“Wine makes every meal an occasion, every table more elegant, every day more civilised.” Andre Simon.
Following two evenings of delicious food and fantastic wines from the collection of estates owned by Joseph Henriot: Champagne Henriot, Bouchard Pere et Fils and William Fevre Chablis, it stands to reason that some reflection of the enjoyment and enrichment the consumption of fine food and wine gives to us all is due.
Catherine Leonard addressing everyone.
Catherine Léonard from Maisons and Domaines Henriot led each evening, one at the renowned Artisan restaurant in Galway and the second at Locks Brasserie in Dublin. At the start of each evening Catherine filled us in on the history behind Joseph Henriot, Champagne Henriot and his purchase of the prestigious Domaines of William Fevré and Bouchard Père et Fils.
Bouchard own an impressive amount of the 1er and Grand cru sites in Burgundy
Bouchard Père et Fils was founded in 1731 in Beaune by Michel Bouchard. It is one of the oldest wine estates in Burgundy. The purchase of Château de Beaune in 1820, a former royal fortress built in the 15th Century by King Louis XI provided the Bouchard family with huge underground cellars up to 100 metres deep where they amassed a unique collection of over 2000 bottles from the 19th Century. The oldest wine a Meursault Charmes 1846 still retains its luster!
The cellars at Chateau de Beaune
William Fevré 1959 marked the birth of the domain. William Fevré was descended from a family who had lived in the Chablis region for over 250 years, it was only natural that he set up a vineyard as a winemaker with 7 hectares of vines. Now William Fevré has become one of the biggest land owners in Chablis with 51 hectares of which 15.9 are Premier Crus and 15.2 are Grand Crus.
The vineyards of Chablis
Champagne Henriot Since 1794 when Nicolas Henriot married Apolline Godinot and they developed a fascination for the culture of the vine and production of wines of quality, Henriot has worked hard to maintain that excellence. For seven generations, the family has selected only the very best vineyards, concentrated on the purity of chardonnay and has upheld the utmost respect for time in order to ensure the cuvee has an opportunity to reach its full expression. Joseph Henriot took over the reins of the family company from 1962. A lover of fine wines he instigated the purchase of both William Fevré and Bouchard Père et Fils.
Champagne Henriot
Head chef at Locks, Keelan Higgs and Nigel Werner our Fine Wine Director worked hard to make sure the food and wine pairings for the evening worked. Having been there, ‘bought the t-shirt’ and yes, tried the food and sampled the wine, I can in my humble opinion say that they did a pretty good job! The highlight of the evening though, had to be the Meursault Les Clous 2010 with the Bonito Glazed Salmon, mouthwateringly good!
Bonito Glazed Salmon
Star pairings!
At €80 a ticket, the dinner was a bargain, and as such SOLD OUT last week. We do hope to do more of these dinners, loving the opportunity to open up some special wines and match them with top class food. Our next big event will be a dinner with Bo Barrett, owner of Chateau Montelena at Ballymaloe on Friday 7th February 2014. The acclaimed Estate in Napa Valley, which came top in a blind tasting against some of the top white Burgundies and a selection of Napa Chardonnays in the 1976 Paris Tasting. Why not watch the film ‘Bottle shock’ which tells the story of this historic moment in their history. For those who’d like to keep up to date with our goings on please feel free to sign up to our ‘semi’ regular Newsletters by joining our wine club here or signing up in the bottom banner of our homepage, alternatively keep an eye on the events page of our site and Facebook page.
Fellow wine lovers!
Wine professionals!
Harriet Tindal and Thomy Sabbe, Sommelier at Locks
Catherine Leonard and Henry Hodgson at the Artisan Dinner in Galway.
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