High dining has the potential to knock your socks off. Unknown flavours and daring combinations can make you lose your grip and introduce you to a parallel universe where you are the match, and the dishes are fire. When you’re happy, you
Parisians are like coconuts. Tough on the outside but deeply interesting when you get through the shell. They seem to understand the art of life and beauty, yet they don’t advertise it. It’s their thing! But then came Caroline de Maigret and
Paris is a scary place. With its class and air, the city can make you feel like a stupid tourist that has no understanding of art, literature, food and life in general. It’s why I studied in Rennes in Bretagne, where I
Not all great champagnes start great. Sometimes, they make you work for it. It happened to me in Boston last September, where I met up with my dear champagne friend Rui, who I met while picking grapes for David Léclapart. That night,
All parents have a favourite kid. That one child that’s the most special, beautiful and talented of all. Fine, this may not be true for actual children (I wouldn’t know), but it’s a good way to describe prestige cuvées. You probably know
Did you know that Champagne terroir is bursting with fossil seashells? In the so-called eocene period, most of the region was part of a tropical (!) ocean that covered the north-east of France. Although this was 56 to 33.9 million years ago,
A new rockstar has entered the champagne stage and his name is Flavien Nowack. Everywhere I went, people mentioned his name: Aline of Au Bon Manger, David Léclapart, his partner in crime Ale Muchada, Niek the sommelier of the Klepel, and the
Paris is not exactly Champagne territory. But hear me out. When you go to Rue Saint Bernard, you’ll find Mokonuts: a restaurant by Omar and Moko, who could easily be the twin sister of Au Bon Manger’s Aline Serva.
Great champagne is made in the vineyard, not in the cellar. It’s something the greatest of great natural champagne producers seem to all agree on. One is Aurélien Lurquin, a champagne producer in Romery in Valée de la Marne. When I first
This is not a story about natural champagne. There’s some natural champagne in the story, but the focus lies on l’Arpège, the starred restaurant by Alain Passard. L’Arpège is one of the best restaurants in the world, yet all dishes revolve around