High-end cuisine and Grands Crus de Bordeaux – playful pairings in store!
With just a few days to go until the UGCB’s tasting at the Wine Paris Exhibition, two young and talented Parisian chefs tell us about their favourite Grands Crus de Bordeaux and reveal their favourite food and wine pairings. Interview with Alexandre Marchon, former Top Chef candidate (season 14) and Hugo Bourny, chef of the legendary Michelin-starred restaurant, Maison Lucas Carton.
What do Grands Crus de Bordeaux mean to you?
Alexandre Marchon : They represent traditional expertise and, of course, the expression of a terroir. I grew up in a family that pretty much only drank Bordeaux wines. I am therefore very familiar with these wines and their grape varieties! At my parents’, fine bottles of Grands Crus de Bordeaux were chosen for special occasions.
Hugo Bourny : For me, French wines owe their international reputation to Grands Crus de Bordeaux. They opened up French wine estates to international markets.
Do you have any fond tasting memories you’d like to share?
Hugo Bourny : I had a real revelation when tasting Château-Figeac wines which are truly superb. With my head sommelier, Michel Le Meur, we had the opportunity to devise food and wine pairings during a vertical tasting of vintages by Château Petit-Figeac and Château-Figeac. We served these magnificent wines with a mushroom raviole, Colonnata bacon and mushroom broth resembling a meat jus to add a great deal of potency.
Alexandre Marchon : I remember tasting a bottle of Château Mouton-Rothschild when I joined friends at the end of their meal. I showed up at the right time!
Hugo, do you have a favourite bottle in the Maison Lucas Carton cellar?
HB : My head chef Michel Le Meur introduced me to a really nice Pauillac Grand Cru, the 2010 vintage of Château d’Armailhac. This wine has a lovely structure and is not too austere. It is superbly well-balanced. I like this wine a lot and we’re currently offering it on our menu.
How would you describe your cuisine? Do you like to offer surprising food pairings?
HB : I always try to offer original dishes or, in any case, pairings that have never been done before. We make familiar dishes with ingredients from the Paris region and we take our customers to uncharted territory using original techniques, rare spices and little-known medicinal plants. At the moment we serve beetroot with Manakara peppercorns. The pairing between this often-shunned vegetable and a rich sauce is a real hit with customers.
AM : I am passionate about pairings – that’s what drives me in the kitchen! Both in the dish and the glass! I love pairings combining land and sea, such as anchovies with beef, or cockles with lamb. A lovely silky red wine that is not too oaky adds a magical finishing touch!
What Grands Crus de Bordeaux pairings do you like?
AM : When it comes to red Grands Crus de Bordeaux, I instinctively think of pigeon, braised pear and a radicchio sautéed with vinegar to add a little bitterness… and to top it all off, a lovely pigeon jus with the pigeon livers included! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
HB : At the moment, we serve a white 2018 Château Carbonnieux with our fish dish. This rather floral and ethereal wine goes great with fish and Brussels sprouts, making for a very green dish.
Which dishes do you enjoy pairing with Sauternes wines?
AM : Definitely not foie gras, I am not a fan of this pairing! But this wine goes beautifully with an endive, pear and Roquefort salad! The perfect pairing.
HB : At the moment, we offer a baba with vin jaune, chestnut and walnut praline ice cream served with a 2008 Château Suduiraut. As the vin jaune is slightly cooked, its oxidative aspect wonderfully accentuates the chestnut flavours. I also recently had the chance to taste a very young Château d'Yquem vintage with caviar eaten off the back of the hand. It’s not really something I would have thought of and it was quite disconcerting, but it was actually quite amusing and very original!
