This generous, homemade cheese gougère lends itself well to the picnic/champagne game. Don't hesitate to twist it by cutting it in half and spreading it with fresh herb cheese. A Blanc de Noirs champagne, whose fruity flavors are reminiscent of the summer season and add a gourmet touch to vegetable preparations. So what could be more logical than to bring a salad or raw vegetables to munch on, covered with a thin layer of green or black tapenade? Peppers, zucchini, grilled eggplants, red or white cold meats and terrines will go wonderfully well with the same Champagne Blanc de Noirs.
If you opt for a lunch on the grass with salmon tartare on lightly toasted baguette, grilled prawns, or smoked fish such as mackerel or trout, a Champagne Blanc de Blancs, with its liveliness, finesse and freshness, will be perfect with these seafood products. Take Maison Gosset's perfectly balanced cuvée Grand blanc de blancs, for example, with its floral notes and clean citrus notes. Cuvée n°7, also from Champagne Ayala, released to celebrate the House's 160th anniversary, whose cellar master Caroline Latrive confided its secrets to us a few weeks ago(LE FRUIT DANS TOUUS SES ÉTATS : N°7, LE SECOND OPUS DE LA " COLLECTION AYALA "), will be unctuous on the palate. A superb match!
For cheese, you can enjoy a soft sheep's milk cheese, for example, with demi-sec or extra-sec champagne. Champagne brut is ideal with cheeses such as Chaource or Brillat-Savarin.
Champagne rosé, on the other hand, goes well with Italian cured hams, salads, and many desserts with little sugar and fresh fruit!Melon, cherries, strawberries, raspberries - it's the perfect touch of fruit in your glass.
Last year,Moët & Chandon offered its Moët Impérial Rosé cuvée, with a luxurious picnic basket featuring a poke-bowl, a Lebanese bun and a salad with Mediterranean accents.The menu, imagined by Marco Fadiga, the Maison's head chef, was a wonderful match for the intense fruitiness of the cuvée.
Veuve Clicquot Rosé champagne also inspires chef Jean Imbert, who from June 13 this year is offering a generous gourmet picnic that can easily inspire everyone.It features potato chips from Noirmoutier, a salad with chorizo and mimolette, a gazpacho made from pineapple tomatoes, fresh Touraine goat's cheese and redcurrants from the chef's own garden! For the sandwich, he opts for buckwheat bread, topped with red tuna, eggplant and baby greens.And to finish, a clafoutis with Burlat de Céret cherries and a red fruit salad refreshed with Veuve Clicquot Rosé Champagne!And last but not least, a praline cake with raspberry jam.These are wonderful combinations to match the fruity notes of Champagne Rosé Veuve Clicquot.
Remember, even if you're having a picnic, you'll still need to keep your champagne well chilled with an ice-jacket, for example, and don't forget (above all) some good bread!
