Paris Grocery News 11/18 Wednesday, Nov 18 2009 

Newsletter parisgrocery 8:11 pm

With the Paris Grocery up and running my creative juices have been flowing. We have tasted countless cheeses, pates and wines in an effort to bring our customers what we think are the best products that represent France and its cuisine. The Paris Grocery is the perfect place to start putting a French twist on your Thanksgiving holiday meal. Below is my French-i-fied Thanksgiving menu that I’m eager to make for my wife and friends. Drop me an e-mail at seattlemanager@spanishtable.com if you would like the recipes for any of these dishes. – Isaac Rivera, Manager

Baked Camembert w/ Black Currant Mustard & Black Cherry Confit

Boudin Bernaise w/ Lentils & Carrot

Duck Confit & Cranberry Beans w/Roasted Chantrells & Tomme Savoie

Nutella Filled Crepes w/Sweet Orange Creme Fraiche


SPECIAL THANKSGIVING WINES

Rosé d’Orfeuilles sparkling rosé, Loire ($14.99) A terrific sparkler! Dry and elegant with notes of strawberry, this festive bubbly is clean and fresh.

2008 Commanderie de la Bargemone rose ($15.99) We love to quaff a rosé with Thanksgiving dinner and Bargemone is one of our favorites! Minerally, light weight and crisp, this is a stellar choice.

2006 Domaine des Nugues Beaujolais-Villages ($11.99) Tasting of pure & unadulterated Gamay fruit, it is dry and soft with great acidic balance. This could be lightly chilled and served with Thanksgiving dinner.

2008 Domaine de la Rochette Pinot Noir, Touraine ($10.99) Light in body, it’s pie cherry flavors and silky tannins have surprising grip. Pinot noir is the ultimate fail-safe food wine and is a great match with a wide variety of foods, which make it an excellent choice for Thanksgiving.

IRRESTIBLE CHEESES FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Comté, A.K.A. French Gruyère de Comté, is the quintessential cheese for croque monsieur, quiche, french onion soup and fondue. It has small crystalline grains, sweet saline beefiness and an undertone of fruit, nuts and toffee.

Morbier Originally this semi-soft raw cows milk cheese from the Jura was comprised of a morning milking and an evening milking divided by a layer of ash. With aromas like new-mown grass, Morbier has an appealing flavor of nuts and fruit along with a distinct taste of hard-boiled egg and veal sautéed in butter.

Beaufort is “The Prince of Gruyères.” With uniquely Swiss-like qualities and hints of grassy sweetness, Beaufort has a higher butter fat content and a creamier texture than either Gruyère or Comté. It has an excellent melting capacity and is terrific for fondue and serving with saucisson sec and fruit.

Préfére is the name now given to Reblochon which has a creamy, softer-than-brie texture, a nutty aftertaste, and a strong herbal aroma.

NEW PRODUCTS

La Chatelaine Chocolates Located in Montana, the company was created by a Frenchman who longed for the sumptuous chocolates he grew up savoring.

Once we tasted their Parisian Mendiants made of dark chocolate, hazelnuts and orange peel, we simply had to carry them! Also try their amazing Sea Salt Caramels.

Essential for many French recipes, we’ve got Du Puy Lentils.

Spice up any dish with Dulcet Peppery Moroccan Ketchup. It’s especially delicious with lamb.

Frozen Pains au Chocolate – Keep these on hand and enjoy them straight out of the oven on a rainy Sunday morning with a café au lait.

 

Paris Grocery News 11/12 Thursday, Nov 12 2009 

Newsletter parisgrocery 8:08 pm

We have very special memories of southern France. Many years ago we flew into Barcelona and picked up a rental car. We drove to our favorite hidden beach at Aiguablava and dined on parillada: charcoal grilled monkfish steak, a sardine, squid, langostino & clams all drizzled with a mixture of Spanish purple garlic, broadleaf parsley and arbequina olive oil and served with the simplest fresh salad.

The next day we drove into France, changing money at the border in those days before the Euro. We poked across southern France, stopping first in Aix-en-Provence to drink vermouth under the Plane trees. We moved on to St Paul de Vence to pay our respects at the grave of Marc Chagall. In Menton, we lingered over dinner of mesclun salad followed by steaks cooked in a wood burning oven in a sidewalk café next to the public market. In the morning, we crossed over into Italy on our way to Lucca. All across the Languedoc and Provence, we enjoyed local Vin de Pays wines which connoisseurs even then knew were terrific values. And thanks to advances in wine making, the wines of southern France are now better than ever. Come by and get a six pack from our hand-picked selections!

NEW WINES

2007 Cuvee Francoise Blanquette de Limoux ($12.99) This festive sparkler comes straight from it’s traditional home in Limoux, France. Cuvee Francoise is fresh on the palate with fine soft bubbles, white fruit flavors and zesty acidity. Clean and dry, this is excellent with rich holiday foods.

2008 Domaine de Couron Marselan ($9.99 ) The Marselan grape is a hybrid of Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache, and is grown on only four vineyards in the world. Domaine de Couron is aged in stainless steel, and it has a rich, ripe core of fruit. “Ripe, sweet and smoky, with lots of blackberry and black cherry fruit laced with sweet toast and spice notes.” 88 points Wine Spectator

2007 Domaine Roc de Châteauview Malbec, Touraine ($12.99) Malbec is generally associated with the Cahors appellation, but Domaine Roc de Châteauview from the Loire Valley is stellar. Produced from a 38 hectare estate, it has an elegant, full-bodied style. Notes of mineral with pure and concentrated black fruit are wrapped up by a long, satisfying finish. Served by the glass at Purple Wine Bar.

2007 Les Deux Rives Corbieres Rouge ($9.99) This tasty wine is perfect for pouring on a weeknight or at a big party. A blend of 40% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Mourvedre and 10% Carignan, Les Deux Rives is rich and soft. It’s black cherry and currant fruit flavors have licorice notes, and it is extremely easy to drink. “Clean and quenching, this is bright and savory with pomegranate fruit and juicy purple highlights. A bargain!”

86 points Wine Enthusiast.

2006 Chateau Douley Côtes de Bordeaux ($11.99) Crafted in collaboration with world renowned winemaker Michel Rolland, this harmonious blend of 80% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc & 10% Cabernet Sauvignon has layered, bright, and rich berry fruit flavors. Aged in oak barrels for one year, Chateau Douley has a vibrant bouquet of strawberries, crushed coffee beans, tar and minerals. Highly recommended with short ribs!

2008 Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) Val De L’Ours ($9.99) The wine makers of Rothschild (Lafite) have brought their immaculate standards to the Languedoc region to create delicious Val De L’Ours (Valley of the Bear). Since 1999, Rothschild (Lafite) has revitalized the vineyards and renovated the cellars of Château d’Aussières, the producer of Val De L’Ours. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, it has balanced acidity and bright fruit throughout. With a touch of countryside herbs and medium tannins, this is an affordable and uber-quaffable red from a legendary producer. It’s a great match for meals with rich stuffing or savory bread puddings.

Come on in and stock up for the holidays!

 

Paris Grocery News 11/6 Friday, Nov 6 2009 

Newsletter parisgrocery 8:02 pm

Just arrived today – Boujolais Nouveau!

2009 Pierre Chermette Beaujolais Primeur 2009 ($14.99) The ultimate Thanksgiving wine, this is not a soda pop-style Beaujolais! The Chermettes were among the pioneers of sustainable viticulture in the Beaujolais and their wines are made in a traditional way. Using natural yeasts and little or no fermentation, Chermette Beaujolais Primeur is a true expression of terroir. Serve it at Thanksgiving and lay down the leftover bottles; it improves with bottle age.

2009 Pierre-Marie Chermette Cuvée vieilles vignes Beaujolais ($17.99) From the Chermette’s oldest vineyard, this Beaujolais has concentrated strawberry and raspberry notes, with a hint of licorice. Fresh, and with a purity of fruit, it has elegance and finesse.

NEW PRODUCTS AT PARIS GROCERY

Herbs de Provence Fancy clay crocks from France to a plain-Jane but practical plastic tubs filled by our own deli staff as well as herbs de Provence flavored salts and vinegars.

D’Artagnan Duck bacon: ($9.99/8 oz) Uncured, smoky and lean, this sensational bacon will transform any dish. Drape strips of this bacon over a whole turkey and take Thanksgiving up a notch!

SALE BOOKS

Savor Provence: A coffee table book inspired by Williams Sonoma. Gorgeous photos; great recipes. $21.99

The Provence Cookbook, Patricia Wells ($14.99): The first few times we were in Paris, we used Patricia Wells’ now out-of-print “Food Lover’s Paris” as our bible. Her words guided us into the wine bar where Trotsky drank (and where some still undusted bottles lingered on) and down to Poulaine’s basement bread ovens and to E. Dehillerin kitchen store. From covering the Paris beat for a newspaper, Patricia moved on to write a series of cookbooks and then moving to Provence.

NEW CHEESES

Tomme du Segala is produced in small amounts in the city of Carmaux in southern France, this raw goat’s milk cheese has an elastic texture that crumbles slightly. The flavor has hints of olives and grass.

Tomme Crayeuse is a semi-soft raw cow’s milk cheese from the Savoie that undergoes two stages of cave-aging. The final, intensely rich flavor is earthy, with mushroom and citrus notes. Created by one of France’s top affineurs, Max Schmidhauser.

Crémeux de Bourgogne is a cow’s milk triple-crème cheese from a small family of producers in Burgundy. This pasteurized, bloomy-rind cheese has a dense texture and a rich flavor with hints of fresh butter.

Tomme de Savoie is a pleasant table cheese form the Savoie with a distinct raw milk flavor – beefy, hazel nutty and pleasantly milky. With approximately 30% fat content, this is the most creamy ‘low fat’ cheese available. Enjoy with liver-stoked pâtés and light red wines like Beaujolais.

Pavé de Jadis So named because of its shape: pavé is a small paving stone. This fresh goat’s milk cheese from the Loire Valley is dusted with vegetable ash and has a fudge-like texture. The taste is very clean, mild and lemony.