beautiful than that
and nicer than that.

When the sun rises in the morning, it hits,
we had the schools place,

there was all yards,
decorated as they call it.

There were no buildings or schools
or anything,

there was the Sun Temple, as they call it.

Tal El Akhdar boarders it from here.
the south, Tal El Akhdar, and Ammiq.

Tal El Akhdar belongs to Qob Elias.

But Ammiq belongs to west Bekaa.

From the east, El Marj village.

And from the south, I mean the north,
Chtoura.

And from the west, the mountain
and then Ain Dara.

Lots of history.
Lots to cover.

Of course, Qob Elias is rich with history,
as you can see.

And almost all civilizations passed
through Qob Elias.

Of course, because it exists on both
sides of the river.

So a side was Mrayjet
and a side was Qob Elias.

Now, all of it is Qob Elias.

We reached Ras El Ain area which
very famous here.

Where water starts. We are seeing around us
iron pipes left and right.

Unfortunately, they're damaged.
Now we were talking about this topic,

that there was a water station,
a power station but it stopped from a long time ago.

So the pipes rusted and started to break.

Nice walk, I can tell you that the walk is very nice.
We can go forwards for more than 20 minutes and see

where the river starts. But they are waiting for us in the village, and I started to feel hungry.

Good morning. Good morning.
How are you? How are you? Welcome. Good.

Hello. Hello. How are you?
God bless you.

The table and the smell in your house,
it's crazy.

Hiam Alaaeddine from Qob Elias.
I've been working for 10 years with Mouneh and

Arabic food as well as foreign food.

Stuffed vine leaves, Coxinha, Empanada,
Empanada Con Pino, chicken croquettes,

Tabouli, different kinds of pumpkin Kebbeh with all
stuffing, potato Kebbeh,

everything you need is found here.
This is Tabouli with village parsley

also with olive oil.

Lemon is also from the mountains.

Tell us about catering.

I work from home.
I've been for almost 8 years.

I developed my work,
I work with NGOs, I participate.

Now I am still developing.
I am learning and doing everything new.

Stuffed vine leaves with oil.
As they say, the leaves are from village.

I make everything, I get them during season
and cut them, sort and organize them,

and I press them and keep them ready
for when there is an order.

Wow.

No, the food is very nice.

Finally,

as it should be. Passion of home,
taste of home, the perfect flavors.

The Tabouli has perfect lemon,
it pinches a bit.

The oil is exact.
Fresh ingredients.

Perfect.

Perfect.

Your food is amazing.

There are still these?
They became red, we forgot them.

Let me exchange them.
Amazing amazing amazing,

Enjoy enjoy, welcome.
I hope the better and nicer will happen.

And the more delicious.

Wow. Impressive.

I thought that I am done, and I said
no, I want to have some bites without eating a lot.

But the potato Kebbeh stuffed with meat.
You're having it with Labneh, yes?

Impressive.

The crisp on the outside, flakiness, craziness.
It's super juicy on the inside and extremely flavorful.

Put everything aside, there is an obvious passion.

Welcome. We're waiting for you
wherever you are, in Lebanon and the world.

Come visit us.

Welcome guys. God bless you.

We've been here since 1982.

We work with cheeses and Labneh.

Labneh, cheese, Halloum, double cream,
Akkawi, Baladi.

It is all natural milk.

There is a proper boiler.
It becomes frothy in 30 mins.

We take it for making yogurt or cheese.

They are on the tables.

Cheese on the tables.

We press it by the press.
Here, this cheese is pressed.

This is pressed by the press.

We put a specific amount of salt and we
pack it in boxes and cans,

in salty water. Everything is 100% naturally
made on the old way.

There isn't any preservatives or powder or starch
or any artificial materials.

As the milk comes, we work with it, and we
put it,

we don't soak it, and cheese is put in
cans, as it is.

Good morning. Good morning, welcome.
Welcome welcome. Chateau Heritage.

About Qob Elias, I have to tell you,
I am the ex mayor.

I used to say, it's the capital of the
world and the center of the universe.

So now, Chateau Heritage is the capital of the
world and the center of the universe. Welcome.

It's an honor to have you.

Thank you. First, congratulations
for the new award.

You're a pride to this nation.

Thank you. Welcome. Thank you.

The square is very nice, as if it is Hacienda.
As if it is a place for horses,

as if we traveled to Portugal or Spain,
and we are in the center of Lebanon.

You enter from a door to another.

Originally, from the entrance, the
atmosphere and the vibes are amazing,

Chateau Heritage

Let's tour and see what do they have.
It's an old school built in 1927.

This is actually the courtyard.
The classes were here. They come to the courtyard.

So when we bought it, it was
utterly destroyed by the war.

It passed in phases where it was a
chicken and cow farm at one time,

a carton factory at another time,
but when we bought it, it was completely damaged.

It had many bullets and bombs.

So we refurbished and adapted it to
become a winery.

We are the sons of Elias Touma.
One of the founders of Arak Touma.

So we are fourth generation wine makers.
I went to the states and studied

chemical engineer.

The masters in indology,
PhD in food and beverage science.

So my friends call me Dr. D,
Dr. Dargham. So it's Dr. D.

What else do we tell you?

When I started here it was a very
primitive operation.

Now, the vats that you are seeing
are imported vats.

It's for show and pictures.
You know, like a portrait.

But in the rest of the winery
there are vats that I've done myself.

I've welded myself, I've done myself.

They are called, you know,
colt of the business, they do everything.

So Chateau Heritage was founded in 1997.
That's when I came back from the states.

I started working in 1997.

2 years prior, we made wine.

88 and 91, now we will show you what are they.

And it is a family business.
My siblings and I,

it is a family operation.

May my father rest in peace,
he was a big part of the business,

he died 4-5 years ago.

The patron saint, all wineries of the world
have a patron saint.

Because sometimes you do the science
to the maximum, a time comes,

things mess up. You have to refer to a
higher power, so

we light candles and such things. Patron saint of out winery is St. Elias, in honor of our father.

This is 1 of 2 sellers of wine.
Now we'll go up there to the second.

This is where wine comes to be aged.

I'm not a humongous fan of oak.

Because it covers, it masks the smells
and fruits of the wine.

But nonetheless, some wines need oak, and we,
personally I am American educated,

but to be honest, I tried French oak,
what I found to be the best for Lebanese

tannins and weather and things

is American oak.
Because when I started using that,

ever since, I'm winning best Lebanese wine
in the world consecutively every year.

Both in Bordeaux and elsewhere.

And to commemorate you winning the award,
now up there. Thank you so much.

We took it from here, it has mold which is okay.

This is the 2003 which has won about
6 golden awards all over the world

including best Lebanese wine.

You don't drink these being careless.
After the car trip,

you have to leave it for about 10 days
because it's going to shake.

And you open the other one
on a very nice occasion.

But in both cases, you should
decant them.

Please, because I am not teaching you,
but it's for the info.

Second, for it to have oxygen and stretch.

This has been stuck in the bottle for
30 years.

So it needs stretching.

Give it some oxygen to stretch.

How great.