Chef Philippe Rochat and myself share a trait of character: we have always enjoyed keeping pushing forward and taking risks. This was therefore not a big surprise when I discovered what he had decided to organise for my first ever presentation of 2002 Dom Pérignon and 1996 Dom Pérignon Œnothèque: a dinner at his restaurant in Crissier near Lausanne (3-star Michelin L’Hôtel de Ville) with representatives of all the top restaurants in Switzerland. This was quite an act of confidence, as we all know that the judgment of one’s peers is always the toughest.
The menu was fantastic, and two dishes stood out for me, both paired with the two expressions of 1996 Dom Pérignon side by side: the original Vintage release and the upcoming Œnothèque—first, green asparagus from Pertuis and Imperial Ossetra caviar, followed by a stuffed morel with an Agaricus mushroom reduction. Both dishes were not only highlighting a difference in aromatics (nutiness versus minerality), but also revealing the whole philosophy of the Œnothèque: the same assemblage from the same vintage, yet two wines so distinct in terms of sheer intensity, mouthfeel, integration of characters and complexity.
Photo: J.-M. Curien
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The Silk Road, the Spice Route… These words evoke long journeys, exoticism, freedom, caravans following their own rules from India to Morocco—the perfect theme for a dinner setting the stage for the release of 2000 Dom Pérignon Rosé and the launch of 1990 Dom Pérignon Rosé Œnothèque.
Let’s go behind the scenes to discover how this event came to life—I hope this will inspire you and make you look at Dom Pérignon from a new perspective.
Ever since the project in Kyoto I have kept elaborating on dinner experiences to highlight the many facets of each wine and to create as many sensations. Going far beyond conventional food-wine pairing, they create a mysterious and poetic atmosphere conducive to an ultimate goal of sensuality. Pascal Tingaud, the chef de cuisine at Dom Pérignon, has been contributing to the project for the past ten years. Pascal travels with me and prepares these dinners, whatever our destination. This sometimes leads to rather exciting situations involving a mix of great logistics and total improvisation!
As you can see below from the menu, I tried to stay as open-minded as possible. Formalism was kept to a strict minimum: I did not feel restricted to a vague “starter-main course-dessert” structure, nor to specific regions. Rather than unity of time or space, I aimed at embracing different cultures: the menu is based on unpretentious generous traditional dishes, selected to respond to the wine and to build a steady progression through the meal. Each wine has its own story to tell: my role was to listen, interpret the images and ambiances that it evoked and translate them into an exploration of the cooking treasures of the Orient.
The Mezze, served with 2000 Dom Pérignon Rosé, bring us from one end of the Silk Road to the other, with both classics (Baba Ghanoush) and rarities (Watermelon Curry from Rajasthan). Each dish has its own role to play, its own dialogue with the wine: carrots and ginger to amplify the fruit; a salad of beetroot, orange and cinnamon to shape a contrast of textures. The couscous, prepared with sea bass and rose petals and served with 1990 Dom Pérignon Rosé Œnothèque, plays with the paradox of amplitude and precision. The Harira soup (a celebration of the end of Ramadan in North Africa) surprises with its caressing concentration and lightness. The sweet dishes, particularly the rose Turkish delight (loukhoum) ice cream, magnify the onctuosity and sensuality of the wine. A seamless conclusion to the journey? We simply have to accept the rule of the ancient caravans: no step is ever final, the journey is all that counts.
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MEZZE
Sautéed herb salad with hot pepper and preserved lemon
Beet and orange salad
Sautéed carrots with mango and ginger
Baba Ghanoush
Chickpeas, lentils, tomato and fresh coriander
Watermelon Curry
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First Yaourth
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COUSCOUS
Couscous voilé à la rose
SOUPE
Essence d’Harira au carvi
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Second Yaourth with saffron threads
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DOUCEURS
Rose Turkish delight (loukhoum) ice cream
Cornes de Gazelle |
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Kyoto is a very special place and I am always struck by how vibrant this city feels. It offers unparalleled opportunities for empathy and emotion to one who comes with an open and available state of mind.
This story starts in 1996 when I first met Chef Murata (of restaurant Kikunoi). One year later, we decided to organise a series of dinners in the heart of Champagne (at Château Saran), around the theme of Kaiseki—the traditional culinary art form originating in Kyoto. Kaiseki considers the meal in its globality: covering all the fundamentals of Japanese cuisine, strongly committing to the season, carefully balancing all the elements (taste, texture, colors…) and stimulating all of our senses. When trying to pair Kaiseki cuisine with Dom Pérignon, it was important for me to leave behind my westerner bias for the perfect food-wine pairing. Our ambition then was very different: the same wine would be served over the whole dinner, with the aim to reach unity, not on a dish by dish basis, but for the entirety of the event. The integrity and purity of the meal were paramount values to be respected, which meant the wine had to find its supportive role. Dom Pérignon was a vector underlying the whole meal, concluding with rice and green tea (ocha).
Even years later it is still complex for me to assess the extraordinary influence that these dinners had on my vision of Dom Pérignon. Their inspiration ranges from the specific (e.g. a better understanding of the tactile properties of Dom Pérignon) to the generic and fundamental (my personal quest for harmony and aesthetic). They imbued subsequent events with a sense of the theatrical. Even more importantly, it offered me a privileged contact with Japan, a memory of intimacy and complicity that I cherish to this day. I was delighted to visit Kyoto again recently to discuss a future creative project…
With Chef Murata in cellar, Hautvillers.
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