Montmartre Museum, Renoir and Champagne

by Paige Donner

Wine and food pairings. A natural.

Wine and music pairings. Love the original inspiration of this since a few years back.

Wine and Renoir pairings?

This was the theme of a recent champagne tasting in Paris held at the picturesque Musée Montmartre's Jardins Renoir or Montmartre Museum's Renoir Gardens which overlook the Clos Montmartre in the shadow of the Sacré-Coeur.

A more idyllic location in Paris on a sunny early Autumn evening could not be imagined.

 

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

Musée Montmartre Jardins Renoir - photo by Paige Donner copyright 2014

 

All photos copyright 2014 Paige Donner All Rights Reserved

And there was method to this artistic madness... A group of champagne houses from the Aube region, around the village of Essoyes, to be exact, banded together to show off their champagnes and display them with the particular Renoir painting they felt paired the best with their chosen cuvée.

The historical reference is that Renoir lived in Essoyes with his wife and children during the summer months starting in 1895. There is now a foundation established to restore this heritage house where Renoir kept an atelier on the ground floor, overlooking the garden. 

Today the village welcomes art enthusiasts and Renoir-lovers in its L'Espace des Renoir et l'Atelier du peintre. They have fondly named this area the Côté des Renoir.  The participating champagnes located in and around the Côté des Renoir are Champagne de Barfontarc, Champagne Jacques de France, Champagne Drappier, Champagne R. Dumont & Fils, Champagne Rémy Massin & Fils, Champagne Thierry Mercuzot, Champagne Richardot, Champagne Cristian Senez, Champagne Charles Collin and Champagne Chassenay d'Arce. 

More information, including photos of the paintings each house chose to represent their champagne, can be found at www.renoir-essoyes.com

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Gastronomy + Paris Luxury Sightseeing Bus = Bustronome

by Paige Donner

Move over foodtrucks, because France has re-envisioned the gourmet food-on-wheels concept and it's called the Bustronome.

Only in Paris!  This surely qualifies as one of those Only in Paris experiences.  The French, as you know, seem never to be satisfied with exhilarating experiences unless -and until - a healthy dose of good food and wine has been added to the mix.

 

This is one of those exhilarating experiences.

And a great big healthy dose of food and wine has been added to the mix here on Bustronome, the gourmet bus tour of the sacred sites of Paris that is sure to delight even the most reticent of foie gras lovers.

 SEE SLIDESHOW HERE

 

 

Bustronome Founders Jean-Christophe Fournier and Bertrand Mathieu

 

Bustronome Dinner menu (summer)

 

Bustronome - chef and team, Wow! Bravo!

 

Bustronome - ingenious way of keeping the glasses from slipping!

 

Bustronome fan (yours truly)

 

Bustromone Founders Jean-Christophe Fournier and Bertrand Mathieu

 

 

Founder Jean-Christophe Fournier and Head Waiter

 

 

 

The bus excursion starts off at the Etoile, aka the Arc de Triomphe. You can't miss the elegant big black bus that is parked there awaiting its passengers. The bottom level of the double-decker bus is outfitted as a chef's kitchen. The panoramic glass roof-covered and cozy upstairs seats about 40 comfortably in 4-top and 2-top tables, with an aisle inbetween both right and left window seatings.

Certainly the heros of the evening are the chef and his team, laboring below in a very coolly-equipped kitchen as the bus tools its way through the Parisian evening traffic. And the waiter who not only jogs up and down the flight of stairs all night long but carries trays of hot and heavy platters of this four-course meal.

The tables are customized with stylish plexiglass holders that keep your water and wine glasses in place. The dishes are weighted by their design, with your entrée coming in a covered stone pot, which keeps it from careening around on the table.

The evening is planned for about 2 1/2  hours but you should allow for up to four. The bus stops at some of the highlight points, such as in front of  the Eiffel Tower, the Notre Dame and at Place de la Concorde, allowing for passengers to get off and enjoy some fresh air (and smokers to get their fix).

Other iconic landmarks on the Bustronome's route include Musée d'Orsay, Opéra Garnier, Grand Palais, Saint-Michel and the Louvre.

AND they even have a lunch option, too. Prices for lunch (drinks included)  start at €85 pp. For that you have an appetizer of shrimp in coconut milk, garnished with mint leaves; duck foie gras served with tomato chutney; sea bass filet cooked with thyme, spring vegetables and soucis flowers; another main course of roasted veal served with baby carrots and mashed potatoes; then for the cheese course a selection of Rocamadour goat cheese drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with rosemarky and garnished with dried apricots; Dessert is a chocolate cake with a melted chocolate center served with Sacher cookies and Arabica coffee with little flavored cocoa bits.

Champagne aperitif and wine pairings are included.

AND you have Paris at your feet, all evening long... More INFO here.

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Cité du Champagne

by Paige Donner

Every year in September France celebrates their Heritage Days, called the Journées du Patrimoine. This year, I dared to take a preview peek at one of the few new fabulous developments in Champagne.

Champagne Collet, also known as COGEVI, was the first Co-operative established in Champagne. It remains a Top Ten champagne producer, globally.

The oldest co-operative in Champagne, known now as Champagne Collet, located in the little village of Aÿ , has just finished its thorough renovations and construction of elaborate exhibit facilities that depict both the history of champagne in the region and their development as a Top Ten champagne producer.

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This champagne house, Champagne Collet, was first established as a Co-operative in 1921. It is the oldest Co-operative in Champagne.

View of Champagne de Castellane Tower in Epernay as you cross the bridge into Epernay coming from Ay, Champagne, France. This photo was taken just during the end of harvest 2014, at the golden hour. 

 All photos by Paige Donner copyright 2014 

The significance of its location in Ay, France, which sits just between Reims and Epernay, both dominant champagne producing towns in the region, is that it is the historic setting for the champagne growers' revolt that took place early in the 20th c. here.

Part of the fabulous exhibit that their facility now houses shows historical photographs and even an old (restored) film that gives accounts of this event. The event served to shape the history of the region and even the wine itself, which has so famously become known around the globe as champagne.

The cellars are also not to be missed. Their vintage cuvées are displayed with elegant accompaniment of local celebrated photographer's, Michel Jolyot's, photos. 

Since it is not yet officially open to the public, I am posting only a few photos here for now. When it does open its doors for public entry, it is definitely not to be missed. And the little town of Aÿ is one of the most beautiful little villages in Champagne. It is also home to Bollinger and Deutz among several other top-class champagnes.

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London Wine Experience

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Bettane+Desseauve are going Anglophone. Well, probably not quite. BUT the esteemed French wine duo, heralded as two of France's top wine writers and critics, are holding their third London wine event. 

It's happening October 24 & 25th.

3rd edition of the festival of great wines at the Saatchi Gallery

The 3rd edition of the London Wine Experience organized by Bettane +Desseauve will take place on 24th and25th October, in the stunning setting ofthe Saatchi Gallery(Chelsea).

This two-day event, createdbywinecritics Michel Bettaneand Thierry Desseauve,well-knownfortheirannual wine guide and their international wine events (Paris Grand Tasting and Wine Experiences London, Hong Kongand Shanghai) will present Bettane+Desseauve's latest gems to professionals and wine lovers.

What's on

• > The wine selection

This year, more than 60 producers from such as Ruinart, Taittinger, Château Branaire-Ducru, Domaine des Perdrix, Domaine Laroche, Masciarelli, Roberto Voerzio – to name but a few – will present their wines to the public.

• > Masterclasses

More than 10 private tastings (master classes) will take place during the London Wine Experience, including a vertical tasting of wines from Château Latour (First growth, Pauillac), a Riedel masterclass to understand

how a glass can emphasize your perception an enjoyment of wine or a tasting dedicated to Ruinart rosé champagnes... Each of these masterclasses will be presented by a wine expert from Bettane+Desseauve and the owner or a representative of the winery.

> Other tastings and competitions

• Wine Premiere : Visitors will be able to discover a selection of innovative wines from all over the world

and vote for their favourite wine, to win a prize.

• Global Masters : An exclusive competition organized by the Drinks Business magazine to elect the best wines made in 2014. Wine lovers and professionals will taste and discover the best award winning wines from this year's competition.

A word from theexperts "The London Wine Experience is a festival of great wines in the same way as the great music or cinema festivals" - explains Thierry Desseauve – "and all of the producers exhibiting are selected on the quality of their production. With our team of wine experts, we taste tens of thousands of different wines every year from all over the world with the aim of presenting them to the public".

Michel Bettane adds:

"We are continuing to organize high level master classes devoted either to great winemakers or built around a theme encompassing exceptional wines. We also think that great wines deserve to be presented in an exceptional place: the Saatchi Gallery is a magical place, just like the Louvre where we have been organizing our French wine event for the past 8 years."

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Umami, The 5th Taste, by Alexandre Bourdas

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	Umami, the 5th taste seen by Alexandre Bourdas SaQuaNa's chef was invited by chef Yoshiro Murata to share his knowledge on the umami in the book « Umami, the fifth taste ». A treatise on the subject, introduced by the major American chef Thomas Keller and the famous culinary history, technical and chemistry specialist Harold McGee. The book will be available in the United States and in Europe in September. ​ Follow us On Tumblr * Follow Us On Twitter * Like Us On Facebook ♥Chérie Du Vin​

All-New! Cooking from The New York Times

Introducing our new Cooking website r Start with expert food journalists and cooks. Add more than 16,000 time-tested recipes. Mix in a beautifully simple design and search function. And the recipe for the perfect food site is born. Welcome to New York Times Cooking.   New York Times Cooking features: •  More than 16,000 recipes •  Easy search by ingredient, by cuisine, by chef or by occasion •  Ability to save favorite dishes to your recipe box Now enjoy unlimited portions of our recipes, journalism and expert knowledge absolutely free. Take your first taste at New York Times Cooking or download the app now. Why not sign up for our weekly newsletter where we clue you in on all things gustatory, written by our food editor, Sam Sifton.

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