Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud was far from full when we arrived for dinner at 8 o'clock on a miserable Thursday evening. Good scabs as always we began the evening at home, toasting my sister's thirtieth at home with a bottle of Mumm Cordon Rouge 1998 and Bollinger NV.
I have long been under the impression that Mumm NV is proper plop, but this was pretty damn good. Lovely autolytic biscuit notes and oodles of complexity, this was tasty, pinot noir led champagne. A bit of a cheese-y nose, and some undergrowth complexity. The Bollinger seemed fairly one dimensional in comparison, and had a metallic taint, a faulty bottle?
We arrived in Guilbaud's and were shown to our table. There were only three or four other occupied tables in the restaurant, and it was far from buzzing. This was the place where the tiger came to tea, so I suppose it wasn't so surprising that business appeared to be suffering. Undeterred we sat down and ordered a bottle of Chablis premier cru 2008, on the suggestion of the sommelier. To my shame I didn't catch the name of the producer, but it may have been Guillaume Vrignaud. This was structured, mineral, restrained in its use of oak and good, although I still prefer the iodine aspect of Jean Claude Bessin's wines.
Our bouches were amused by a perfect pairing of parmesan foam, red wine syrup and foie gras. This was truly fantastic, a real exploration of fermentation flavours and was probably the best thing I ate that night.
STARTERS
I chose truffle tortellini with warm baby leeks, hazelnut, potato mousse and a truffle vinagrette.
At 38 euro this consisted of three tortellini, sitting on the potato mousse, and topped by the leeks and hazelnuts. As the proud father of a relatively new baby I can attest that the leeks didn't actually taste of warm baby, but perhaps that is no bad thing. The dish was elegant and restrained, a sound combination of autumnal flavours. A slight criticism that the pasta was too thick at the edges, but overall this was good.
My sister went for the red king crab cannelloni, with pineapple, pickled ginger, baby herbs, and wasabi creme fraiche. This was all you could wish for in terms of light, fresh, clean flavour without resorting to lime juice or coriander- I know because I scabbed some! She was bowled over by the intensity of the micro greens and also, strangely that the wasabi tasted of wasabi but 'didn't hurt when you [ate] it'.A very good dish, and perfect lady starter food.
The Ma elected to try the stewed basque pepper terrine, with whipped goat's cheese, fennel confit, balsamic croquant and black olive tapenade. This was good, but not great. I didn't think the balsamic croquant had much to recommend it. It looked quite cool, but the flavour was not good. It tasted like burnt-y cake bits. Pretty punchy at 35 bucks, although a bit of a bargain relative to the omnivore's starters.
Pa Pa had the Castletown Bere Scallops, with cauliflower three ways, confit zest with grapefruit reduction and citrus seasoning. I purloined a piece of the scallop and thought it was perfectly cooked, although the Pa said he would have preferred it to have seen the pan for a minute more. He was wrong.
Main courses followed a bizarre interlude where empty plates were places in front of us, presumably to symbolise the lost fish course which we had decided to fore go. I shed a single golden tear. Goodbye my fishy friend. No cutlery was presented. I can't decide whether this made it all more of less bizarre.
MAINS:
Pa couldn't resist his favourite food, veal sweetbreads. These were served with endive and caramelized fennel, with an aribica glaze, and were pronounced excellent.
Despite her fear of bivalves Mama chose the West Cork Sole, Artichoke, Parsley and Shellfish nage. This featured a sizeable and perfectly cooked piece of sole, covered in a nage, which failed the scary bivalve test, and therefore passed mummy muster with flying colours.
My sister's turbot with carrot and star anise and seaweed butter, was a very good combination, featuring a generous portion of turbot.
I chose the Brittany pigeon, slowly roasted with parsnip and seasame and cocoa grue. This was quite a small portion compared to the fish to my right and left, but was good.
Wine wise I chose from a surprisingly well priced list, at least relative to continental urban two stars. Regular readers- are there any?- will know that I am a foul scab, but when in Rome...
I was tempted by the Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve 2005 at 49 snots, which is a lovely wine but probably too big, even in the dry Trimbach style, to go with all the dishes chosen. I went instead for a superb A and P de Villaine, Cote Chalonnaise 'Les Clous' 2006. 100% chardonnay made on the personal estate of Romanee Conti owner, Aubert de Villaine. Both the reds and whites are fantastic and worth looking trying if you come across them. This was restrained and fine, with a certain yuminess, and a nose full of ripe orchard fruit and a hint of oatmeal. Perfectly balanced, this is a superb wine for the money. We also got two glasses of Simon Beze Bourgogne 2006 to go with my pigeon and the pa's veal, this was very good albeit at 12 a glass. Still when you can pay the same for a glass of absolutely crap pinot grigio in the Shelbourne perhaps this represents relatively good value?
We finished with a selection of fromages- more expensive than a selection of cheeses would have been. The condition of the cheese wasn't great. Not that they were underripe but rather that the rinds of the soft cheeses, particularly the washed rinds were dried out.m Twenty five quid verges on outrageous for 200g of cheese.
This was washed down with a glass of Trimbach Gewurztraminer VT 2002. The sommelier seemed surprised by this choice, conceding that it would be good with the blue cheeses but conveying an overall impression of deep scepticism. I have long thought that gewurz is probably the best variety to pair with cheese and it worked out well.
My sister's chocolate fondant with a warm criollo biscuit, milk chocolate and hazelnut centre and a stout ice cream was decidedly underwhelming. My sister is a chocolate fondant jedi and found this lacked real depth of flavour.
We finished with some good coffees and a plate of very average at best petit fours, including chocolate tuiles and cubes of orange jelly.
The bread throughout the evening was delicious.
Would I be running back with my own money? Probably not. It isn't that there was anything wrong with the food, some of it was very good and the amuse bouche was genuinely excellent. Amuse Bouche aside there was little in the way of genuinely exciting flavour combinations, and for this kind of money you can eat in some of the rural french three stars.. I suppose the 85 euro tasting menu is good value, but I think Guilbaud's is more about the service and being seen than a genuinely memorable gastronomic experience.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
Yannick Amirault Le Grand Clos 2004, Bourgeuil
Yannick Amirault is widely regarded as one of the best red wine producers in the Loire.Yet his wines remain affordable and are a hot tip for anyone presented with a terrifying tome of a wine list in Relais et Chateaux restaurants. Guilbaud's used to list some 1995's but don't seem to have any left.
Yannick took over the 3.4 hectare domaine from his grandfather in 1977, and has built it up to 19 hectares today. Yannick's son Benoit joined the enterprise in 2003, and the pair are currently in the process of converting the domaine for organic certification.
Amirault makes a number of different cuvees of Bourgeuil, and St Nicholas de Bourgeuil- all from 100% Cabernet Franc. The fruity La Coudraye, La Mine, La Source and Le Rose are from sandy soils; the heavier, more serious Le Grand Clos is from clay-silex; and La Petite Cave, Les Quartiers and Les Malagnes are from and sand and clay mixture.
The wines are in short supply, so much so that Irish agents Sheridans/ Grapecircus were unable to secure any 2005s whatsoever despite having bought a large quantity of 2004s. Sheridans have just sold out of Le Grand Clos 2004, but still have some of the lighter, cheaper, and less interesting La Coudraye 2006 (16.95) in stock. This cuvee conforms more to light and fruity, chill it if you like, Loire red than the more serious Le Grand Clos. I think La Cave may still have a couple of bottles of Le Grand Clos 2004 on their list. Visitors to the Grand Epicerie in Paris can stock up on a wide range of Amirault's wines at very reasonable prices ( from 9 euro upwards).
2004 was not a decent but not fantastic vintage for Loire reds, nowhere near as ripe as 2005 or 2003 and probably on a par with 2002. Then again it wasn't a total wash-out and maybe you get more a sense of red Loire from an goodish vintage, than from a blockbuster year like 2003. Enough decent weather to get rid of dilute character and serious greeness, but not sufficient heat that you would never guess Loire. Think 2004 Bordeaux vs 2005. High levels of ripeness in 2006 prior to rain in September saved the harvest from washout. I would avoid red Loire 2007s, probably 2008s. 2009 is supposed to be savagely good, on a par with 2005 according to initial reports.
Anyway suffice to say that the Grand Clos 2004 (22.95) was just coming into its own. I tasted this a few years ago and it was good, but far too young. Now it had blackberry fruit with a hint of briar attached, restrained oak (2nd uses barriques from Chateau Margaux), smokey/ cigar box and some nice secondary characteristics starting to come through. Too bad this is the last bottle! Went very well with the huge veal cutlet from the butcher's in Donnybrook, which cost almost as much as the wine.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Scab's Pinot Noir continues
The search for scab's pinot continues.
Prior to the 2001 vintage Chanson had arguably the worst reputation of any of the negotiants of Beaune, think Louis Latour; Drouhin; Jadot. Bollinger bought the company from the Marion family in 1999. Bollinger immediately found themselves at the centre of a scandal which was not of their making. Over 700,000 bottles in the cellars were found to be illegally blended wines.
Cellar master Marc Cugney had, under the supervision of the Marions, committed numerous fraudulent acts in the cellars. Standard Bourgogne had been bulked up with Vins de Pays from Languedoc and wines from Allicante. Some red burgundies contained in excess of 75% vins de pays! Certain site specific wines including those from the famous Clos des Mouches and Beaune Greves were blended from a concoction of wines. Worryingly these wines passed the agrement ( testing and tasting by the INAO required if the wines are to be granted the AOC). Evidence given at the trial indicated that over 25% of Chanson's wines in 2000, 1999 and 1998 were fraudulent. In light of this my advice would be to avoid Chanson wine predating 2002 like the plague. There are a couple of older bits and pieces knocking around various branches of O'Briens at apparently reasonable prices for bottle aged Burgundy. For the reasons stated above I haven't tried any of these, but would caution against purchase.
Fortunately those days are firmly behind Chanson now. Bollinger have installed the team of Giles de Courcel- of the illustrious Domaine de Courcel in Pommard, and winemaker Jean-Pierre Confuron- of Confuron-Cotetidot at Vosne-Romanee. Together these two have redefined quality at Chanson and the wines are improving with every vintage.
My impression of the overhauled Chanson wines are as follows ( based on the relatively limited wines I have tried) . The reds are more consistent than the whites, although the whites have come significantly since 2005. From what I have read the 2006 whites are superb, notably the Pernand-Vergelesses En Caradeux 2006. The 2005 is very good too, although there appears to be a hint of free sulphur knocking around. ( perhaps this is in reaction to the phenomenon for premature oxidation of white burgundy experienced in recent years, suppposedly caused by, amongst other things, a trend for increasingly low sulphur dosages in recent years).
I have been less impressed by their Savigny Les Beaune les Hauts Marconnets 2004, which appeared to be suffering from a serious fault in a couple of bottles, characterised by a horribly pronounced curry leaf aroma. At the far end of the scale their Macon Village 2008 is undoubtedly good value for money and a fantastic party wine. I have read that this is O'Brien's best selling wine.
The reds from the Cotes de Beaune, Chanson's home turf, have a better reputation than their wines from the Cotes de Nuits and Cotes Chalonnaise. I have tasted many of the 2002 Beaune Premier Cru reds and would recommend them all, particularly the Clos des Feves. I have come across a couple of corked bottles of Clos du Roi 2002. I would skip the 2003 and 2004s, although I have not tasted them. The 2005s are more expensive than the 2002s, presumably because Bollinger are not doing this for the good of their health! In fairness to O'Briens though the pricing is roughly in line with cellar door retail prices in France, and you could probably pay a lot more for these wines in a posh shop in Paris.
The 2005 Clos des Feves scored 19/20 in the Bettane and Desseauve Guide 2008- in the same league as the Romanee Conti's of this world- and is still a bit of a bargain at 55 euro. I have one sacred bottle which I am keeping for my fiftieth, or when I qualify for the bar- whichever happens first! The Beaune Greves 2005 is also damn fine and rated so by Jancis Robinson. I had a bottle recently over Sunday lunch. Way, way too young but pretty damn tasty nonetheless.
I was less impressed by their Mercurey 2006, and Cotes de Nuits 2006. That is not to say that these wines are bad but that they were less expressive, and less interesting than the wines above. Having said that both were just under twenty euro so I am not sure that this is a fair comparison.
Anyway, what about their Bourgogne Rouge 2007?
Wine: Light in body. Fairly muted on the nose with some red fruit character and a touch of pinot whiff. Light to medium bodied on the palate, old world ripe with refreshing acidity and sufficient grip to stand up to plain salmon or chicken. Refined, elegant and restrained. Nothing spectacular here, but very well done. Would buy again, recommended. Available for 15.95 in O'Briens. 11 euro at Chanson in France.
Also recommended by Bettane and Desseauve Guide 2010. 15/20 and smiley face for good value!
Prior to the 2001 vintage Chanson had arguably the worst reputation of any of the negotiants of Beaune, think Louis Latour; Drouhin; Jadot. Bollinger bought the company from the Marion family in 1999. Bollinger immediately found themselves at the centre of a scandal which was not of their making. Over 700,000 bottles in the cellars were found to be illegally blended wines.
Cellar master Marc Cugney had, under the supervision of the Marions, committed numerous fraudulent acts in the cellars. Standard Bourgogne had been bulked up with Vins de Pays from Languedoc and wines from Allicante. Some red burgundies contained in excess of 75% vins de pays! Certain site specific wines including those from the famous Clos des Mouches and Beaune Greves were blended from a concoction of wines. Worryingly these wines passed the agrement ( testing and tasting by the INAO required if the wines are to be granted the AOC). Evidence given at the trial indicated that over 25% of Chanson's wines in 2000, 1999 and 1998 were fraudulent. In light of this my advice would be to avoid Chanson wine predating 2002 like the plague. There are a couple of older bits and pieces knocking around various branches of O'Briens at apparently reasonable prices for bottle aged Burgundy. For the reasons stated above I haven't tried any of these, but would caution against purchase.
Fortunately those days are firmly behind Chanson now. Bollinger have installed the team of Giles de Courcel- of the illustrious Domaine de Courcel in Pommard, and winemaker Jean-Pierre Confuron- of Confuron-Cotetidot at Vosne-Romanee. Together these two have redefined quality at Chanson and the wines are improving with every vintage.
My impression of the overhauled Chanson wines are as follows ( based on the relatively limited wines I have tried) . The reds are more consistent than the whites, although the whites have come significantly since 2005. From what I have read the 2006 whites are superb, notably the Pernand-Vergelesses En Caradeux 2006. The 2005 is very good too, although there appears to be a hint of free sulphur knocking around. ( perhaps this is in reaction to the phenomenon for premature oxidation of white burgundy experienced in recent years, suppposedly caused by, amongst other things, a trend for increasingly low sulphur dosages in recent years).
I have been less impressed by their Savigny Les Beaune les Hauts Marconnets 2004, which appeared to be suffering from a serious fault in a couple of bottles, characterised by a horribly pronounced curry leaf aroma. At the far end of the scale their Macon Village 2008 is undoubtedly good value for money and a fantastic party wine. I have read that this is O'Brien's best selling wine.
The reds from the Cotes de Beaune, Chanson's home turf, have a better reputation than their wines from the Cotes de Nuits and Cotes Chalonnaise. I have tasted many of the 2002 Beaune Premier Cru reds and would recommend them all, particularly the Clos des Feves. I have come across a couple of corked bottles of Clos du Roi 2002. I would skip the 2003 and 2004s, although I have not tasted them. The 2005s are more expensive than the 2002s, presumably because Bollinger are not doing this for the good of their health! In fairness to O'Briens though the pricing is roughly in line with cellar door retail prices in France, and you could probably pay a lot more for these wines in a posh shop in Paris.
The 2005 Clos des Feves scored 19/20 in the Bettane and Desseauve Guide 2008- in the same league as the Romanee Conti's of this world- and is still a bit of a bargain at 55 euro. I have one sacred bottle which I am keeping for my fiftieth, or when I qualify for the bar- whichever happens first! The Beaune Greves 2005 is also damn fine and rated so by Jancis Robinson. I had a bottle recently over Sunday lunch. Way, way too young but pretty damn tasty nonetheless.
I was less impressed by their Mercurey 2006, and Cotes de Nuits 2006. That is not to say that these wines are bad but that they were less expressive, and less interesting than the wines above. Having said that both were just under twenty euro so I am not sure that this is a fair comparison.
Anyway, what about their Bourgogne Rouge 2007?
Wine: Light in body. Fairly muted on the nose with some red fruit character and a touch of pinot whiff. Light to medium bodied on the palate, old world ripe with refreshing acidity and sufficient grip to stand up to plain salmon or chicken. Refined, elegant and restrained. Nothing spectacular here, but very well done. Would buy again, recommended. Available for 15.95 in O'Briens. 11 euro at Chanson in France.
Also recommended by Bettane and Desseauve Guide 2010. 15/20 and smiley face for good value!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Le Preverre, Rue Thenard, Paris 5eme
Unlike the Irish rugby team, I have learnt from my visits to Paris over the years. Despite its reputation as a foodie Mecca I have found that eating out in Paris can be surprisingly (i) expensive (ii) hit and miss. Mark ups on wines are generally higher than in Ireland, and the food can be punchy too for what you are getting. With this in mind I put a psychotic amount of research into where to eat and, thankfully, came up trumphs. This involved long hours on the internet and texting anyone I could think of who regularly eats out in Paris.
The ever increasing number of bistro-nomique restaurants are probably the most interesting places to eat in Paris at the moment. The 'nomique' refers to both 'gastronomique' and 'economique'. Over the past number of years the prices of the top restaurants have risen to such an extent that most of the population simply cannot afford to ever eat in them. Even in a country like France where normal working people will actively save to dine out in a top restaurant perhaps once a year, these restaurants are considered ludicrously expensive. It should be noted that this is not simple profiteering by these restaurants, it is simply unbelievably expensive to run such operations. You need a fancy address (high rents), a huge number of front of house staff; an army in the kitchen to assemble each dish; and massively expensive raw ingredients (lobster; foie gras; turbot; chickens with postgraduate degrees etc). The Michelin system is a vicious cycle, requiring the output of ever larger sums to either retain the stars you have, and constant refurbs, crockery changes, refits etc if you hope to move from one level to the next.
At the other end of the scale many of the better known traditional bistro/brasserie restaurants in Paris are owned by various big operations where the bottom line is the primary motivating factor. The food tends towards to be generic, bistro classics trotted out using bog standard ingredients. Many tourists end up in these premises, swept along by the romance of big, busy, historic restaurants serving classic french fair but culminating in an ultimately disappointing experience.
It is therefore unsurprising that it is more difficult to eat out well in Paris than the capital's image as a food destination would have you believe.
The Bistronomique movement is an effort to address this lacuna. The philosophy behind these independently owned restaurants is that just because you can't afford to eat in the top restaurants does not mean that you should have to eat badly. The customer is still entitled to enjoy dishes made with the top ingredients appropriate to this level of restaurant. You won't find too much lobster or Wagu beef on the menu but every detail of the food from the bread to the coffee has been carefully selected to maximise quality. Many of the chefs in these restaurants have worked in the two and three stared establishments and become disillusioned by the elitism and essential falsity of this over-refined style of dining.
Le Pre-verre is a small restaurant on Rue Thenard in the 5eme, specialising in wines from small producers and the subtle use of spices in food. I had reservations about the latter, as I was concerned about the over zealous, and needless application of spices across the menu. Fortunately my visions of turmeric cheesecake never materialized as all spices were used in a judicious and sparing manner, and served to add subtle complexity to the food.
The wine list was the main reason I had booked Le Preverre. Wine lists in Paris vary massively in price and quality. At the lower end many cafes simply list the wine with no reference to producer or vintage. Elsewhere you can pay in excess of Dublin prices for pretty bog standard wines. At Michelin star level the sky is the limit, and you will be lucky to find anything half-way decent for less than 60 euro. By contrast Le Preverre has a short, but perfectly formed wine list. The list is divided into everyday wines, prices from 20 something to 50 something euro, and special occasion wines from 60 to 150 euro. All the wines are sourced from small, independent producers such as Barmes-Buecher from Alsace; Muzard from Burgundy; Domaines David and Saladin from the Southern Rhone; Domaine Tempier from Bandol. Scab that I am we stuck to the everyday section and had a lovely white Santenay Champs Claude 07 from Muzard (48 euro), and, as recommended by the sommelier, a rich, dark 2002 Cahors le Cid from Domaine Cosse-Maisonneuve (52 euro).
By Parisian standards the interior was lacking in dark wood, mirrors, zinc bars and a touch of Parisian romance. The restaurant is not going to win many prizes in this regard, although the space was pleasant, convivial and well lit.
We started with two portions of seared, carpaccio-ed scallops, with jerusalem artichoke puree and chips chips or artichoke and a plate of guinea-fowl terrine. The scallops were served topped with well dressed rocket leaves and a few strips of unidentified red vegetable. The round richness of artichoke puree was perfect with the delicate, yet rich scallops. The searing gave them a caramelized exterior which contrasted perfectly with the delicate raw scallop within.
The guinea fowl terrine was delicious. The dish was served with a lively kumquats sauce and mixed leaves in a nut-oil based dressing. The top of the loaf shaped terrine had been rolled in poppy seeds- the spice theme I mentioned earlier. It was moist and moreish.
The Santenay had a nice weight and good presence, without being in any way heavy or oily. Bright acidity and minerality made it refreshing and it was a perfect match with the richness of the scallops and puree.
Main courses were a shared rib of beef with smoked mashed potatoes and wasabi sauce- a signature dish- and slow braised pork in a milk with crisp cabbage. The beef was fabulous, in stark contrast to a tough, flavourless and expensive rib of beef recently ordered in a nameless south Dublin establishment. The meat was perfectly rare as requested. I would generally be wary of ordering this as the connetive tissue around the rib can require a slight bit more cooking than pure fillet, but this was perfect, testiment to the high quality of ingredients used here. The beef had great flavour and a melting texture. The smokiness of the mash was french in its understatement- which is a complement, I think? The wasabi sauce did not appear to be in evidence though, although the steak was topped with a red coloured dressing which contained shallots. All in all, pretty damn good.
The pork was seriously bloody good. Tender without being string, it had been poached in the milk which now formed its sauce. There was a faint rasp of anise in the sauce. Pork's friend cabbage was along for the ride and thoroughly enjoyed himself.
The Cahors was ideal with the beef. Full, Rich and smooth it still had a long, long life ahead of it, or would have done if we had not finished the whole bottle.
Nothing on the dessert list really screamed for us to order it. New York Cheesecake is apparently the house special, but not the idea follow up to any of the mainers. Roast pineapple with black sesame icecream sounded interesting, but not tempting. Ever eager for calories, especially those derived from a dairy source, I ordered the cheese.
The cheese board was a slight let down after the meal, which had been very, very good. I readily identified a slice of Brie de Meaux ( Donge I think), and what I assumed was Fourme d'Ambert.
The third cheese has a pinkish hue on the rind and a chalky texture, I wondered was it Langres.
I asked the japanese waitress, 'what are the cheeses?', she helpfully replied that the cheese were the white pieces and that the green pieces were the salad. The mystery cheese turned out to be Mont d'Or, which should never be in anyway chalky. I'm not saying the cheeses were bad, far from it, but there were disappointing after what had preceded them.
We finished with three good coffees and petit fours of mini chocolate pots flavoured with liquorice. These were delicious, especially accompanied by the warm glow of smugness that accompanies the correct identification of a particular flavour when your dinner companions have failed to do so.
I would heartily recommend Le Pre-Verre to anyone staying in the centre of Paris who likes good wines, good food and affordable prices. The menu and wine list change every month and are available on their website www.lepreverre.com
The ever increasing number of bistro-nomique restaurants are probably the most interesting places to eat in Paris at the moment. The 'nomique' refers to both 'gastronomique' and 'economique'. Over the past number of years the prices of the top restaurants have risen to such an extent that most of the population simply cannot afford to ever eat in them. Even in a country like France where normal working people will actively save to dine out in a top restaurant perhaps once a year, these restaurants are considered ludicrously expensive. It should be noted that this is not simple profiteering by these restaurants, it is simply unbelievably expensive to run such operations. You need a fancy address (high rents), a huge number of front of house staff; an army in the kitchen to assemble each dish; and massively expensive raw ingredients (lobster; foie gras; turbot; chickens with postgraduate degrees etc). The Michelin system is a vicious cycle, requiring the output of ever larger sums to either retain the stars you have, and constant refurbs, crockery changes, refits etc if you hope to move from one level to the next.
At the other end of the scale many of the better known traditional bistro/brasserie restaurants in Paris are owned by various big operations where the bottom line is the primary motivating factor. The food tends towards to be generic, bistro classics trotted out using bog standard ingredients. Many tourists end up in these premises, swept along by the romance of big, busy, historic restaurants serving classic french fair but culminating in an ultimately disappointing experience.
It is therefore unsurprising that it is more difficult to eat out well in Paris than the capital's image as a food destination would have you believe.
The Bistronomique movement is an effort to address this lacuna. The philosophy behind these independently owned restaurants is that just because you can't afford to eat in the top restaurants does not mean that you should have to eat badly. The customer is still entitled to enjoy dishes made with the top ingredients appropriate to this level of restaurant. You won't find too much lobster or Wagu beef on the menu but every detail of the food from the bread to the coffee has been carefully selected to maximise quality. Many of the chefs in these restaurants have worked in the two and three stared establishments and become disillusioned by the elitism and essential falsity of this over-refined style of dining.
Le Pre-verre is a small restaurant on Rue Thenard in the 5eme, specialising in wines from small producers and the subtle use of spices in food. I had reservations about the latter, as I was concerned about the over zealous, and needless application of spices across the menu. Fortunately my visions of turmeric cheesecake never materialized as all spices were used in a judicious and sparing manner, and served to add subtle complexity to the food.
The wine list was the main reason I had booked Le Preverre. Wine lists in Paris vary massively in price and quality. At the lower end many cafes simply list the wine with no reference to producer or vintage. Elsewhere you can pay in excess of Dublin prices for pretty bog standard wines. At Michelin star level the sky is the limit, and you will be lucky to find anything half-way decent for less than 60 euro. By contrast Le Preverre has a short, but perfectly formed wine list. The list is divided into everyday wines, prices from 20 something to 50 something euro, and special occasion wines from 60 to 150 euro. All the wines are sourced from small, independent producers such as Barmes-Buecher from Alsace; Muzard from Burgundy; Domaines David and Saladin from the Southern Rhone; Domaine Tempier from Bandol. Scab that I am we stuck to the everyday section and had a lovely white Santenay Champs Claude 07 from Muzard (48 euro), and, as recommended by the sommelier, a rich, dark 2002 Cahors le Cid from Domaine Cosse-Maisonneuve (52 euro).
By Parisian standards the interior was lacking in dark wood, mirrors, zinc bars and a touch of Parisian romance. The restaurant is not going to win many prizes in this regard, although the space was pleasant, convivial and well lit.
We started with two portions of seared, carpaccio-ed scallops, with jerusalem artichoke puree and chips chips or artichoke and a plate of guinea-fowl terrine. The scallops were served topped with well dressed rocket leaves and a few strips of unidentified red vegetable. The round richness of artichoke puree was perfect with the delicate, yet rich scallops. The searing gave them a caramelized exterior which contrasted perfectly with the delicate raw scallop within.
The guinea fowl terrine was delicious. The dish was served with a lively kumquats sauce and mixed leaves in a nut-oil based dressing. The top of the loaf shaped terrine had been rolled in poppy seeds- the spice theme I mentioned earlier. It was moist and moreish.
The Santenay had a nice weight and good presence, without being in any way heavy or oily. Bright acidity and minerality made it refreshing and it was a perfect match with the richness of the scallops and puree.
Main courses were a shared rib of beef with smoked mashed potatoes and wasabi sauce- a signature dish- and slow braised pork in a milk with crisp cabbage. The beef was fabulous, in stark contrast to a tough, flavourless and expensive rib of beef recently ordered in a nameless south Dublin establishment. The meat was perfectly rare as requested. I would generally be wary of ordering this as the connetive tissue around the rib can require a slight bit more cooking than pure fillet, but this was perfect, testiment to the high quality of ingredients used here. The beef had great flavour and a melting texture. The smokiness of the mash was french in its understatement- which is a complement, I think? The wasabi sauce did not appear to be in evidence though, although the steak was topped with a red coloured dressing which contained shallots. All in all, pretty damn good.
The pork was seriously bloody good. Tender without being string, it had been poached in the milk which now formed its sauce. There was a faint rasp of anise in the sauce. Pork's friend cabbage was along for the ride and thoroughly enjoyed himself.
The Cahors was ideal with the beef. Full, Rich and smooth it still had a long, long life ahead of it, or would have done if we had not finished the whole bottle.
Nothing on the dessert list really screamed for us to order it. New York Cheesecake is apparently the house special, but not the idea follow up to any of the mainers. Roast pineapple with black sesame icecream sounded interesting, but not tempting. Ever eager for calories, especially those derived from a dairy source, I ordered the cheese.
The cheese board was a slight let down after the meal, which had been very, very good. I readily identified a slice of Brie de Meaux ( Donge I think), and what I assumed was Fourme d'Ambert.
The third cheese has a pinkish hue on the rind and a chalky texture, I wondered was it Langres.
I asked the japanese waitress, 'what are the cheeses?', she helpfully replied that the cheese were the white pieces and that the green pieces were the salad. The mystery cheese turned out to be Mont d'Or, which should never be in anyway chalky. I'm not saying the cheeses were bad, far from it, but there were disappointing after what had preceded them.
We finished with three good coffees and petit fours of mini chocolate pots flavoured with liquorice. These were delicious, especially accompanied by the warm glow of smugness that accompanies the correct identification of a particular flavour when your dinner companions have failed to do so.
I would heartily recommend Le Pre-Verre to anyone staying in the centre of Paris who likes good wines, good food and affordable prices. The menu and wine list change every month and are available on their website www.lepreverre.com
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Scab's Pinot Noir
The eternal quandry, you love Pinot Noir but are too scabby/ broke/ jobless/ homeless to buy a passable example( 17 euro minimum and no guarantee of quality). What to do? Reach with trepidation for a jammy Chilean or cheap, icing-sugared Kiwi?
Nay sir. The scabby wisedom lies in Marks and Spencer's Palatia Pinot Noir 2008 (12.99) from the Pfalz. M&S must have been justifiably fearful that anyone seeing a bottle which is a)from Germany and b) red wine, would run screaming for the padded safety of the underwear department. Accordingly the Spencers have cunningly disguised this wine with a trendy modern label and the name Palataia- derived from the state Rhineland-Palatinate. The overall effect is to allow the customer's inner dyslexic to takeover thus fostering the assumption that this wine must be from somewhere in Italy. 'I'll certainly try that' thinks the customer to himself, ' I love Italian wine and I've heard of Pinot Noir'. No one runs for cover to the underwear section, and Marks and Spencer sell a bottle of German red wine. Once at home indepth rereading of the back label with a highlighter pen just about reveals that this wine is from Pfalz, but by then the damage has been done and the customer is actively enjoying a bottle of german pinot noir.
But enough about the theory, what does the wine taste like?
It is fairly light, but juicy at the same time. There is a distinct pinot souboise nose and plenty of crunchy raspberry. The acidity is refreshing and the tannins are smooth. All in all this is good stuff and worth a hell of a lot more than 12.99 euro. It should be noted in passing that the same bottle is a risible 7.99 stg. Marks and Spencer often also do decent reductions on any 6 bottles.
Finally I suppose it is worth reflecting on the fact that a shop like Marks and Spencers are not buying German Pinot Noir because it sells itself, as a Chablis or Fleurie undoubtedly would.
It is probable that anything more outre than the usual categories is there because it is actively good, not because it is something they have to have.
This wine is also recommended by Jancis Robinson and Tim Aiken.
Try it with some plainly cooked salmon, or white meat.
Nay sir. The scabby wisedom lies in Marks and Spencer's Palatia Pinot Noir 2008 (12.99) from the Pfalz. M&S must have been justifiably fearful that anyone seeing a bottle which is a)from Germany and b) red wine, would run screaming for the padded safety of the underwear department. Accordingly the Spencers have cunningly disguised this wine with a trendy modern label and the name Palataia- derived from the state Rhineland-Palatinate. The overall effect is to allow the customer's inner dyslexic to takeover thus fostering the assumption that this wine must be from somewhere in Italy. 'I'll certainly try that' thinks the customer to himself, ' I love Italian wine and I've heard of Pinot Noir'. No one runs for cover to the underwear section, and Marks and Spencer sell a bottle of German red wine. Once at home indepth rereading of the back label with a highlighter pen just about reveals that this wine is from Pfalz, but by then the damage has been done and the customer is actively enjoying a bottle of german pinot noir.
But enough about the theory, what does the wine taste like?
It is fairly light, but juicy at the same time. There is a distinct pinot souboise nose and plenty of crunchy raspberry. The acidity is refreshing and the tannins are smooth. All in all this is good stuff and worth a hell of a lot more than 12.99 euro. It should be noted in passing that the same bottle is a risible 7.99 stg. Marks and Spencer often also do decent reductions on any 6 bottles.
Finally I suppose it is worth reflecting on the fact that a shop like Marks and Spencers are not buying German Pinot Noir because it sells itself, as a Chablis or Fleurie undoubtedly would.
It is probable that anything more outre than the usual categories is there because it is actively good, not because it is something they have to have.
This wine is also recommended by Jancis Robinson and Tim Aiken.
Try it with some plainly cooked salmon, or white meat.
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