Recently, I was flown into Bangalore only to meet old wine acquaintances, nothing more. It seemed almost too novel to be true: a big French wine brand flying in wine aficionados just so that they could come and experience something they had already tasted and established on their palates with the same old set of industry peers, but only in a new setting. The world needs more such philanthropists.
This was to coincide with the visit of Juliette Monmousseau, the scion of the family that represents the brand, Bouvet-Ladubay. Even though it is a part of an Indian spirits giant (you know who) today, the family remains closely involved in the production and promotion of the brand. Bouvet makes some lovely sparkling wines in the Loire valley, among the most popular brands to hail from outside the Champagne region. Affordable and refined is how one may describe them. What people don?t know (or often miss) is the fact that they also make some luscious, buoyant yet complex, reds. And least known of all was the fact that this time, Monmousseau had brought with her not just some amazing wines and conversations, but also her sister Marie, a trained chef. And this would add a whole new facet to the way we approached the pairing exercise.
Marie isn?t your regular Michelin starry-eyed chef; she knows better. Her idea of food is the kind that feeds you, one which you can feel sitting comfortable in your stomach without weighing you down. The kind that is rich, but not overwhelming; not obsessed with prettying up presentation, but uncompromising on taste. She fed us traditional home-style French fare, the kind you are treated to when invited to the maison to dine with the family. Like a lavish homemade feast, the food was honest, sincere and stood out for its purity. Considering how most of us imagine French cuisine to be synonymous with fine dining, this was quite the unprecedented eye-opener.
In the last year or two, we have had a bevy of chefs from restaurants boasting multiple Michelin stars come down to enthral us with their culinary repertoire. They have all had much success and each has outdone the previous (except that one time when Alain Passard?s vegetarian attempt fell quite flat on its face when the main course, comprising a slow-cooked onion, didn?t quite tickle the palates of the gathered connoisseurs of the country). Marie was a lot less ostentatious, but far more connected with the crowd. The recipes seemed homely and the kind that one could attempt at home. This was like MasterChef minus all the unnecessary drama. And it was live with some amazing bubbly served alongside.
In the end, the event was a resounding success. As I boarded my flight back, I already had a restaurant ear-marked for my next visit to France: not some lauded ponsy place, but Marie?s La Route du Sel?not too far from Paris, amazing home-style French fare and you get to visit Bouvet-Ladubay to boot!
The writer is a sommelier