Alexandre Billon and Marie-Hélène Gantois
Photograph by www.DiscoverParis.net
In December, I had the opportunity to attend a champagne and chocolate tasting at Mococha—our favorite chocolate shop on rue Mouffetard. Marie-Hélène Gantois, the proprietor of the shop, provided chocolates and Alexandre Billon, a wine merchant from the nearby wine shop La Fontaine aux Vins, supplied the champagne.
Marie declared that the purpose of the tasting was to challenge the idea that champagne doesn’t go well with chocolate.
Alexandre began by pouring a Ronseaux-Wanner Grand Cru 2005. He explained that the older a champagne is, the fewer bubbles it will have, because the carbonation slowly escapes through the champagne cork over time. Indeed, this grand cru did not have as much fizz as a younger champagne. I found its taste to be quite bitter.
While the participants enjoyed the champagne, Marie circulated with trays of different ganache (cream-filled) chocolates. We tried several with this wine, and I succeeded in determining that a fig-flavored ganache by Rémi Henry did indeed complement the champagne. However, this was not because of the chocolate, but because of the fig—the sweetness of the fruit offset the bitterness of the champagne.
Alexandre then poured a Robert Desbrosse 2006. I found it to be only mildly bitter, which to my mind gave it a better chance at harmonizing with chocolate. I thought that it went well with a peach-flavored ganache called Péché by Fabrice Gillotte, again because the chocolate was flavored with fruit. But it also went well with a bitter-sweet praline chocolate called Muscovado by the same producer. Together in the mouth, the Desbrosse and the Muscovado tasted like sweet, liquid chocolate.
The third champagne was a Drappier Brut Nature, produced from 100% Pinot Noir grape. Its label indicated that it was zéro dosage, meaning that it did not receive a liqueur de dosage (a small quantity of cane sugar mixed with champagne) during its production. Dry and refreshing, it went well with Amandes “turbinées” (milk-chocolate coated almonds) by Fabrice Gillotte. I attributed this harmony to the flavor of the almonds, not to the flavor of the chocolate in which they were enrobed.
By the end of the event, although I had enjoyed some fine champagne and chocolate, I remained unconvinced that they actually complemented each other. The production of champagne and chocolate is a complex process and, in my mind, they emerge as finished products that should be enjoyed on their own merits. However, if one feels compelled to drink wine with chocolate, I recommend Banyuls, a fortified red wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France.
Marie Pours Ronseaux-Wanner Grand Cru 2005
Photograph by www.DiscoverParis.net
Marie hosts numerous events of this type in her shop, introducing new chocolate producers or paring chocolate with other beverages. Join her Facebook page to keep abreast of her activities!
Mococha
89, Rue Mouffetard
75005 Paris
Tel.: 01.47.07.13.66
La Fontaine aux Vins
107, Rue Mouffetard
75005 Paris
Tel.: 01.43.31.41.03
