I offer sincere thanks to Mr. Bernard Atia and his colleagues at FinestWine.com for the opportunity to write about three favorite subjects: travel, food and wine! I live in New York City, but the American South-Mississippi and Louisiana shaped my palate. The origins of my families' culinary traditions are the river basins of Southern Louisiana, influenced historically of course by France, Spain, England, Haiti and Africa. It was September 1st, 2004 and a party convened to celebrate the refreshing wines of the Loire Valley, plus, to sample fine Armagnacs. It is agreed, generally, that the wines of the Loire Valley are those most consumed by the French, themselves, in restaurants, according to the Loire Valley Wine Bureau (LVWB). And Armagnac immortalized in Alexandre Dumas' heroic novel, “The Three Musketeersâ€â€”is agreed to be France 's oldest spirit, or eau-de-vie, according to the Armagnac Association in France. Our wine selection: from Sancerre, Richard Bourgeois (2003); from Pouilly Fume, Patrice Moreux's La Loge Aux Moines (2000); from Vouvray, Domaine de La Haute Borne (2002); from Chinon, Philippe Alliet (2002); from Saumur-Champigny, Château deTargé (2000); Sparkling wine, Château Langlois' Crémant de Loire Brut Sparkling Wine; Our Armagnac list included: Armagnac Cames, V.S.O.P; Château de Laubade, V.S.O.P; Sempé, V.S.O.P; We gathered in a turn-of-the century Beaux Arts mansion in Manhattan 's Upper West Side neighborhood. We were 19, including Keith Bland, a portrait painter from the American South; Ron Blake, a world-famous jazz musician, and his wife, Grace-Ann-an actress, and their daughter, Maya a wildly successful child model; Curtis Green, the host of the NY wine-tasting society, Ten Folks, Inc; plus, another actress and singer, Donnell Wolfe and her husband, Ed, an analyst with the Disney Co; a paralegal, Alexis Alverez; Calvin Bass, a wine aficionado; Karen Carter, an accountant; two Armagnac producers, Bruno Cames and Denis Lesgourgues; the educators: Evelyn Parker, Dorothea Merchant, Constance Harding, Johnnie Mae Phelps, plus, Dorothy Gordon-who adores France, and who graciously opened her elegant home; and myself, a writer and journalist. Meanwhile, further downtown, America 's mainstream, conservative Republican Party, was celebrating its quadrennial congress, in Madison Square Garden. To us, it came as no surprise that George W. Bush, their wunderkind, was nominated for the American presidency for another four years. Uptown, by contrast, our gathering was not scripted, nor was it apolitical; but, certainly, there were neither political agendas nor television cameras. Only good conversation, hearty food, and superb wines flowed amongst us stalwarts who had elected not to escape town, unlike many Manhattan residents, while the ponderous conservative party took over our town. As the hours passed, the veil of humidity lifted and the evening became a joy. Sunshine, cool temperatures, a summer evening amongst friends. perfection. In the Dining Room, the vast table was laden with wine, plus desserts to accompany the Armagnac tasting. They included my mother's (Ruth Frazier Dumas) pound cake from an heirloom Southern recipe; macaroon cookies and a secret pie by Grace Ann Blake, actress and chef; and the Loire Valley wine styles included Chinon, Cremant de Loire, Sancerre, Pouilly-Fume and Saumur, Champigny. On the sideboard, a Louisiana Chicken Gumbo-ideally suited to the Loire Valley wines styles was served. It was chosen in opposition to a Seafood Gumbo, whose intense flavorings may have obscured the light Loire Valley whites though, of course, a red from Samur-Champigny would have been a suitable match! Gumbo aficionados will be interested to know mine was prepared with a cooked roux, a paste of flour and fat that is browned over a high flame, rather than using file powder as a thickening agent. Of course, would-be chefs, like me, must be vigilant, for if the roux is burned, it must be tossed out and one must laboriously begin again… In Louisiana, a prepared gumbo is itself sufficient reason to host a party! My maternal grandmother, Edna Barland Smoot (1914-1988), lived beside the Mississippi River, at Natchez. By profession, she was a nurse, but she is burnished in the family's collective memory in her blue kitchen, the smell of steaming gumbo wafts from the Tappan stove… To accompany the general tasting of Loire Valley wines, a selection of cheeses were ideal complements a log of (sharp) goat cheese (Chevrion) from France ; an English Stilton; a creamy blue “Bleu d'Auvergne,†plus, a ripe Brie. Amidst the food and banter, we only managed to sample a few wine styles: The evening began with Philippe Alliet's lively, purple Chinon (2002) a hit with everyone so much so, one guest refused to relinquish her glass! Refreshing! Was the adjective trumpeted again and again… To cleanse the pallet, Curtis Green, of Ten-Folks, Inc., the wine tasting society, suggested a sparkling wine, Château Langlois' Cremant de Loire said to be favored by Britain 's Houses of Parliament. Its nutty flavor and high acidity made it an ideal segue. According to the LVWB, the region is France 's second largest producer of sparkling wines. Next, we visited the tart and tangy Sauvignon Blanc grapes as styled by Richard Bourgeois' 2003 Sancerre, and from Pouilly Fume, Patrice Moreux's La Loge Aux Moines 2000 both fine wines; the Pouilly Fume's rounder taste was an interesting contrast to the Sancerre. From Vouvray, we enjoyed Domaine de La Haute Borne (2002). An elegant choice with hints of fruit such as pears. Lastly, we returned to another pleasing red—this one from Samur-Champigny: Château deTargé (2000). Its effusive blackcurrant and raspberry flavors awakened the palate. A smooth finish. For dessert, we indulged in the cake, secret pie, and cookies, accompanied by samplings of Armagnac from the producers: Cames (V.S.O.P.), Château de Laubade (V.S.O.P.) and Sempé (V.S.O.P.)
We were honored to have been joined by Messrs' Cames (Bruno) and Lesgourges (Denis), of Armagnac Cames and Château de Laubade, respectively. Mr. Cames regaled us with the 600 year history of Armagnac, France 's oldest spirit, and his family's history on the Clos de Moutouguet estate in the heart of the Bas Armagnac region, in the village of Monguilhem. Subsequently, we sampled a Cames V.S.O.P. Ahh so smooth! Later, I enjoyed it with a Churchill cigar from Reserva Dominicana, in New York City. A perfect pairing. Tobacco for these artisan cigars are grown on the Capellan Family's estate in the Dominican Republic. Not unlike the Loire Valley wines influenced by the region's limestone, or Armagnac derived from SW France's sandy clay, Reserva Dominicana's cigars are influenced by the Dominican Republic's fertile Cibao River Valley—a leading producer of the world's filler tobaccos. My Churchill had nutty and peppery flavors.
Mr. Lesgourgues spoke about his family's 30-year association with Château de Laubade followed by a tasting of his fine product, a V.S.O.P. Personally, it was a pleasure for me to re-discover Château de Laubade Armagnac. In August 2002, I visited Chateau de Laubade, with its 19 th century Norman styled mansion, in Sorbets Nogaro, France. I enjoyed a vertical tasting of the following vintages: 1941, 1961, and 1981. Words will do this no justice. It was one of those moments when you had to have been there! A privilege. As with the wines, each Armagnac has its own personality, its own bronze coloring, a character developed by the art of its creation and age. And each, no doubt, is suited to a particular palate. For more information on Armagnac, have a glance at their association's site: http://www.armagnac.fr/.
Joseph Dumas, a wine and food enthusiast, lives in New York City. Regularly he writes about travel, food, wine, and artisan products in short, the art of living. You can write to him at: lesvinspays@yahoo.com. |
