Marriage

To drink... with chocolate

Updating : 13/04/2006

Everybody has his own opinion about this question, but in fact everyone wonders what it is best to drink with a great black chocolate or a refined chocolate dessert. Champagne ? Certainly not! The question has been put to a wine steward, daughter of a great chocolate maker. Irrefutable!

Laurence Ginet really fell into the chocolate when she was small. Then she pursued her way into the field of great gastronomy since she is now the appointed wine steward of the Christian Têtedoie restaurant.

With him she cannot get away from chocolate. This chef, inventive above all others, is the specialist of successful creations. Thus during the season, he proposes a quite amazing menu «Olives et Chocolat», Laurence Ginet has to marry this with wines, dish after dish, from the entrée to the dessert and she manages very well!

Like every professional, she naturally recommends all the usual dessert wines of the marked red types.

"Maury", "Banuyls" wines and all those which are on the dessert menus of renowned tables. White wines such as "Muscat" and "Sauterne" can also be served. But she also makes her own discoveries

This wine from the "Bugey", for instance, which has not even got the «Appellation Contrôlée» label (but simple country wines and even table wines sometimes know how to surprise us, we have the proof...)

One of them is baptized «Pressurage de Novembre» by Patrick Charlin, the wine-grower who grows it in "Groslée". He lets the grapes wither in the crate and the juices seep through drop by drop which give a rather syrupy result.

This nectar, which resembles the "Jura" wine of "Paille", is so rare that it cannot be produced every year.

Just as rare, the «Vendanges Tardives de Condrieu» (late grape harvest in Condrieu) from Cuilleron, Gaillard, Montez or also François Villard are perfect with a black chocolate.

You can rarely find these little marvels at the producers who sell them first to renowned restaurants and cellarmen, but they all put some aside for the "Ampuis" (in January) and "Chavannay" (early December) fairs, in order that all the wine lovers who make the effort to visit them, can also profit from them. Make a note in your diaries!

Practical

Restaurant Christian Têtedoie 54, quai Pierre Scize 69005 Lyon

Tel.: 04 78 29 40 10

http://www.tetedoie.com/

Patrick Charlin Vins du Bugey

http://www.vinsdubugey.net/

Les Condrieu, Vendanges Tardives

http://www.cc-condrieu.fr/fr/accueil-condrieu.htm

Pierre Ginet, chocolate maker 9, rue de la Charité Lyon 2nd district.

Tel. : 04 78 42 09 82

http://www.chocolats-ginet.com/

Le Paradis du Chocolat : To know all about chocolate, a museum has been dedicated to it