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FRANCE: CAVIAR AND CHAMPAGNE

Last week I posted a two-part series on red wines.  On this nostalgic Tuesday, I will make it a five-part series with a visit I made in 2019 to France, where we tasted champagne and Bordeaux wine and cognac.  Parts 4 and 5 will be posted on subsequent Tuesdays.

But first, a few newsworthy items.

  • As my blog expressed yesterday, President Donald Trump has transformed himself from dud to hero.
    • Looks like that fragile ceasefire for the Israel-USA vs Iran War is holding.  Lot of questions about where those 880 pounds of enriched uranium might be to future role on how the International Atomic Energy Agency can check on Iran to how long the ailing 85-year old Ayatollah can hang in there to a million others.  However, give Trump credit for solving this war in less than two weeks.  Israel still has that Gaza Strip problem, and there continues the Ukraine-Russia war, but the world today is in a safer place than yesterday.
    • Triumphantly, Trump joins the NATO gathering the Hague tomorrow.  Better yet, the 4% target of defense spending as a % of GDP figure he scolded members of NATO into implementing during his first term could well in time go as high as 5%.  
      • In many ways he was right, for some countries were not contributing much, and the USA was supplying around the most.  
      • In his second term, the point he was making was that the Ukraine-Russia War was their problem, not his.
      • In 2024:  Poland 4.12%, USA 3.38%, Germany 2.12%, France 2.06%, Canada, 1.37%, Luxembourg 1.29% and Spain's 1.28% being the lowest
  • The second matter is the New York City Democratic mayor election today.
    • Mayor Eric Adams will in November be an Independent candidate, while Curtis Silwa is the Republican nominee.  In 2021, Silwa lost to Adams by 43 percentage points.
    • But the Democratic primary will go on for some time to come.
      • First, there are 11 candidates.
        • Favorite:  former governor Andrew Cuomo.
        • Making a spectacular finish:  Muslim 32-year old Zohran Mamdani, a progressive state legislator.
        • In the mix:  City Comptroller Brad Lander, who you might remember got arrested for defending immigrants.  He is Jewish.
      • Second, no one will get a majority.  Here is where it gets complicated, for voters do more than just pick their choice.  Called ranked choice, won't bother to explain.
      • Third, Cuomo and Mamdani have indicated they will still run on November 4 representing another made-up party if they lose today.
      • One possible look at this ranked choice method for the general election.

Okay, so on to France, caviar and champagne.

  • This was to be an overnight flight on Air France.  We got to the terminal around lunchtime, and saw Petrossian, a French caviar restaurant.  To quote from my Valentine's Day posting:
The lunch we had was absolutely fabulous:  French caviar with French Champagne and French Vodka (Grey Goose).  Mystery woman is taking the photos, that is why you will see a lot of me on this trip.

Food and Wine tasted over 60 caviars, and picked 7 worth the splurge.

  • The most versatile:  Petrossian Royal Ossetra Caviar.  A French company founded in France by 2 Armenian brothers, Melkoum and Mouchegh Petrossian in 1920.  To quote
If Petrossian’s iconic blue tin won’t sell you, its balanced, elegant flavor will. This osetra caviar has a smooth, buttery mouthfeel that will make you want to pop a bottle of Champagne. It’s so straightforwardly delicious that it would be just as enjoyable to eat on top of a crunchy latke as it would straight from the tin. $129 for 30 grams, petrossian.com.

  • The cheapest was American Noir Caviar Company Hackleback Caviar for $32/ounce and the most expense, Browne Trading Company Royal Belgian Osietra Caviar for $166/ounce.
  • Read the details here.

Got to Paris, taxied to the Renaissance Vendome, and for our Valentine's dinner went to Flottes.

The next day featured a Michelin 3-star restaurant, La Tour d'Argent and The Louvre.  

  • Walking from our hotel to the restaurant through Le Jardin des Tuileres was a hassle, for we almost got mugged twice.  I hate Paris because of these Gypsy packs.
  • Got to La Tour d'Argent and were given a fabulous table with a view of the Seine, and, to the left, Notre Dame.  Oh, this catherdra; suffered a major fire two weeks after we left.  Finally got fixed-up a few months ago for a billion dollars.
  • See that giant encyclopedia?  That is their wine list.
  • Started with Pike Dumpling and scallops.
  • Lunch of roasted duckling filet with duck skin chips.
  • Then to The Louvre and the Mona Lisa.  10 million last year, the world's most visited museum.
  • This tour was led by Elvis, a wine-buyer for a Big Island supermarket chain.  This why we got free tastings.
    • He had exquisite talents, except perhaps a weird sense of economics.  He found a roundtrip method to get to Paris and back.  I believe he paid a total of $300.  His choice of hotels was also almost comical.  We stayed in the smallest room possible, one that had the toilet in the shower.
    • Elvis experienced dangerous adventure getting to meet us in the hotel we arranged.  Read this posting.  In a way, he is lucky to still be alive.
    • We caught a French bullet train (200 MPH) to Rheims, 80 miles to the northeast of Paris, where we met the fourth person, Tom.  This region produces all the champagne from France.
    • Elvis scheduled a tasting at Taittinger Champagne.  

Picking the best champagne is like doing this for caviar.  Doesn't mean much, but try rating butter or beer or whatever.  Same.  Here, though, is an enjoyable article about champagne, with a resultant top 13.

  • Taittinger ($50) came in at #5, but only one point out of a hundred below the #1, NV Mailly for $42.
  • #12 was Kirkland Signature for $20.
  • You say, where is Dom Perignon?  This what the drunken cyclist (Jeff Kralik of Houston...he did this survey by himself) said:
Next on the list would be Dom Pérignon, the tête-de-cuvée (top wine) of Moët et Chandon (and treated as a separate entity), but I was unable to convince anyone to send me a bottle, which is probably a good thing since I like to hold on to my Doms for at least a couple of decades (I had a 1973 Dom in 2010 which was phenomenal) and find younger version a tad aggressive.

So don't take these ratings too seriously.  Kralik also recommended that you should visit the Notre-Dame de Reims for their Son et Lumière show, as shown below.

Next Tuesday, on to Bordeaux, and a spectacular stop at Chateau Lafite Rothschild.  Then, for part 5 in two weeks, our favorite part of the whole trip, Cognac.

-

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