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Showing posts with label champagne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label champagne. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Red Fruits with Rose Champagne, watercolor, 9" x 11"
Yesterday I learned I can drink rose champagne with red fruity, chocolatey desserts. Yay! 
Do you LOVE REAL French Champagne? 
You would have loved yesterday's grand French Comite Champagne tasting in Hotel Plaza's ballroom...
You get a chance to speak directly to the champagne makers from Rheims and Epernay...
They are happy to explain to you with passion the whys and wherefores of their brand's characteristics...
You get just a slug to taste, but after many slugs...hmmm
Of course you can 'nose' champagne to enhale the aromas floral or fruity - as long as you have a tall glass and wait for the bubbles to quiet...
Don't forget to SPIT and do not drink up to the last drop or you will never make it around the room in one piece (like some people)
Cleanse your palate with a bit of plain cracker occasionally...
Pommery guides me in tasting a 'flight' of three - their most recent, one a few years older and their vintage Champagne from 2004 - divine. I forget to spit. It's just too divine to waste...
I pay later for my enthusiasm when I sit down momentarily, then get up leaving my purse with my CAMERA on the chaise! I start looking for my lipstick and find my bag and camera missing. I race back and hotel security comes up and says,"Are you missing something Miss?" MON DIEU! Thank Gawd women wear lipstick.
Isn't this Belle Epoque bottle of Rose beautiful?
Isn't this red fruit and chocolate tarte perfect to accompany that Rose. But it was not served at the tasting. Quelle domage...
Only fromage et fruits...
What's YOUR favorite Champagne? Some people drink it every night. Why not? There are so many to choose from. Do try a different brand next time...BONJOUR FRENCH CHAMPAGNE!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Financier Petit Four Immersion watercolor, 9" x 11"
I'm been going through serious petit four immersion.Really I should be immersed in the pool doing water gym...
I recently discovered the wonderfully French New York patisserie, Financier Pastries. I had to buy their little beauties this past weekend to paint. Here's what's left of the original 16 that arrived home in perfect condition. They come sitting nicely on a presentation plate and they don't jump around...
Unlike the other brand's petit fours. These could have used some heavy plastic surgery once home...
Foodwalker, a professional caterer, asked me if they taste as good as they look.
Petit Four research sketches...
THEY DO! THEY DO!
I can fully testify to Financier pastries in particular. They really are mini versions of the grownups in the case. Not like the other brand - mostly just a bit of fruit afixed to a tartelette. I ate the fig-pistachio tarty thing on the far right...
To get in the right frame of mind to see Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris homage to the city of lights. Both were perfection - miam miam
I happened to pass by another Financier shop yesterday to check if their pastries really were as good as I thought they were...
They are! They are!
Green and white stripped awnings, lots of French-esque details AND they have macarons.
Their signature pastry is the golden bar-shaped almond 'financier' cake - their first shops opened near Wall street. Chef Eric Bedoucha grew up in Paris, got his training at Dalloyau and it shows.
Some of you have asked about Yellow Bird. I almost called this post 'My Left Foot'. Yellow bird has been recoverying from a foot injury but he's back with a bit of Scotch (tape) to the rescue.
Green and white stripped awnings, lots of French-esque details AND they have macarons.
Their signature pastry is the golden bar-shaped almond 'financier' cake - their first shops opened near Wall street. Chef Eric Bedoucha grew up in Paris, got his training at Dalloyau and it shows.
Some of you have asked about Yellow Bird. I almost called this post 'My Left Foot'. Yellow bird has been recoverying from a foot injury but he's back with a bit of Scotch (tape) to the rescue.BONJOUR FINANCIER PASTRIES!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Before I left Paris I saw the new exhibit of 'The Caillbotte Brothers Private World' at the Musee Jacquemart-Andre. 
Well-to-do brothers, Gustave painted while brother Martial took endless photographs, both recording daily quotidienne life in the mid-19th century, opening an intimate window into their priviledged Parisien lives. 
Each brother visually influenced and mirrored the other's images. *Note this backlite silhouetted figure, the result of the slow view camera...
Echoed here in Gustave's painted silhouetted figure at the window... 
Just like these two sharply delineated visitors at the musee Jacquemart-Andre... 
Two figures from Gustave's famous big painting, 'Paris Street, Rainy Day' in the Art Institute of Chicago, again backlit... 
A preparatory etude/study for that painting... 
Looking down from the balcon at promenaders dans la rue... 
Again silhouetted figures contrasted against a light background. 
And Martial's photo... 
150 photos of Martial's were recently discovered and are grandly displayed actual size against wall-sized blowups immersing you in the atmosphere of their times... 
Lots of eating included, like brother Gustave's petite niece licking out the copper jam cooking pot... 
Or the family caught mid-slurp at dejeuner... 
I loved all the glass in this 'Dejeuner' painting of Gustave's... 
And was inspired to try my hand at some champagne glasses... 
Laduree Champagne Celebration, art on Etsy, 9" x 11" ~
The Salon du The at the Jacquemart has terrific desserts. *Note the eaters are backlit on the terrace...
The Salon du The at the Jacquemart has terrific desserts. *Note the eaters are backlit on the terrace... 
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
When the clock strikes midnight, will you be toasting farewell to 2010 and welcoming 2011? If so, below is a guide to champagne.
Tips to selection ~
The real champagnes are from the Champagne region in France. The french are considered to be experts in producing quality wines, including champagne. In most countries, the name ‘champagne’ is strictly reserved for sparkling wines which hail from the said region in France. However, there are a few countries in which champagne is synonymous with any sparkling wine, even the ones that are produced indigenously.
Flavour ~
Champagnes come in different flavours like dry or sweet, creamy or yeasty, crisp or dry, full bubbles or delicate bubbles. If you are familiar with all of them, it will be easy for you to determine which is the most suitable for the occasion. If you're uncertain,it is best to consult an expert.
Christofle anemone champagne bucket
Chilling ~
Temperature determines the rate at which bubbles in champagne are released ~ a bottle should not be opened at room temperature as it will quickly froth and go flat.
The ideal temperature to chill is 40-45 °F.
If you opt for the refrigerator, it is best to chill for a couple of hours to a maiximum of one day, otherwise the cork may shrink. It is also fine to chill in the freezer for 15-20 minutes. A bucket of ice and water is my method of choice.
Opening ~
When opening a bottle of champagne, score the base of the wire cage and begin to untwist without removing it. While keeping cork pointed in a safe direction (some prefer to hold the cork end under a towel), hold the base of the bottle with one hand ane begin to twist both ends slowly in opposite directions. Once you begin to feel pressure from the cork, gently push it back in while continuing to twist until the cork is gently released. Pour down the side of the glass to minimize bubble waste and top each glass approximately two-thirds full. A quick turn of the bottle when you're finished pouring will catch drops on the edge of the lip.
Choosing the right glass ~
Flutes are proven to be the best glass for drinking champagne. The tall, thin glasses with lips that slightly turn inward are the choice for connoisseurs as they concentrate the bubbles and bouquet to heighten the champagne experience.
I have these Christofle champagne straws and love them!
Toasts Around the World ~
Chinese: Ganbei! (dry your cup)
Dutch: Prost! (health)
English: Cheers!
French: Santé! (health)
German: Prost! (cheers)
Hebrew: Le'chaim! (to life)
Irish: Sláinte! (to your health)
Italian: Per cent'anni! (for one hundred years)
Italian 2: Salute (health)
Japanese: Kanpai! (dry your cup)
Russian: Vashe zdorovie! (to health)
Spanish: Salud! (health)
Welsh: Iechyd da! (health)
Perrier-Jouet French 75
• 1 1/2 parts gin
• 2 tbsp. of superfine sugar
• 1 1/2 parts fresh lemon juice
• 3-4 parts chilled Perrier-Jouet Grand Brut Champagne
Directions:
In a shaker, mix all ingredients except champagne over ice. Strain contents into a tall champagne flute, top with champagne and garnish with a raspberry.
Wishing you a safe and cheerful New Year!
xoxo, B
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