Lyon Hall Farm Diner: Strawberry!!

Back in February I was invited by my good friends Emily & Andy to visit D.C. and host an event at Lyon Hall where Andy is the head chef along with pastry chef Rob Valencia. I'd been wanting to visit since they opened the Alsatian influenced brasserie a little over a year ago. My passion for Alsatian cuisine runs deep so I didn't hesitate at the opportunity to finally make it and help out with one of their incredible seasonally focused dinners held every month. Eager to take The Pickled Tomato on TOUR I got crackin' on the menu with Andy. After hearing word of early strawberries in April, I was enthusiastic to meet the challenge of pairing wine with the bright tart little monsters. My first instinct was to pair wines with just a touch of residual sugar, perceived ripeness, or in beer's case, a malty backbone. After going back and forth a few times with Chef Andy I started to pin down the pairs. It was a bit of a challenge to try and pair stuff up from 600 miles away. Conceptually I think a lot of my ideas made sense after bouncing ideas off a few of my colleagues here in Chicago, but I had no idea if they would work once the food was plated and in front of the diners. For me, that's ended up being the most fun part about the event. Having the chance to walk around the room and get plenty of constructive feedback from everyone. I believe in candid criticism when it comes to food and cheers to everyone of the diners for diving in head first with me!

Last year I was in Alsace with the Webster's crew and I'll never forget one particular dinner following a 50+ wines power tasting with Pierre Gassmann from Domaine Rolly-Gassmann. Dehydrated, famished, & palette-fatigued we showed up for our reservation at La Bacchante. Not even 5 minutes after sitting down coupes of crémant appear in front of us, strawberries dancing amongst the ribbons of bubbles. This not only slaked our thirsts, but it woke us (and our palettes) right up. I just knew I had to share this apértif experience with the diners of Lyon Hall. Biodynamically produced from 11th generation winemaker Gerard Boesch, the Domaine Leon Boesch Crémant d'Alsace (50% Pinot Blanc, 25% Pinot Noir, 25% Riesling) served as the perfect vehicle alluding to the berry blitz ahead.

First Course: La Quercia proscuitto/macerated strawberries/pistachio/aged balsamic.

Pairing: Dios Baco Amontillado, Jerez, Spain.

I have to say that I was very confident in this pairing knowing how well salty ham works with sherry, especially amontillado. The balsamic lended to the complex secondary notes developed by the layer of flor yeast used in the making of this particular style of sherry. What was most intriguing, for me, was the length of the finish of the amontillado and how it was perfectly integrated with the pistachio. The harmony of the finish with the last bite stuck around all the way up until the next course. Some folks weren't as enamored as me by the pairing but admittedly weren't all that familiar or comfortable with sherry in general. I was very impressed with the diner's efforts and capability to start off a tasting with an amontillado! Cheers to you all!

Second Course: scallop ceviche/ginger/strawberry/sake

Pairing: Kiuchi Brewery, Hitachino Nest "Ginger Brew," Japan

My first instinct for this pairing was definitely beer knowing how well it goes with the classic Peruvian dish. Typically wine & ceviche don't work because of the excess of acidity. Originally I wanted to do a saison, The Lost Abbey "Red Barn Ale" came to mind. Brewed with ginger, grains of paradise and a nice malty backbone I thought this would be perfect, however, I was unable to source the beer before the event. After arriving in D.C. David, the beer director at Lyon Hall, came to me with the suggestion for using the (on-hand) Hitachino Ginger Brew... "YES!" "PERFECT," I exclaimed. I was also familiar with this beer, knowing it had a richer malty note, brewed with plenty of ginger, and would compliment the element of ginger in the dish nicely. Also the Hitachino would allow for some continuity giving nod to the Japanese notes in the dish (i.e. sake). People really dug this pairing, as did I. Earlier in the day I picked up a similar style (as the red barn ale) saison from The Bruery just to give a quick comparison with the course, later confirming that the Hitachino "Ginger Brew" was perfectly serendipitous.

Third Course: roast duck breast/caramelized strawberries/amaretti/black pepper

Pairing: Christine et Joël Ménard 2009 'Les Copines Aussi' Gamay, Anjoy, Loire, France

Talk about a quaffer! Elaborated biodynamically and using native yeasts, this slick & juicy gamay for "The Girlfriends" was a true joy to pour for everyone. It's hand harvested from schisty soil, followed by a 5 day maceration of the grapes, 6 months in tank, then bottled without filtration or sulfites. Despite my spastic ramblings introducing this wine, I think the crowd was with me 100% on this one. I didn't think it was a knockout pairing but the ripeness of the fruit lent well to the richness and subtle sweetness of the nutty amaretti. The drinkability of the wine alone is what I think sells people on this particular bottling (me included), but I won't deny that ripe gamay and duck definitely work.

Fourth Course: housemade goat's cheese with herbs/strawberry-almond salad/lavender honey

Pairing: Domaine Marcel Deiss 2007 Pinot Gris, Bergheim, Alsace, France

One of the world's most charismatic proponents of biodynamics, Jean-Michel Deiss crafted a lavish, spicy and honey laced pinot gris in 2007. Even though Jean-Michel's main focus is the terroir based "premier crus," I think his varietal based wines are still very expressive and in this case work very well with food. This seemed to be the favorite pairing of many. I thought the almond in the dish was a touch overpowering to the wine but ultimately the textures here are really what set it all off. Deiss' wines consistently demonstrate exquisitely polished mouthfeel (except his pinot noir, of course, which is savage). The pasty goat cheese with the crunch of the almond and the tender give of the strawberry allowed for a fun pairing with the viscosity of the pinot gris. I decanted this an hour and a half before the course to make sure it was showing in all it's golden glory.

Fifth Course: strawberry custard napoleon/strawberry-apricot sorbet/oven-roasted strawberries

Pairing: Patrick Bottex 'La Cueille' Gamay, Bugey-Cerdon, Savoie, France

BUGEY! MORE GAMAY! MORE STRAWBERRIES! After introducing the wine to the group I settled back to my plate radiating with intense bright red strawberry color. I poured myself a glass of Bugey and took my first step into a full on ASSAULT of strawberries. I was so engulfed in strawberry flavor that I stepped back into the room to gush out: "I don't know about you guys but this is  strawberry OVERLOAD." I seem to recall a few laughs (somehow)... my geekiness can't help but show its face here. The pastry dough of the napoleon was perfect and I thought this worked well with the bubbles. The cru "Cerdon" within Bugey is entirely dedicated to sparkling wine and mostly made in method ancestrale which actually pre-dates method champenoise. In this case the wine is fermented up to about 5% abv then bottled with some of the sugars remaining. After bottling, the secondary fermentation takes place producing the bubbles and results in a delicious low-alcohol (i'd rather say "ripe" than sweet) rosé sparkler. In my opinion, a perfect end to a delicious meal. 

CHEERS to Chefs Andy & Rob, Mark, Andrew, Dave, all of the staff at Lyon Hall, and my dear friend Emily for giving me the opportunity to work with you all... it was a BLAST. Most of all, thank you to all of the diners for giving me so much wonderful feedback and creating, what I thought to be, a truly memorable dining experience.

Santé!

.Matty

(and a big shout to JC for never putting that camera down!)

Lyon Hall

1020 N Highland St
Arlington, VA 22201
(703) 741-7636

http://lyonhallarlington.com/

PARIS. FOOD.

It's amazing how you can go from waking up on a hot Sunday morning in Chicago with vitamin gut and projectile carrot juice to eating snails and drinking rosé at a tiny French Bistro in Paris. Handfuls of valerian root, melatonin, and a magical little blue pill can do wonders for blurring the clutches of time zones and jetlag.  Besides, where's the fun in being tired for a full 24 hours of eating and drinking in Paris with good friends ahead of you? Before I get into my Paris eating adventures I'll brief you on what brings me to Paris in the first place.  I work at Webster's Wine Bar in Chicago, IL... the greatest winebar in the world (yeah i said it). Every year we take a trip to a specific viticultural region in search of knowledge, inspiration, understanding, and mostly great times with great friends.  We think it's essential to truly understanding wines of a region by immersing ourselves in the culture and the people.  After an epic winetrip to Austria (Kamptal, Wachau) visiting some 13 estates last fall, I learned how things are done on Websters trips which the following posts and pictures of this trip will illustrate.  They may manifest feelings of envy & wonder yet, keep in mind, these trips are WORK!  Tasting 100+ wines a day takes STAMINA.  Eating foie gras more than twice a day takes FOCUS!  Ping pong, eau de vie, riesling, killer ducks, cremant, hill climbs, asperges, 1976 pinot gris, more eau de vie, charcoutre, riesling, storks (!), tart flambée, riesling, VT... SGN... MUNSTER... this is no WALK IN THE PARK people! That being said, I hope you enjoy the next few posts about our trip to Alsace!  I'll be talking about terroir, wine laws, lots about biodynamics, ha grown vs production, foudres, acidity, and more.  I thought I'd start things off with 2 (3) places I fell in love with in Paris.

GLOU!

Jeremy, our wine director and trip planner extraordinaire was raving about this place all afternoon. Last time he was in Paris he wandered into the tiny storefront and found an amazing meal with simple delicious organic (and bio-d) food, some serious stuff by the glass, and a super friendly staff.  Despite some reluctance amongst our group of 11 (groups 1 & 2) we called ahead, fingers crossed, to reserve a table.  There is something to be said about how everything just seems to work out in our favor on these trips because Glou agreed they could accommodate!  It took me about 5 seconds to fall completely in love with this place. Two quaint tables sit outside on the sidewalk in front of tall skinny windows and a chalkboard featuring the days glass pours. 

We're greeted by a Berkel hand crank meat slicer consorting amongst a few small 2 & 4 top tables.  The long narrow room leads us to our tall curved communal table beside a wall of a hi-tech tap system keeping the esteemed wines fresh.  Three candy red drum lamps above us add a splash of color to the exposed brick wall with a black chalkboard showing more of today's features. 

We settle in and jump right into a bottle of Serge Batard Muscadet... is there a better way to start a meal? Fino, maybe.  A few bottles of 2009 Domaine de Fondreche Rosé get poured out as the food starts arriving. I purposely didn't document every morsel on the table because I was almost overwhelmed with how happy I was. 

The pictures should give you the idea. '07 Vincent Gaudry Sancerre (pn) tastes AMAZING with the orecchiette & morels, oh... and w/the lamb leg & tomatoes, dorade w/veg.. mmmhmmm. 

After the meal we had them put together a quick tasting of some of the wines in the case.  Sancerre, Meursault, Huet Vouvray, Ostertag Riesling, Condrieu (!)... Côte de Nuits, Côte du Beaune, St. Joseph, Côte Rôtie, St. Estèphe. What an experience!  I was totally blown away, not to mention lost complete track of when I had slept last. This shit is Matty fuel.  I could eat and drink like this forever (and we kinda did! for another 10 days).

and oh yes... they had this ridiculous olive oil that I wrote down so I could hunt it down when I got home.  HERE.

So after Glou we went out and blazed the town.  Found a local hip bar and chugged blanche bière then, I think... I don't even remember which one came first (ha), wandered into a charming winebar slash bookstore.  We found our sanctuary in the small back room where we drank Sancerre like it was Bud Light and raised ruckus like a bunch of loud Americans.  At one point a [tipsy] local came back with a huge smile on his face only to sit next to Dylan and just act like he was one of us.  Quite humorous to say the least.  After everything closed down we headed back to the hotel to tug off of some Mettè wild plum eau de vie and play in the street.  The night kept getting longer and the antics ensued... yes, even some Tai Chi.

"I still haven't slept yet," I say to myself, snapping photos of the Colonne de Juillet. "Saturday?.. Friday?.. Chicago..?  Didn't I close at the winebar? Is it Tuesday?... ah jeez."   The sun coming up in the Bastille still didn't phase my "pumped-up" meter still pinned to "F."  After some very much needed croque madames we finally kick back (haha, Dylan) to the hotel.  I managed to grab a few zzz's and wake up to the beginning of our Alsace trip!

fast forward 10 days...

back in Paris.

falafel.

Really, you have no idea.  My friend Katherine (yay, monkey!), and her fiance David assured me it was a good bet.  The kind gentleman who took my money assured me it was a good bet.  "Best falafel on EARTH" were his words actually.  Not only was it the best falafel on earth but quite possibly one of my single favorite things I've ever eaten.  I tend to get in trouble with my friends rattling off that kinda stuff... "favorite this, best ever that."  I mean it this time guys, I do!  Thank you Monkey.  Thank you David.  Even my guy Jared in Cincinnati knows what's up.  If you are in Paris, go.

Despite the slightly rainy afternoon, it doesn't stop us from running around town staring at the endless supermodels.  Absinthe shop here, cider bar there.  More supermodels.  I'm not sure if I could handle living in Paris.  Maybe there are Parisian women who dig Americans, you know, kinda like the way we dig accents here?  Maybe just a fantasy.  I resist a few impulse buys for the sake of my pocketbook but enjoy the afternoon boppin' around town with Spencer.

Cul de Poule

We jump over to the 9th for our next, and one of our last, meals of the trip.  The name literally translates to "hen's ass" (chicken butt, haha lowen!) although I just recently came across another meaning that it is basically slang for "mixing bowl."  Pretty clever.  The food?  Clever indeed.  I'll get to that in a second, but first, check out this room.  When we walked in they asked us if we wanted to sit upstairs.  Not having any idea we walk up a super narrow set of stairs along a wildly hilarious, and sometimes phallic, mural along the wall.  The whole room was a freaking bed!  That's right, tv trays as tables, pillows, small lamps along the back wall with a word search wallpaper that most have turned into playful graffiti.

Not to be outdone by Glou, we dove straight into the also humble, yet playful winelist. Cheverny Blanc, TROUSSEAU (JURA!), a life-altering low alcohol bio-d sparkling cab franc, and more delight from Corsica!  I'm fucking spoiled.

The food here was SO simple, most of the time each dish having only 3 elements to it. People always say that the simplest food is always the hardest to execute well.  Nothing here seemed hard, complicated, or overthought.  Smoked chicken with a paprika mousse and greens.  Cauliflower soup. Bayonne ham, melt in your mouth chorizo.  Smoked haddock, purée of yam, dill.  There was a huge pork shank on the table too that had some sort of orange zest glaze & polenta, that was out of control good.  At first I thought things were under-seasoned being the salt monster that I am, but after rethinking the flavors and tasting everything I realized that it was intended that way and ended up making the flavors a little more delicate.  Comfort food in a comfortable room made this extremely memorable for me.  There was a "tapiocaaaaaaaaaa" dessert w/whisky & caramel that was just  ______.  I'm just going to leave that blank for now.  A most satisfying calvados, paired with a smoke while peering out our own personal window on to the cool rainy streets of Paris allowed me to reflect on everything.  I'm truly grateful for this trip, these friends, and the ability to appreciate the most important things in life: food, wine, and people! When all of these things are good, it sure is a powerful thing.  à santé!