My Kinda Wine List – Less is More

It is hard to describe in words about the artisanal wine and food scene in Paris. The smell, the joie-de-vivre atmosphere, the crowded but inviting zinc bar, and the sense of abundance all add to euphoric experience.  The energy is happy and lively.  When I am at those familiar bistros (such as Le Comptoir, Le Baratin, Les Pipos and among others), who favour artisanal sources of ingredients and wines, I simply surrender to the sommelier.  I always seem to get a bottle or glass of wine that are intriguing and tasty.  I figure the sommeliers spend more time with their wine list than I.  Besides, you don’t have to be a wine export to know if the wine list is conceived from love or fear. You will intuitively know.

My preferred wine lists from my favourite Parisian bistros tend to be thoughtfully small.  The lists are usually on chalk boards.  Often such wine lists have 1 or 2 sparkling, 5-7 reds, and about the same number of whites, and 1 or 2 sweet wines.  That is it! When a wine is sold out, it is simply wiped off the list. Of course, another wine is added immediately.  Eh voila!  No need to fuss over reprinting the wine list.  The wines continually rotate.  So, if you go the same bistro a week later, there will likely be different wines on the list but often from the same artisan.  I like that because it keeps the list lively and changing yet familiar. 

I like the small wine list in such bistros because it tells me the owner or sommelier went the extra mile to weed out the ones she/he does not want and present only the ones she/he wants.  Less is more as it were.  I would rather choose a wine from an exceptional list of a dozen than struggle to find one among dozens of standards.

Below is a super clip from Anthony Bourdain, who on his 100^th episode of No Reservation went back to Paris, where he explores and enjoys the foods and wines in just such bistros.  Oh heck, I even noticed there is a bottle of G. Descombes Brouilly Vieilles Vigne in a scene.  I urge you to try one of the bistros mentioned in the video the next time you are in Paris.  When you are in one of the bistros, you will understand what I meant by “you will intuitively know”.

My Backyard Apple Tree is Pineau D’Aunis!

Joan, my house’s former owner, planted the apple tree in my backyard.  As far as I can tell, the apple is heirloom variety.  The apple does not resemble any other apples that are widely available at grocers. Every year, independent of weather in summer, the apples appear to ripen only after the first frost of the season in Vancouver.  They are truly remarkable and tasty.  Firm in texture, they are juicy, sweet and citrus all at once.  Perfectly balanced!  I look forward to the apples every other year because the tree skips a year of production – somewhat like Pineau D’Aunis as I have been told by Didier Barrouillet of Clos Roche Blanche.  So, not knowing the heirloom varietal of my apple tree, I nicknamed it Pineau D’Aunis.

This year, the tree decided to produce.  BONUS!  In addition to simply eating the apples, they make beautiful apple sauce.  Here is my recipe:

-          6 apples (pealed, cored and sliced)

-          ¼ onion(peeled and sliced thinly)

-          2-3 table spoon of virgin olive oil

-          2-3 table spoon of butter

-          A pinch of cinnamon

-          2-3 table spoon of honey

-          ¼ cup of apple vinegar

-          Salt and pepper to taste

In a pan on a medium high heat, add olive oil and butter together. Add all ingredients, except apple vinegar.  Cook for 5-7 minutes.  Stir often.   Smash roughly with a spoon as apples cook.  Add the vinegar and cook additional 2-3 minutes. 

The apple sauce makes an amazing accompaniment to pork chops, terrines and sausages.  Try spreading the apple sauce over a baguette with slices of prosciutto to balance out the salty cured meat.  Store leftover in a jar and it will last 3-5 days in a fridge. 

Here is a Puy Lentil and Sausage dish.  A natural choice of wine for the dish is Auvergne from Jean Maupertuis.  Puy Lentil comes from Auvergne. And, of couse, Auvergne is a region well known for all types of sausages.  I buy the sausages from Freden (made with hormone free meats and chemical free ingredients) and they are available at Famous Foods.

A Bistro Dish in Comfort of Your Kitchen

If you go to the Paris Bistro like Paul Bert, this dish (pictured below) is on the menu.  It is one of Bistro dishes that I like eating when I visit Paris but, somehow, I don’t remember to cook it at home.  So, when I was reading the blog , I immediately, of course, had to try the dish.  By the way, if you like French foods and wines, I strongly recommend the blog by Wendy Lyn – who is ex-pat from Deep South.  I coincidentally bumped into her at another great Paris bistro Les Pipos during my wine buying trip last autumn.

The dish is easy to make and very satisfying.  The richness of cream is cut by cognac.  As Wendy mentions, please spurge and buy a good quality cognac for this recipe.  Remember to reduce the cream sauce for a few minutes to get the right consistency.  Please remember to flambée the cognac away from your stove fan for safety.  Simply move the frying pan away from the element when igniting the cognac in the pan with a match. Pictured left is my version of the dish.

I buy my meat from Famous Foods, near where I live, because the grocer carries organic and hormone-free meats.  While you are there, you can also pick a bottle of cream from Avalon, which comes organic and in old-fashioned glass bottles.

The dish is very wine-friendly.  I usually drink Beaujolais from Georges Descombes, Christophe Pacalet or Jean Foillard.  Try enjoying the wine cool (1/2 hour in the fridge or 10 minutes in the bucket with ice + water will do).  The cool temperature really accentuates the freshness and perfume of artisanal Beaujolais.  In fact, when I visit the winegrowers, they serve their wines cool straight from the cellars. 

Muscadet and BC Oysters

When autumn leaves start to fall, my foodie thoughts turn to oysters and Muscadet.  For the months that end with ‘R’, the oysters are in season.  They are most plump, juicy, and briny during those months.  Although I enjoy Muscadet from artisans throughout year, I appear to drink them more often during the autumn and winter months.


Of all the great places to purchase oysters, mussels or clams in our province, I often buy them at Lobster Man on Granville Island or you can write to this artisan oyster farmer and ask them the distributor of their treasures.  Shucking oysters takes some practice and, once you get it, you will have the skill for life - sort of riding a bicycle. 

The descriptor ‘artisan’ is an important factor when choosing a Muscadet because less than 5% of Muscadet is farmed organically and harvested by hand (according to Art of Eating Magazine, September 2010 issue).  A tried-and-true tradition that demands dedication.  The rest is industrially farmed with chemicals and machine- harvesters.  By the way, if you are a foodie and wine lover, I strongly recommend the magazine.  There is nothing else like it.

Joe Landron (DomainesLandron) and Marc Ollivier (La Pepiere) are two of a very few artisans remaining in Nantais – the region about 350 km southwest of Paris near the Atlantic coast where Muscadet is produced.  The grape varietal is Melon de Bourgogne.  For me, artisans simply mean organic farming, hand-harvesting, indigenous yeasts, and sur lie (aged on lees) for an extended time.  Extended sur-lie often gives extra roundedness and complexity.  You don’t have to be a wine expert to know the difference between an industrial plonk and artisanal Muscadet.  You’ll instinctively know the moment the wine touches your lips.

I remember the sommelier at the Le Comptoir in Paris when I dined there last autumn.  When asked for a recommendation for raw oysters, he said: “There may be greater wines than Muscadet but there are no greater wines than Muscadet with oysters, mussels or clams”.  The sommelier was humble and did not even mention the value.  His recommendation was the least expensive wine on the list.  Artisanal Muscadets are the greatest value of all French wines, which is just another reason why La Pepiere and Jo Landron Muscadets are my choices of white wines in my house.  

Summer Dishes

Here are a few summer dishes that will brighten your dinner table.

Apricots are in full swing right now.  I buy them at the Trout Lake Market or Kitsilano Market.  Here is my recipe:

- About 20 halved and pitted apricots

 - A few tablespoons of dry white wine

 - A few tablespoons of honey

Heat oven to 400 deg C.  Have a glass of wine while waiting for the oven to heat-up.  Place the halved apricots on a pan.  Sprinkle some white wine and dab some honey over the apricots.  Bake for about 20 minutes. Baste a few times during cooking.  Turn the oven to grill for about 5 minutes. Watch carefully at this grilling stage as it will be quick.  Store the baked apricots in a tight lid glass jar. Serve the baked apricots over yogurt (great breakfast) or ice-cream (great dessert).

No cooking required for these beauties.

Roasted beets:

-  Peel and slice beets about ¼ inch. 

- Dab some good quality olive oil on the sliced beets

- A dash of salt.

Heat oven to 400 deg C.  Have a glass of wine while waiting for the oven to heat-up, of course.  Place the sliced beets, olive oil and salt in a baking pan.  Mix well.  Bake for about 30 minutes. Turn the beets a couple of times with a spoon to evenly roast.  When the edges turn slightly brown, it is ready.  Serve it as a side dish to any meat or fish entree. Or use it as a ‘surprise’ in a Greek salad.

Greek salad accented by some roasted beets

   

Summer Dish and Catherine & Pierre Breton 'Avis de Vin Fort'

One of the best things about summer in Vancouver? - Trout Lake Market on Saturdays.  Actually, better make that three things because there are also Main & Terminal Market on late Wednesday afternoons and Kitslano Market on Sundays.  I usually make it to least one of the market days in a week.  I tend to go wild and buy many things at the market.  I almost always buy zucchinis, tomatoes, garlic, onions and lettuces. If I make to the market early enough and, if there are fresh farm eggs still available, I always buy some of that too.

The best part about the Vancouver summer market is that it makes my dinners so easy.  My wife and I usually have a Greek salad and often have frittatas.  Here is my version:

o       1 clove of thinly sliced garlic

o       A dozen or so thinly sliced zucchini (Marinate with a pinch of salt for about ½ hour.  Drain the excess liquid).

o       A few thinly sliced tomatoes.

o       4 fresh farm eggs, roughly stirred with a fork.  Add a pinch of salt.

o       3-4 table spoon of good quality olive oil.

Preheat oven to 450 F.  Have a glass of wine while waiting for the oven to heat-up.  Heat frying pan to medium. You will need a frying pan that can go from stove to oven (i.e. no plastic or wood handle).  When the pan is ready, add the garlic.  Stir for a minute.  Add the eggs.  Place the sliced zucchini and tomatoes on the top of egg.  Cook for a minute or two. Add a few more drops of olive oil around the edges of the pan and on the top of egg.  Transfer the pan into the oven. Turn the oven to grill.  Check often – ready in about a couple minutes. Eh voila. 

Pick your favourite wine.  Whites work well.  I am currently stuck on Catherine and Pierre Breton Avis de Vin Fort.  The combo is fantastic, especially when dined out doors!  Happy summer! 

The wine is available at Kitslano Wine Cellars (W. 4th Ave & Vine in Vancouver - around $30 per bottle).  If you prefer to dine out, the wine is available at L' Abattoir, Cafe Regalade, and Tableau Bar Bistro.

Where is Auvergne and Who is Jean Maupertuis?

I vividly recall meeting Jean Maupertuis for the first time. It was at his domain – actually more like his house.  His basement is his cellar.  He is a vigneron at peace.  If he were in the pages of Tao Tse Ching, he would be in the phrase that describes: “Those who know, does not speak.”  He is quite and joyous at the same time.

For the last twenty years or so that I have been on this wine journey, I never seen a bottle from Auvergne from France in Vancouver.  I have seen cheeses from Auvergne, but not its wines.  If you were in Paris in a great bistro, like here or here or even in San Francisco, you would come across Jean Maupertuis from Auvergne.  His wines quickly sell out in France and it is impossible to get an allocation.  Sounds silly doesn't it?  Allocated wines from Auvergne?  Wines that barely cost mid twenties in Vancouver?

Auvergne is in the centre of France.  It is located high in elevation. Although it is no more than 100 km from northwest of Lyon, it takes a while to arrive at Auvergne.  You are constantly climbing.  My rental VW had its workout when I visited Jean Maupertuis last autumn.

To me, the wines from Jean Maupertuis are singular.  There is nothing like it.   It tastes like a fine Burgundy with a cracked black pepper.  It is made from the Auvergne Gamay – which is a different strain than the Gamay grown in Beaujolais or Loire.  Also, Jean Maupertuis vineyard is at a high elevation – about 500 meters above the sea level.  Because Auvergne is a geological contrast, where one hill is a risen limestone sea-bed and the adjacent hill is an extinct volcanic hill, the beauty and distinctiveness of wines speak clearly.  Pictured above is from a limestone hill cuvée ‘La Guillaume’.  Jean Maupertuis also makes ‘Les Pierres Noires’, which is just a couple kilometres away from ‘La Guilaume’.  Jean Maupertuis told me that ‘Les Pierres Noires’ is slightly more structured and it reveals its beauty later than ‘La Guillaume’.  By the way, ‘La Guilaume’ clocks in at 12% ALC while  ‘Les Pierres Noires’ weights in at a mind-boggling 11.5% ALC.  The wines taste ripe.  I have to scratch my head every time I enjoy a bottle over a meal.  I simply cannot comprehend how Jean Maupertuis makes perfectly ripe wines at that alcohol level.

To my surprise, I had a call from a French chef in town, who used to own a bistro is Paris and Savoie and now owns a restaurant in town.  He knew about Jean Maupertuis.  Upon ordering and receiving a case, he called to say that he opened a bottle as soon as the case arrived.  Upon tasting, he said: “The memories took me right back to France”.