Caprice in August, part 1: magnum party

Pin It

I'm seeing the Hairy Chevalier two weeks in a row, as I play host to two different crowds. I had been wanting to treat Dashijie (大師姐) for dinner for some time now, and also repay the favor of some others who have very kindly included me among the lucky recipients of their generosity. The advice given to me when planning this meal was to choose a venue where I would have "home court advantage". Well... one of those places is definitely Caprice, so I roped in the Hairy Chevalier for this.

I chose this time to host this dinner because I knew that it would be tomato season, and Monsieur Tomate would be shipping their bountiful harvests from France into the arms of the Hairy Chevalier. I even saw the Hairy Chevalier post on social media with some of those beauties while he was on summer holiday. So I pinged my friend last week and requested that we have a few special dishes based on those tomatoes. Imagine my utter shock being told that it would be unlikely for us to have ANY of those tomatoes, because Monsieur Tomate had lost about 85% or more of the crop, due to the wildfires raging through France. I had been focusing on the events in Bordeaux in advance of my upcoming trip, so it came as a total surprise that the heat had also killed off produce in the Loire Valley.

My "home court advantage" suddenly took a blow...

Nevertheless, I have full faith in the Hairy Chevalier and his team. I also trust them implicitly to tailor a menu to match the wines I had prepared for tonight.

But first, la boîte à bijoux:

Foie gras tartlet

Lobster tartlet - always good with that dose of acidity from the lemon gel.

Crispy anchovy roll - more often than not, this is my favorite of the trio. I just love how the anchovies and onion come together.

Tomates marinées et crevette Japonaise, basilic, mangue et Caviar Osciètre Prestige de ⟪La Maison Kaviari⟫ - well, we still got a tomato dish to start. On top we see a thin sheet of jelly made of tomato and shrimp consommé, garnished with some fresh mango, pickles, and caviar. Of course, Foursheets' serving has the mango removed.

In the center, surrounded by the wedges of tomatoes, was an emulsion made with mangoes and the heads of Alaskan pink shrimp (甘海老) from Japan. This was very rich, and worked really nicely with the fruity flavors of mangoes and tomatoes.

Henri Giraud Fût de Chêne MV10, en magnum, dégorgée le 18 Novembre 2016 - a light perfume fragrance with lemon notes on the nose. Ater some aging, this was now softer on the palate but still got the acidity.

Huître fumée, marée et montagne - the Gillardeau N°2 oyster was smoked with cherry wood, and served with a Madeira and Port wine sauce, and topped with some caramelized Reblochon as well as black truffle chiffonade. We've got what may be crunchy puffed rice at the bottom, and also finely diced mushroom which reminded me of duxelles. Unfortunately, I'm just not a fan of warm dishes involving oysters of this size. Or maybe it's the combination with melted Reblochon. Thankfully this was much better with a sip of the Ponsot aligoté in the mouth.

2011 Ponsot Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos des Monts Luisants Pressée du Centenaire, en magnum n°562 - served 1½ hours after opening. Not too ripe on the palate, and still got a good level of acidity. On the nose one could tell there is some age on the wine, as it showed caramelized sugar along with straw.

Homard bleu Breton, marmalade de figues et sauce ruby - Hairy Chevalier's signature lobster with ruby sauce, which was created to pair with 2007 DRC La Tâche and served to Aubert de Villaine in the very room we were sitting in. Served with fig marmalade topped with a mushroom "tuile". And yes, the sauce was the same as it ever was... while the sweetness of the fig worked wonders with the fruity acidity in the sauce.

Of course, the doneness was just perfect. This was clearly the crowd favorite as everyone oohed and aahed over it.

2011 Joseph Drouhin Chambertin Clos de Beze, en magnum - served some 2 hours after opening. Very nice and fragrant, with eucalyptus along with black cherries.

Saint-Pierre, risotto de coco de Paimpol - the John Dory came with coco de Paimpol beans cooked with truffle, razor clam juice, and vin jaune. I also liked the mint and tarragon that were in the sauce. The fish, though, isn't among my preferred... although I know it's treated as a high-end ingredient in France.

Pigeon de Bretagne et foie gras, cerise, betterave, emulsion de persil et sauce vaudouvan - we know the Hairy Chevalier can make a mean pigeon, and here he presented us with the "pigeon Rossini" that I've been seeing on social media. The doneness was just the way I would have wanted, still mighty red leaving one wondering whether that taste of blood was imagined. Of course, the combination with the foie was classic and pure. Served with a parsley emulsion on one side, and a pigeon jus seasoned with vaudouvan spices. Thankfully the cherry chutney came without beetroot for Foursheets and I. This, too, got a lot of praise... as it should. 

2003 Henri Bonneau Cuvée Marie Beurrier, en magnum n°222 - nose was showing nice leather and woodsy notes. Surprisingly savory on the palate, and almost a little bretty. Still kinda tannic.

Sêlection de fromages affinés - one should not leave here without enjoying the restaurant's amazing cheese selection.

Sainte-Maure de Touraine

Reblochon

Tomme d'Abondance

Comté, 36 mois

Fourme d'Ambert

Our pre-dessert was the same as the one I had two months ago, and all about strawberries, with diced Gariguette at the bottom with strawberry sorbet, covered in yogurt foam and a sprinkle of strawberry pop rocks.

Soufflé à l'abricot et crème glacée infusée au safran - the first time I've been served apricot soufflé here, and the saffron ice cream was a good pairing.

Love the apricot compote inside.

I brought the next bottle because this is Uncle Joe's vintage, and few things make me happier than opening bottles from friends' birth vintages.

1946 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento, botella N.534 - the nose was so fragrant and complex. Very sweet on the palate, with honey, prunes, and spices. Really ripe and rich. I absolutely love this wine!

I was too full to have any mignardises, but we did pack home the leftover cheese to be made into grilled cheese... along with vanilla flan. Brownpaperbagged even gave me a box of the amazing chocolate chip cookies, and I was so grateful. That was a lot to carry home.

It's a rare occurrence when I feel less-than-happy about dishes coming from the Hairy Chevalier's kitchen, but in spite of this, the evening was still a success. My guests seemed pretty happy, and that was the only thing I cared about. I'm grateful to the Hairy Chevalier, Victor, Suveg, Robin, Danny, Floriane, and the Caprice team for making our evening such an enjoyable one.

Oh, and I'll be back next week.