The Somm Journal

128 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2017 With 20 years of experience, Prah has come to rely on Bouchard Père & Fils for its consistency. "Even in vintages that are tough, I feel like the Bouchard wines are usually pretty spot on," Prah says. "There's vintage variation, of course, but I feel like there's a good consistency always. Probably part of the reason for that is because they make a lot of wine, and they can afford to trim back and release only what they feel is good. I also like that Bouchard is available in every kind of economic bracket. You can go into a wine shop and buy some of the Bouchard for a very reasonable price." Prah has paired Bouchard Père & Fils 2014 Meursault Les Clous with Acadia's butter-poached Maine lob - ster, pickled corn salsa and red beets with a finish of popcorn custard lob- ster bisque. Says Prah, "What I like, especially in this vintage, is that for a Meursault it's on the leaner side. You get this really beautiful lemon vanilla custard kind of thing going on, plus little elements of sage, unripened pineapple, cut hay and pear, and then there's just this beautiful acid on the finish and nice lean and crunchy minerality too on the palate, which makes you really appreciate it. It's one of those wines where you want go back for more." PHILIPPE SAURIAT, Head Sommelier, Gabriel Kreuther, New York City Twenty years ago, Philippe Sauriat walked into London's Chez Moi looking for a server position; unbeknownst to Sauriat, and as if by fate, the sommelier had just walked out on the job. Noticing Sauriat's French accent, the owners asked if he knew anything about wine. He was familiar with French wine, at least, and suddenly he was the sommelier at a busy French restaurant in London. After an initial steep learning curve and a few stints at restaurants, hotels, private clubs and retail shops later, Sauriat is an Advanced Level Sommelier with the Sommelier Society of America. He's also the Head Sommelier at Gabriel Kreuther, an Alsatian-centric restaurant in New York City's Bryant Park. It's been regarded as one of "The 9 Best New Restaurants for 2016" by Robb Report, and Executive Chef Gabriel Kreuther has received the "Best Chef: New York City" award from the James Beard Foundation. The wine program was much easier to develop than Sauriat initially anticipated. "Chef Kreuther is a freak about wine and he knows a lot more about it than a lot of other chefs I've been around," Sauriat says. "He speaks about wine with his heart." Sauriat paired the scallops with the "terroir-driven" Bouchard Père & Fils 2007 Chambertin- Clos-de-Bèze. "The 2007 Clos-de-Bèze I find incredible because the balance is there," he explains. "The minerality is incredible and the fruit really shines. Yes, it's the secondary fruit characteristic, but there is elegance and the acid is beautiful." "If you want a wine that's not a powerhouse, even though it's Clos-de-Bèze, which we know is very serious Grand Cru, it's still delicate because of the vintage is delicate," he continues. "So it's a good marriage with the scallops. The Clos-de-Bèze has little notes of dried fruit: a little black cherry and red cherry, but also a touch of date sweet - ness along with rushed hazelnuts—really pretty but very subtle." As a Burgundy native and self-professed Burgundyphile, Sauriat had much to say about Bouchard Père & Fils, citing the Bouchard Rully and Beaune Grèves Clos de L'Enfant Jésus as some of his favorites. "Wine from Beaune for me is really the signature of Bouchard. I grew up in Burgundy, so my father would often have Bouchard. It's a house I respect a lot," he explained. "I'm not one of those guys who's going to poopoo on them because they're also négociant, or because they're big, because it's about being selective and open-minded. The problem with Burgundy often is that it's very expensive, and a house like Bouchard makes it much more approachable." It is also in that spirit to offer accessible and excellent wines that the Henriot family in 2008 purchased the historical and renowned estate Château de Poncié in Fleurie, where Frédéric Weber, Bouchard Père & Fils Cellar Master, has been crafting Fleurie wines in the original Burgundian style. Bouchard Père & Fils is imported by Maisons & Domaines Henriot America. "There's nothing more kind than a soft and gen- tle Pinot Noir or Chardonnay from Burgundy," says Philippe Sauriat, Head Sommelier at Gabriel Kreuther in New York City. Spice-roasted diver scallops, charred eggplant and heirloom beans finished with a bacon vinaigrette served with the Bouchard Père & Fils 2007 Chambertin-Clos-de- Bèze at Gabriel Kruether in New York City. Bouchard Père & Fils 2014 Meursault Les Clous with butter-poached Maine lobster, pickled corn salsa and red beets with a finish of popcorn custard lobster bisque, served at Acadia in Chicago. PHOTO: REBECCA PEPLINSKI PHOTO: DOUG YOUNG PHOTO: DOUG YOUNG

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