european food journal
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A CulinAry Journeythrough europe
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A CulinAry Journeythrough europe
DeAr reADer,DeAr reADer,Six world-famous Michelin-starred chefs have taken us on a personal culinary journey through Europe. We kick off in Italy – where three-star chef and avant garde gastronome Massimo Bottura calls home. His restaurant in Modena is nothing short of an experimental laboratory where the future of Italian cuisine is bubbling merrily on top of the stove.
After this emotional rollercoaster we arrive in Budapest where Tamás Széll spirits us away to sample the culinary secrets of Hungary and explains why Hungary’s national dish is definitely not called ‘goulash’.
The next chef on our journey is the Swiss mushroom expert and rabbit meat ambassador, Thuri Maag, who is currently celebrating the comeback of ‘Chüngel’ in Swiss cuisine.
In Germany, we are welcomed by TV-chef Ralf Zacherl who is a big fan of regional cuisine.
At the Dutch border our journey really takes flight – literally. In the spectacular hot air balloon restaurant operated by the Dutch Michelin-starred chef Angélique Schmeinck.
Our next stop is France, where haute cuisine is undergoing a period of huge change. The initiator of this upheaval is the great three-star chef and revolutionary, Alain Ducasse, who is merging haute cuisine with the concept of ‘naturalness’.
All of the chefs we interviewed have also given us some valuable insider tips about the culinary secrets just waiting to be discovered throughout the European continent: Recipes, the best markets, national dishes and regional specialities. Join us on our culinary journey in the following pages and experience the colourful panoply that is European cuisine. Enjoy!
Your editorial team
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the trip
Jeffrey BlAir CArtrett,
the future of gAstronomy: Boring or BlAsé no longer works
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guest eDitoriAl By
Jeffrey BlAir CArtrett, ACADemiC DireCtor of the institut pAul BoCuse, frAnCe
the future of gAstronomy: Boring or BlAsé no longer works
About Jeffrey Blair Catrett Jeffrey Blair Catrett has been the Academic Director of the renowned Institut Paul Bocuse in Ecully, France, since 2012. The majestic French chef Paul Bocuse founded the Institut Paul Bocuse personally in 1990. It claims to be the ‘guaran-tor of French know-how internation-ally’ as regards culinary practices and hotel and restaurant manage-ment. With Mr. Catrett spearhead-ing the academic research area, the institute has an outstanding per-sonality who possesses 25 years’ experience and administration at some of the world’s most prestig-ious institutions. Before joining the Paul Bocuse Institute, Mr. Catrett was Dean of Kendall College in Chicago and the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne. He has also successfully negotiated partnerships with elite academic and industry partners.
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A subtle yet critically important
evolution is affecting today’s gas-
tronomy and foodservice. During
the last few decades, great culinary
talents worldwide have attracted
guests to their tables to discover the
excellence of first-class cuisine. Such
kitchen greats as Paul Bocuse have
generously shared their knowledge
and transmitted their expertise to
every corner of the globe. The creative
talent of the best gastronomic minds
has led customers to see chefs not as
competent craftsmen as they might
have 50 years ago, but rather as fine
artists very much front and center in
their restaurants. The chef led; the
people followed and appreciated.
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Television food channels, Internet food
blogs, expert-based and crowd-sourced
criticism, advanced distribution supply
chains, democratized global travel: All have led
to a much greater understanding of and also
demand for good food. Whole generations of
customers worldwide are now savvy to quality
food, to a variety of cuisines, to restaurant con-
cepts and lifestyle designs, to exciting locations
from gastronomic citadels to the street.
Today’s educated customers are now reversing
the order of things and are driving the demand
for the types of food they want at the prices
they want to pay, at the times they want it and
in the places they want to eat it. The quirky
nature of Generation Y is matched by the in-
creasing, finicky necessity of the aging Baby
Boomers, and customer tastes are fragmenting
and multiplying.
The great variety of today’s lifestyles means
that chefs must now respond to demands for
healthy food sensitive to specific diets, to food
that respects environmental constraints, to
food that is fun to eat in casual or novel sur-
roundings, to authentic cuisines restructured,
to technological supports for service, to food
as part of a broader cultural panoply.
This new fragmentation of tastes seems to lead
often to a clash in wants and desires difficult to
resolve into a single offer. Food scandals and
environmental concerns push for local prod-
ucts and organic farming, while experience and
boredom demand the exotic and the global.
Awareness of waste encourages the use of
ugly and forgotten vegetables, while love of the
beautiful suggests ever-more refined plating
and science-based adventuring. Health issues
and allergies require healthier meals; uber-luxu-
ry (one-upping mass luxury) seeks ever greater
extremes.
Deeper knowledge demands the authentic,
yet over-exposure yearns for the revolutionary.
Technology enables efficiency in service and
production (food can be 3-D printed) and is
embraced by a new generation; the digital
world has given rise to a yearning for social
contact and a return to old institutions like the
table d’hôte.
There are, nevertheless, some discernable
directions for restaurateurs, hoteliers and ca-
terers. One size will no longer fit all. In a world
of fragmented tastes, differentiation is a neces-
sity. Quality is necessary at all levels. The old
trade-off between price and quality no longer
applies. Real crises have alerted the world to
real awareness of environment and health.
Whereas the public previously proclaimed their
interest in these issues while secretly wanting
excess when dining out, they are now part of
the mainstream.
Design and style (even the stylized search for
the revolutionary) are sine qua non. Boring or
blasé no longer works. People are less gullible
and less forgiving. Price gouging and inflation
for brands in place of real value for money will
no longer fly in most markets.
And most importantly, the chef and the estab-
lishment will find themselves less and less able
to dictate behaviours. Mealtimes, restaurant
types, dress codes, menus, pricing, ingredi-
ents, even the physical boundaries of the eating
space will more and more be defined by the
consumer.
In a world of increasingly savvy consumers
with largely fragmented tastes who are quickly
bored and ready to move on to the next offer,
the importance of creativity and innovation are
at an all-time premium, but service providers
must be ready to react to and even bow to
the whims of this new public.
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About Agnès giboreau Agnès Giboreau is head manager of research at the Institut Paul Bocuse. She has a PhD in Food Science and an MSc in Cognitive Psychology. She instructs research supervision in Neurosciences and Cognition at the University of Lyon.Her research activity aims at better understanding the plea-sure of eating and its relation to health from both perceptual and behavioural perspectives. Projects focus on the meal experience in a multidisciplinary approach and rely on studies conducted in real situations. This is done through the unique facilities of the experimental restaurant, a Living Lab (labelled Enoll) where professional experts work together with scien-tists, contributing to food design and production as well as table design and service. The results are published in peer-reviewed journals and conferences, and are communicated to the food service and hospitality sectors by training future professionals as well as specific cooperative programs.
Agnès giBoreAu,
the experimentAl restAurAnt
guest ArtiCle
Agnès giBoreAu, reseArCh DireCtor At the institute pAul BoCuse
the experimentAl restAurAnt
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The research center conducts human-centered
investigations aimed at increasing our under-
standing of restaurant customers. Projects are
conducted in the Living Lab, an experimental
restaurant where diners book their meals, lunch
or dinner as in a commercial restaurant, paying
for their meal but agreeing to be part of experi-
ments while being filmed or asked questions.
These studies allow us to analyze various fac-
tors affecting consumer habits, choice and per-
ception in real contexts, which is a new trend
for consumer research. For instance, children’s
vegetable preferences have been studied in this
context with the conclusion that 7- to 11-year-
old, pre-adolescents prefer crunchy textures
(Morizet et al., 2011) – see the example on the
level of consumption for carrots.
This approach also allows us to study the emo-
tional state of diners in the restaurant as it is
influenced by the surrounding visual ambiance.
Five colour schemes (reference, red, blue,
white and green) were set up for one week
each at the experimental restaurant. The results
of this investigation show the effect of colour
on the emotional state of customers in the first
minutes after arriving at the restaurant, with
the red colour scheme leading to a more tense
emotional state. However, under all conditions,
guests experienced more positive feelings after
the meal: feelings of admiration, being pleas-
antly surprised and reassurance all increased
for all of the colour schemes tested.
In summary, taking context into account in con-
sumer research is important when evaluating the
effect both the food and the environment have in
terms of consumer satisfaction. Thus, the Living
Lab at the Institut Paul Bocuse is a powerful tool
that we can use to re-create a real-life situation
and help professionals to drive innovation in
a consumer-centered approach.
The center for food and hospitality research, Institut Paul Bocuse, studies
consumer eating behaviour mainly in relation to out-of-home consumption.
Three main components are important in understanding consumer behaviour:
habits (what food they usually consume, where, when, how), choice (what food
they choose in a restaurant, based on which criteria: price, quantity, label) and
perception (how much they like a food, for which sensory reasons: appearance,
texture, taste, aroma).
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mAssimo BotturA,
“Don’t mess with the pope, soCCer or grAnDmother’s reCipes”
mAssimo BotturA, italian chef, who currently holds three michelin stars
“Don’t mess with the pope, soCCer or grAnDmother’s reCipes”
© P
aolo
Ter
zi
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efJ: Mr. Bottura, let us accompany you on a
personal culinary journey of discovery around
Europe. Which European countries or cities do
you think serve the best food and drink?
massimo Bottura: I love travelling… but I do it
often for business and not enough for plea-
sure. Rarely do I have the chance to wander
a city on my own and discover it little by little.
I am usually visiting chef friends or an art gal-
lery or museum. Nonetheless, when I travel, I
Italians love food and pleasure. Italian chef Massimo Bottura, who currently
holds three Michelin stars, is hugely respectful of traditional food culture in
his home country. His grandmother’s recipes are revered like sacred texts. How-
ever, they can only survive if they continue to evolve, says the grand master of
avant-garde cuisine in an interview with European Food Journal. Just as a lemon
tart can be broken into pieces to make something new, art lover and music afi-
cionado Massimo Bottura believes he can transform – and save – traditional Ital-
ian cuisine.
always try to experience new cuisines and eat
at simple places to understand how people are
eating locally. Street food is a good indicator
of how healthy or rich the food economy is in a
city. Usually good street food leads to interest-
ing restaurants. It’s hard for me to say the cit-
ies where you can eat the best because I have
chef friends everywhere. When I am in Paris,
London, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Amsterdam
or San Sebastian, I visit them – and therefore
have a very biased view. We talk, we eat, and
About massimo Bottura Massimo Bottura is an Italian chef from Modena with three Michelin stars to his name. He describes his close affinity with Italian cuisine by saying, “My bones are made of Par-migiano Reggiano, and balsamic vinegar rushes through my veins.” His hometown of Modena is also home to his restau-rants: Trattoria del Campazzo opened its doors to customers in 1986 and was joined by Osteria la Francescana in 1995. Bottura has even expanded beyond his Italian home. He now has an eponymous restaurant in Istanbul called Ristorante Italia di Massimo Bottura. The avant garde/traditional-style cuisine espoused by the Italian chef is known throughout the world and has been recognized with a long list of awards. Bottura won three Michelin stars in 2011. Just how much his international fans adore his work is shown in an award from Restaurant Magazine: Osteria La Francescana is placed third on a list of the 50 best restaurants in the world in 2014.
1962 Born in modena
1995 the famous
osteria francescana opened its
doors
2011 three
michelin stars for massimo
Bottura
2013 Ambassador
for food in the year of italian Culture in the united states
2014 osteria
francescana is voted third-best restaurant in the
world for the second time in a
row
© P
aolo
Ter
zi
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we share stories. I always ask them to choose
the dishes for me. Today you really can eat well
in so many places that have never been famous
for their food, such as Sweden or Holland. This
is due to a general awareness about the value
of good food and the importance of reviving
traditions and improving upon them. Some
people are nostalgic about the past. In my
opinion, we have never eaten as well in Europe
as we do today.
efJ: Where can the most beautiful traditional
markets be found?
massimo Bottura: Markets are everywhere if you
look. Paris has several market areas – each
with its own flavour. I love the shopping street
Rue Montorgueil as well as the new curated
Marché Saint-Martin. It all depends what you
are looking for. London’s Brick Lane near
Spitalfields is always fantastically colourful
with very delicious street food. Stockholm’s
covered market is small but charming and
specializes in herring and seafood. We had a
fabulous herring-based lunch there last March.
Amsterdam’s Bloemenmarkt flower market on
the barges is just a feast for the eyes. The one
I know and am most fond of is the beautiful
covered food market in Modena. On a Saturday
morning, I love to wander around the Albinelli
Mercato, a covered market from 1919, in the
center of the city beside the main square next
to our 11th century Romanesque church. Not
only do I have a chance to catch up with our
fruit and vegetable vendors, our fishmonger,
and other stalls in the market, but I always grab
a warm baccalà fritter from my friend Massimo
Manzini for an early aperativo or stop by Schi-
aoni Bar, where the Fantoni sisters
make a great cotechino and salsa
verde sandwich.
© P
aolo
Ter
zi
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Shopping in a market is about buying the
food but also about the buzz. We run into
friends and socialize and nibble while we
shop, which is so much more fun than pushing
around a cart in a supermarket.
efJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of
Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Eu-
rope in terms of culinary regions?
massimo Bottura: Each area of Europe has been
defined by its food culture, the landscape and
climate, as well as by the immigrants who have
settled there. The kitchen is a place for ex-
change and cultural collisions – even clashes.
Sometimes these clashes form the most inter-
esting flavours. Our kitchen is filled with young
chefs from all over the world and all over Italy.
Each individual is unique and brings with them
a food culture that adds to the diversity.
Are there distinct food regions? There are clear
food trends that I am seeing such as Nordic
cuisine, which is re-inventing itself with ideas
and ingredients once thought to be of little or
no value. Northern Europe, countries like Hol-
land, Brussels and Germany, are searching
for a deeper and more personal connection to
their kitchen after years of copying the French.
This is very exciting and groundbreaking. The
French are beginning to let down their hair
and their strict dining codes to make room for
more accessible dining establishments, which
is leading to a welcome twist on French tradi-
tions. Spain has led the way with innovation,
not only technique but new dining concepts,
for the past 15 years and now is reaching into
its rich past to bring forth Spanish traditions
that have been neglected over the years. Eng-
land, especially London, is playing host to so
many interesting restaurants and chefs. It has
become the food capital of Europe. Just think,
only 20 years ago, it was a food desert! And
Italy, well, there is always a good meal to be
found here, but today more than ever, there is
a group of young chefs who are pushing the
boundaries of Italian cuisine and finding new
ways to express the known and beloved fla-
vours of Italy from Piedmont in the north to the
deep south in Sicily.
efJ: Which European country has the best food
specialties, and what are they?
massimo Bottura: That is a very tricky question
to ask to an Italian. I feel fortunate to live and
work in Italy, where we have some of the most
incredible producers and products in the world.
There is no substitute for Parmigiano Reggiano.
We use several ages of Parmigiano Reggiano in
the restaurant from different local producers. It
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is the most amazing cheese I have ever worked
with in the kitchen – and an integral part of our
terroir. Another irreplaceable product is tra-
ditional balsamic vinegar from Modena. Then
there is extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany or
Lake Garda, Liguria or Umbria, Calabria or Sic-
ily. Each has its own microclimate and person-
ality. All contribute to a healthy and flavourful
kitchen. Capers from southern Italy – Puglia,
Sicily and Pantelleria – are the base of many
sauces and the secret ingredient to many
recipes. Tomatoes from Naples, grown in the
soil enriched with volcanic ash from Vesuvius.
Citrus fruits: Sorrento lemons, Sicilian oranges,
Calabrian Bergamot lemons. Not to mention
the wines made all over Italy – from Friuli in the
far northeast to Pantelleria in the far southwest.
At the end of the day, any successful kitchen
begins with understanding the value of relation-
ships with artisans, cheese makers, butchers,
fishmongers, farmers, olive oil producers. They
are our heroes.
efJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will
dominate in Europe in the future?
massimo Bottura: Modena is the land of slow
food and fast cars, but really not only Modena,
all of Europe. Think of all the cured meats be-
ing made artisanally, the handcrafted cheeses
and naturally leaven breads. All slow food. Then
think of Formula 1 race cars – built in Germany,
the UK and Italy. Modena alone produces Fer-
rari, Maserati and Lamborghini cars. Engineer-
ing and dreams of speed meet artisans, chefs
and farmers, who are redesigning our menus
and our palates to bring us back to our terroir.
The more we focus on terroir, on the amazing
resources we have been given by our ances-
tors, the more we are able to create recipes
with lasting value. Ethics and aesthetics go
hand in hand. Think about the power of slow
food and how it has changed a generation of
chefs. This is the trend for the next decade, not
fast food, and maybe forever. Someday instead
of chef superstars, there will be farmer super-
stars. That will be a great day indeed.
efJ: As a celebrity chef from Italy, you have a
special relationship with Italian cuisine. Can you
tell us about one of your favourite recipes from
Italy for our culinary journey?
massimo Bottura: My favourite Emilian dish is
tortellini.
I grew up under my grandmother’s table hiding
from my three older brothers. Nonna Ancella
was always making egg pasta and folding tor-
tellini for our large family. I not only
have an emotional attachment to tor-
tellini but a gastronomic one, as well.
© P
er A
nder
s Jo
rgen
sen
© T
hom
as R
uhl
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They are small packages of Emilian flavour,
perfectly balanced and complete. Tradi-
tionally they are served in capon broth. At
my restaurant Osteria Francescana, we serve
them in a Parmigiano Reggiano sauce made
without heavy cream but with water and emul-
sified Parmigiano Reggiano. We boil the tortel-
lini in capon broth so that they can acquire the
flavour of the broth, then dress them with the
parmesan cream. Delicious!
Of course there are other traditional dishes that
I serve at Osteria Francescana, modified and I
hope improved. Cotechino with lentils is a typi-
cal Emilian meal. Cotechino is a large sausage
that is boiled for hours. Instead of boiling it,
we steam it in Lambrusco. This not only helps
degrease the sausage but gives it a wonder-
ful flavour. I then prepare traditional egg pasta
ravioli and fill them with a mixture of cotechino
and lentils. This is a way of eating cotechino
365 days a year. It is flavourful but light.
efJ: How important is food culture in Italy?
What trends and traditions can you discern
here?
massimo Bottura: Food is everything to Italians.
Italian cuisine is internationally praised, but too
often gets stuck in the notion of grandma’s
kitchen. I don’t know exactly why, but people in
general do not want Italian cuisine to evolve.
I often say that in Italy, there are three things
you really don’t dare mess with: The Pope,
football (soccer) and your grandmother’s reci-
pes. 20 years ago we did take on those recipes
and traditions, and it’s been our great journey
to see if we can bring Italian cuisine into the
21st century. That is the trend in Italy right now.
We are preserving our past by making it more
contemporary – by letting it evolve. I know that
sounds like a contradiction, but it is not. What
is important to remember with Italian food is
that it should be light, healthy and seasonal.
efJ: Let’s talk about your restaurant Osteria
Francescana. Where is it located, and what
culinary highlights can your guests expect to
enjoy? What dining style do you follow?
massimo Bottura: Osteria Francescana is on a
small side street called Via Stella in the center
of medieval Modena. Every morning people
pass by to say hello, from the mayor to the
© P
aolo
Ter
zi
postman, and they often find me sweeping the
street in front of the restaurant or my wife fix-
ing the flowers pots at the entrance. We are the
first ones to care about where we live and work.
You make a first impression only once.
My kitchen can be defined as ‘Tradition in Evo-
lution’. I revisit traditional recipes and ideas and
make them contemporary. This is my specialty.
I try very hard to respect tradition, but also to
respect ingredients, heroic farmers, butchers
and fishermen. Sometimes I have to ask if our
traditions respect the ingredients, and if they
don’t, then it is time to rework them. ‘Tradition
in Evolution’ means bringing the best of the
past into the future. We have been working on
this idea for 20 years, and we may continue for
20 more. The more I look into the archives of
Italian cuisine, the more I find. That is why I am
always saying, “Come to Italy with me.” A chef
can describe his country better than anyone.
efJ: What about culinary clichés? Are pizza and
pasta still the Italian national dishes, or have
the nation’s favourite dishes undergone a mod-
ern ‘update’?
massimo Bottura: Italy is known for its pizza and
spaghetti abroad. These are foods Italians eat
regularly, but I wouldn’t say they are national
dishes. Each region of Italy has its specialties.
In Liguria, the Genovese eat pasta with pesto.
In Sicily they use almonds and mint in many
of their dishes, and the regional dish is actu-
ally couscous, harking back to the Moors who
invaded the island centuries ago. The Emil-
ians make hand-rolled egg pasta and serve
it with various ragus and seasonal sauces.
Rome is famed for its carbonara – egg and ba-
con – recipe as well as cacio e pepe – cheese
and pepper – sauce. In Piedmont they make
tortellini called plin with a braised meat sauce.
Pizza and spaghetti populate mass culture and
a mass culture idea of Italy, but these dishes
don’t make up the daily diet in Italy.
Actually the widespread love of Italian food has
made it more difficult to get my ideas across.
Italian cuisine is so loved and adored that no
one wants to let it evolve and change. This is a
problem for a contemporary chef who is influ-
enced by music, art and the cross-pollination of
ideas. It has been very hard for me to move Ital-
ian cuisine forward in Italy, and after all these
years, nearly 20, with three Michelin stars, there
are still people who are sceptical about what
we are doing. Reading my new book cover to
cover, you can get a new perspective on Ital-
ian cuisine, at times seen from under the table
or upside down, but really, the cookbook is all
about Italy and my love for my country, its in-
gredients and its traditions.
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© P
aolo
Ter
zi
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DeliCiousGourmet Recipesoops! i DroppeD the lemon tArt
lemongrass gelato: 200 g whole milk50 g double (heavy) cream3 stems lemongrass30 g sugar40 g sugar syrupGrated zest of 1 lemon10 drops Villa Manodori Essenziale lemon oil
Process the ingredients in a thermal mixer and bring them to 85°C (185°F) at full speed. When it reaches temperature, remove and strain the liquid. Let cool in a bowl over ice. Freeze in a Pacojet container and process just before serving.
tart crust: 40 g cold butter20 g icing (confectioners’) sugar1 egg yolk50 g flour2 g ground spices (a mixture of star anise, cinna-
mon, juniper, pepper and cardamom)
In a bowl, knead together the cold butter and sugar by hand. Add the egg yolk and flour, and knead thorough-ly until smooth. Let rest for 2 hours in the fridge. Roll out the dough on a silicone baking mat until it is 2 mm (1/8 inch) thick. Use it to line moulds with the diame-ter of 8 cm (3 ¼ inches) at the base and 6 cm (2 ½ inches) at the top to obtain the shape. Bake at 160°C (320°F) for 8 minutes.
mint sauce: 50 g fresh peppermint leaves20 g mineral water6 g Xylitol0.5 g mint essential oil
Bring a pan of water to a boil and blanch the mint in it for 10 seconds, then cool in iced water. Blend the mint thoroughly with the other ingredients, making sure the temperature does not go above 35°C (95°F). Pass it through a fine sieve.
Gourmet Recipes
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Zabaglione: 85 g egg yolk50 g sugar80 g lemon juice80 g Amalfi limoncello
Prepare a pan of boiling water and a heatproof bowl the right size to sit over it without touching the water. Whisk the egg yolk and sugar in the bowl with the hand whisk, off the heat. When the sugar has dissol-ved well, set the bowl over the pan of boiling water and continue beating vigorously. As soon as the eggs are warm and before they start to thicken, add the lemon juice and limoncello gradually, pouring them very slowly, while continuing to whisk energetically. When it is well whisked and frothy, with a creamy texture, it is ready to be served.
oops! i DroppeD the lemon tArt
lemon powder: 1 lemon
Wash the lemon, cut it into thin slices and remove the pips (pits). Put the slices in a dehydrator at 30°C (86°F) for 5 days. Process in a thermal mixer and pass the powder through a fine sieve.
to serve: 4 g candied lemon (rind and pulp)2 g candied bergamot1 g candied ginger1 g lemon powder1 g capers
Arrange the ingredients on the plate. Splash the plate with the zabaglione and add a quenelle of lemongrass gelato in the center. Place the tart crust on top of the gelato, then gently crush it before serving.
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massimo Bottura’s new cookbook ‘never trust a skinny italian Chef’ – review
things Are steAming, siZZling AnD BuBBling in the moDenA lABThe contrast could not be starker: With its impressive burgundy binding emblazoned with gold letters, it looks more like a scientific treatise written by a respected interna-tional economist towards the end of the 19th century than a cookbook. When you open the book, however, the impression is entirely different: an emotional fireworks display of astonishing images – garnished with recipes boasting unusual sounding names like ‘Hunting the Pigeon,’ ‘Pollution’ and ‘Tribute to the Monk’. And take a good look at the cappuccino in the cup – is that really cappuccino as we know and love it?
The illustrations. It is hard to express in words exactly what we are seeing here. The pictures have the same physical effect as
an elevator rocketing upwards only to hurtle down again, giving you a sense of weightlessness. A black and white portrait of
the well-known Italian top chef, Massimo Bottura, in which he is covering his eyes with hen’s eggs. The work in the kitchen:
billowing steam, heavy pans on the gas cooker, bustling activity in the background, laughter. On the next page, a large, lem-
on-yellow image that looks like a piece of coral. Is that an Italian recipe? Confusion and disgust are the emotions elicited by
the image of a decapitated pig’s head and black bin bags tied with string on the street next to it. A book with the title ‘L’Arte
di Mangiar bene’ published in 1891 is pictured next to the CD album cover of ‘New York’ by Lou Reed. Massimo Bottura, the
man with the beard from Modena, even devotes a double-page spread to honouring the great Italian cheese Parmigiano Reg-
giano in his new cookbook ‘Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef’.
We may not be able to see all the way into Massimo Bottura’s Italian soul, but we do learn a lot about him, his life and the
things he thinks are important. First and foremost, among these is the essence of Italian cuisine, which he wants to keep by
changing it. It is an ongoing experiment that he introduces to us in his highly autobiographical, emotionally charged new work.
“Come to Italy with me,” he calls to us and stretches out his hand. Accept his invitation and you will see Italy from a different
perspective and, by the end, perhaps understand what Picasso and hare’s blood have in common.
Massimo Bottura: Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef, Phaidon, London / New York 2014, 296 pp. – www.phaidon.com
www.european-food-journal.com www.european-food-journal.com
proDuCts! pAstA & CompAny s.r.l.
More about Pasta & Company S.r.l.
Agnolotti alla piemontesePackaged in keep-fresh packs of 2 kg
(expiration: 12 days)and in modified atmosphere packages of 350 g to 1 kg
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More about Pasta & Company S.r.l.
handmade tagliatellaPackaged in keep-fresh packs of 2 kg
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orecchiettePackaged in keep-fresh packs of 3 kg
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putting itAliAn BisCuits on the mApputting itAliAn BisCuits on the mApSweet and crunchy Cantuccini are the perfect accompaniment to coffee but are
also popular as an accompaniment to dessert wines and sweet liqueurs. Cantuc-
cini biscuits are a Tuscan speciality made with sweet almonds and twice baked
for extra crispness. The bite-size biscuits are cut from a baked log filled with
whole, skinned almonds and returned to the oven to toast the cut edges of the
almonds and give the biscuits their incomparable crunch. The
open texture of the biscuit makes it perfect for dunking,
soaking up the coffee in its open pores so that the
biscuit crumbles in the mouth in an explosion of fla-
vour. As with so many simple pleasures, it is hard
to stop once you have started.
Corsini Biscotti S.r.l.
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made the traditional way
Corsini’s Tuscan cantuccini are made ac-
cording to a recipe that has been handed
down through generations of the Corsini
family for nearly a hundred years. Only
the finest quality ingredients go into their
manufacture to ensure their characteristic
flavour. In addition to its traditional almond
cantuccini, Corsini also offers chocolate
and orange peel versions of this classic
treat. Almond cantuccini are one of Italy’s
best-known bakery exports and are en-
joyed around the world as a sweet taste
of the relaxed Tuscan lifestyle. To stand
out in a crowded market, Corsini places
its faith in traditional artisan baking tech-
niques and an emphasis on authenticity.
What sets Corsini’s products apart from
those of its competitors is the obvious
care and attention that go into their pro-
duction and the high level of craftsman-
ship.
Christmas italian style
One of the most successful products to
conquer the lucrative holiday season is
the traditional Italian sweet bread, panet-
tone, which is commonly eaten around
Christmas and New Year. Panettone is
a celebration bread made with an en-
riched dough and studded with jewel-like
candied citrus peel and raisins. It offers
a lighter alternative to the more stodgy
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it is not easy to make at home go some
way to explaining its growing popularity in
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are known for being tricky to work with
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the dough retards the action of the yeast,
making it difficult to achieve the light,
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less to say, Corsini’s panettone scores
highly in all categories, including flavour,
texture and appearance. The company
also offers more unusual versions fea-
turing the addition of untypical flavours
such as chocolate, cherries, apricots and
chestnuts. Just because a product has a
long tradition doesn’t mean that it is for-
bidden to tinker with the recipe.
A taste of Tuscan lifestyle: almond cantuccini
Celebrate Christmas with a
delicious traditional Italian panettone
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traditional tuscan specialities are also on the menu
Tradition is written large at the
Corsini bakery. Its baked goods are made
using the same basic ingredients and the
same processes as nearly a hundred years
ago, without additives, preservatives or
artificial flavourings. The results speak for
themselves. In a product range comprising
over 140 different specialities, including
traditional Italian breakfast biscuits, a full
selection of cakes and tarts as well as de-
licious filled biscuits, it is hard to single out
one that typifies the unique Corsini prod-
uct philosophy. One product which man-
ages to embody both the traditional values
and modern outlook that are characteristic
for Corsini’s approach is polendina, one
of Corsini’s own creations based on a
traditional Tuscan recipe. Polendina is a
soft, rounded cake made using chestnut
flour. Polendina was created using an
ancient Tuscan recipe but reinterpreted
for a new generation. It takes the typical
cake ingredients of eggs, butter, hazelnuts
and almonds and adds another typical
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olive oil, into the mix to give the cake a
delicious flavour and unique moistness.
Packaged in a traditional wooden box, po-
lendina is the perfect gift to take round to
friends for any occasion.
Makes a perfect gift: Polendina
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the signature cake of tuscany
Another classic Tuscan sweet is panforte.
This densely rich cake made with honey
and packed with whole nuts is sold in a
traditional paper wrapping and should be
enjoyed in small slivers. The flat, round
cake dusted in icing sugar can be seen in
bakery windows throughout Tuscany and
is a popular souvenir for tourists to take
home with them because of its long shelf
life. Corsini’s panforte is one of the spe-
cialities that have made the Corsini name
and bakery famous. It used to be pre-
pared by nuns using honey and pepper.
Later on, spices were added to give
it the flavour we know today.
Panforte features in every Tuscan bakery window display
Corsini BisCotti srl
Via Cellane, 958033 Catel Del Piano-Monte Amiata (GR)Italy
+39 0564 956787 +39 0564 956615
info@corsinibiscotti.com www.corsinibiscotti.com
Marmellate Quarenghi was founded in 1914, it has along history founded on quality and on
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tAmás sZéll,
“it’s not A Joy for us when tourists Ask for ‘goulAsh’”
tAmás sZéll, hungary’s trendiest and best-known chef, gives short shrift to clichés about hungarian cuisine
“it’s not A Joy for us when tourists Ask for ‘goulAsh’”
www.european-food-journal.com
it’s gulyás!it’s gulyás!
www.european-food-journal.com
efJ: Mr Széll, let us accompany you on a per-
sonal culinary journey of discovery around
Europe. Which European countries, cities and
regions do you think serve the best food and
drink?
tamás széll: I don’t think I could name any one
place. Every place I’ve been, I’ve liked for dif-
ferent reasons. The gastronomic uniqueness of
each location should be taken seriously. Those
who do so are cleverer. Their foods are better.
They concentrate on regionality, on tourism.
Lyon is different from Paris, which is different
from Copenhagen, Munich, Milan and so on.
Tamás Széll, Hungary’s trendiest and best-known chef, gives short shrift
to clichés about Hungarian cuisine. He can get quite irate when tourists in
Hungary ask for ‘goulash’. The Hungarian specialty is not called ‘goulash’
but ‘gulyás’, he says. And gulyás is not a stew, but a soup!
efJ: But perhaps you have a personal
favourite?
tamás széll: If I had to name an absolute favour-
ite, then it would be Cape Town in South Africa.
I encountered an incredible gastro and wine
culture there, and that was over ten years ago.
They live in a completely different world and
are doing just fine with domestic tourism. They
weren’t so interested in what was happening
in Europe. They are proud of their local ingre-
dients. I tasted countless varieties of gazelle,
antelope and lamb – and they were all prepared
well!
About tamás széllTamás Széll is a young and successful, Michelin-starred chef from Hungary, who cooks his amaz-ing dishes in the popular Onyx restaurant in the heart of Budapest. In terms of success and fame, 2011 was a standout year for Tamás Széll, that really put him on the map. In March, he won a Michelin star for his cooking skills in the Onyx restaurant in Budapest, and in the autumn he won the Hungarian final of the prestigious cook-ing competition Bocuse d’Or. Two years later, the Budapest native won tenth place in the Bocuse d’Or world final held in Lyon. In Hungary, too, he has won numerous awards: In 2008 and 2010, he walked off with first place in the competition. ‘Hagyomány és Evolúció’ (Tradition and Evolution). This is one of the leading gastronomic competi-tions in Hungary.
1982 Born in
Budapest
2003 winner of
the hungarian food competition
Chaîne des rôtisseurs, Budapest
2010 winner for
the second time of the hungarian food competition
‘hagyomány és evolúció’
2011 winner of a
michelin star for his cooking
skills in the onyx restaurant, Budapest
2013 placed tenth
at the prestigious Bocuse d’or
competition in lyon
www.european-food-journal.com
It is interesting that despite being surrounded
by three oceans, they prefer four-legged and
winged creatures over seafood. Even then,
you could have showered them with a fistful of
Michelin stars. And if my information is correct,
they have neither Michelin nor Gault & Millau
publications. As far as I know!
efJ: Where can the most beautiful traditional
markets be found?
tamás széll: There are numerous such markets,
and everywhere there is something that at-
tracts chefs. The Fény Street market is where
the wishes and desires of chefs are most likely
to meet with those of similarly serendipitous
and driven growers of unique produce. But
what foreign visitors are most curious about is
Budapest Market Hall, the Vásárcsarnok. It is
the biggest market and the most beautiful. The
building is one of a kind, and the location pro-
vides a splendid view of the city. Downstairs is
the market itself; upstairs are small eateries and
www.european-food-journal.com
pubs. It is a popular place among Hungarians,
as well.
Unfortunately, restaurant store rooms and re-
frigerators cannot be stocked from there.
efJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of
Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Eu-
rope in terms of culinary regions?
tamás széll: Nothing differentiates regions
around the world more than gastronomy.
Of course there are thousands of dishes, or
styles of dishes, whose origins are debated to
this day. But even so, a tiny country such as
Hungary is an absolute, clearly defined culi-
nary region. Concerning this country’s culinary
region alone, we could write volumes – about
both the bad, ingrained customs and the world-
famous, authentic traditions!
efJ: Which European country has the
best food specialties, and what are they?
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tamás széll: It would be a luxury, coming
from me, if I were to name an absolute
favourite. I am open to and curious about
everything. Breathing in everything is what I live
for. Of course it does happen that occasionally
I suck in bad smells as well…
It’s my job to think clearly; for this, I get con-
stant inspiration by acquiring gastronomic ex-
periences.
I couldn’t say that a Noma dish is any more a
favourite than one tasted in Troisgros. They are
completely different, and yet both are brilliant.
But isn’t that the point of gastronomic regions?
efJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will
dominate in Europe in the future?
tamás széll: Both of them have their place;
that’s what they’re there for. Tennis and foot-
ball. They’re both completely ‘the same’ game,
aren’t they? After all, they’re both played with
balls! One person plays or watches one, an-
other person the other. Or both. It depends on
what mood they’re in. It would be silly to com-
pare one group of fans with the other. They are
completely different. If both are excellent, then
everyone will be happy!
efJ: As a celebrity chef from Hungary, you have
a special relationship with Hungarian cuisine.
Can you tell us about some of your favourite
recipes from your home country for our culinary
journey?
tamás széll: I could go on for hours answering
this question…
My problem is that I could list all of the Hungar-
ian clichés – which when prepared well hold
their own in the restaurant – but I like to make
them at home, as well.
For example: chicken paprika, curd cheese
noodles, fish soup, goulash soup. But I must
say that goulash soup fits well within the frame-
work of fine dining. Some are even as good as
the original. But I won’t share the recipe be-
cause I’m sure it would put people off, and no
www.european-food-journal.comwww.european-food-journal.com
one would want to prepare it after that. Better
to taste it.
efJ: How important is food culture in Hungary?
What trends and traditions can you discern
here?
tamás széll: Hungarian gastro culture is ab-
solutely fashionable and is in the spotlight at
the moment. But we are just at the beginning
of the journey. I feel a mixed, civil war-type
atmosphere. Side by side we see the new and
modern dishes along with the stale old ones,
as well as the truly traditional. Hungarians are
confused. They are still not able to see the cor-
rect path clearly. But it is a fact that not just
the good, but the better restaurants prefer to
purchase from abroad. That is a really a big
problem for everyone. I would be extremely
cautious about calling that culture! Whip-wield-
ing cowboys with their goulash soup are also
Hungary, but we are not just that!
efJ: Let’s talk about your restaurant, the name
of which is Onyx. Where is it located, and what
culinary highlights can your guests expect to
enjoy? What dining style do you follow?
tamás széll: The Onyx is located in the
heart of Budapest on Vörösmarty
Square, close to embassies, hotels and
tourist attractions. The restaurant has
had a Michelin star since 2011; its name
comes from the onyx stone, of which
there is a lot in the restaurant. We like
to communicate through our tasting
menus, and we like to draw on eve-
rything in the world. At the Onyx, you
may find both true Hungarian lines and those
which are more open to the world.
efJ: What about culinary clichés: Is goulash still
the national dish of Hungary, or has the nation’s
favourite dish undergone a modern ‘update’?
tamás széll: Let’s make one thing clear first. The
world believes that goulash is that one-dish
meal which we prepare from slowly cooked
beef heavily seasoned with paprika. However,
this is not “goulash” but pörkölt! Goulash is
prepared similarly, but it is not a thick stew; it
is a thick soup in which there are potatoes and
possibly csipetke – a tiny hand-made pasta. It
never contains carrots, celery or other vegeta-
bles. It is a soup, not a stew!
Also, we don’t call it ‘goulash’ but
gulyás. We don’t pronounce the LY in
the middle of the word as L but as Y,
like at the very end of ‘joy’ – so it’s ‘goo-yash,’
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tamás széll: It’s certainly true that Hungarians
can put together heavenly feasts because
they know how to eat. The problem here at
home is that they look for quantity; quality is
somewhere lower down the list. This needs to
change. Then the French saying would be true
about us as well.
not ‘goo-lash.’ It’s not a joy for us when
tourists ask for ‘goulash.’
And gulyás has not gone through any update.
The way each chef prepares his own version,
that’s not an update. It’s either successful or a
dead end. Try getting a good pizza in Naples!
It’s the same situation here with gulyás. As a
national dish, it’s available everywhere, but
you’ll need a magnifying class to find a good
one.
efJ: In some countries there is a general saying
about the dining culture in that country,
for example ‘eat like a god in France’. Can you
think of a Hungarian equivalent that summa-
rizes the advantages of Hungarian cuisine?
www.european-food-journal.com
DeliCiousGourmet Recipesmy very own hungarian layered potato casserole
Cook the eggs in boiling salted water for approximate-ly three minutes. After three minutes, remove from heat and allow them to sit for an additional seven minutes in the hot water. After that, immediately cool them in cold water. This is the only way to achieve the desired result: the eggs won’t overcook, and the egg yolks won’t be crumbly or have a greyish outer surface.
Peel the eggs once they have cooled.
While the eggs are cooking, cut the sausage cross- wise into thin slices. Grate the garlic, crumble the thyme leaves. Add the garlic and thyme to the cream. To this add enough salt so that it is slightly salty in taste. Keep in mind that the potatoes will also be salted by the cream.
Once this is done, begin assembling the casserole. The potatoes are used raw; they are not cooked prior to assembly.
Clean the potatoes, then cut into 2 to 3 mm thick slices using a potato slicer. Immediately place the potatoes onto a tea towel in order to extract as much water as possible. Slice the eggs using an egg slicer.
The casserole will have three layers of potatoes and two layers each of sausage and egg.
In a high-walled casserole dish, layer first the raw potatoes, then the sausage and the egg slices. Splash some of the seasoned cream on top of the first layer. Do the same for the next layer. Finish with a layer of potatoes and the remaining cream.
Cook in a pre-heated oven at 120°C for 2 to 3 hours. Cooked at this temperature for this length of time, the potatoes will be soft, and the cream will thicken. The dish will be the most delicious prepared this way.
The result is a fantastic, golden-brown layered potato casserole.
1 kg potatoes
6 to 8 eggs
100 g smoked Hungarian sausage (kolbász)
800 to 900 ml cream
1 clove garlic
2 to 3 sprigs thyme (dried) salt
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perfeCt poultryperfeCt poultryWhile poultry generally enjoys a high popularity, consumers with more distinct
taste buds might be inclined to try out something other than simple chicken
or turkey products. Hungary-based HOLLA Baromfi Kft. captivates customers
with duck and goose products of a select quality and provides a perfect example
of the very productive and highly innovative Hungarian food processing industry.
ferenc horváth, owner and managing director of hollA Baromfi kft.
www.european-food-journal.com
“We are active in the processing of poultry,
specifically goose and duck,” explains com-
pany owner and Managing Director Ferenc
Horváth. “Our main products are goose and
duck liver – foie gras, goose and duck breast –
magret, goose and duck legs, as well as roast
goose and duck. Our products are of exquisite
taste and outstanding quality.”
From roast duck to fattened up poultry, all ani-
mals processed by HOLLA Baromfi are bred
without use of medication, allowing for a very
high quality in meat and exceeding in taste.
The company is fully aware of the custom-
ers’ expressed wish to consume meat only of
excellent quality and free from any noxious
substances. “It is a particular trait of Hungarian
water birds to be granted a natural way of life
before slaughter,” Mr. Horváth explains.
With its quality poultry, HOLLA Baromfi serves
the wholesale trade as well as major hotel
chains and wholesale chains that are directly
involved in import, domestically as well as
abroad.
While a preceding company was already in
existence in 1992, the company in its current
shape was founded in the year 2006, when
Mr. Horváth managed to consort with a large
poultry and roast duck integrator who was also
interested in working with geese. Continuous
development and improvement of the process-
ing machinery led to increased requests from
abroad, which, in return, made necessary an
adjustment of the technical quality of the pro-
duction. “It was a reciprocal and continuous
development. We never received any support,
never took out any loans, but financed it in
our own right,” the managing director recalls.
At its location in Kiskunhalas, HOLLA Baromfi
employs 130 members of staff and processes
about 15,000 pieces of poultry a week, which
it markets at home and abroad. Main foreign
markets are Russia, the Far East and Japan,
as well as some European countries including
Belgium, France and Italy. “We already serve
markets in the Arab world and in the Far East,
we deliver to North Vietnam,” says Mr. Horváth.
“Once the embargo against Russia is over, we
will be delivering there, too. Russian consumers
are increasingly enjoying our products. We also
hope that conditions will be right soon to enter
the German-speaking markets,” he adds.
HOLLA Baromfi’s main marketing channel is di-
rect marketing via telephone and through direct
visits of existing and potential customers. With
all necessary certificates in place – including
ISO 9001 and HACCP – concrete personal rela-
tions where these can be presented establish
and increase trust and credibility. In the Ser-
bian capital of Belgrade the company recently
introduced its products to a well-known chain
of restaurants. Furthermore HOLLA Baromfi
presents its quality products at trade fairs. “We
can offer to our customers excellent quality in
products as well as in the way we serve them,”
Mr. Horváth explains the advantages of his
company. “We attach special importance to fair
relationships and see our customers
as our partners.” HOLLA Baromfi also
places emphasis on timely deliveries
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and always provides the agreed quantity at
the agreed price. “Of course, our competi-
tors are also very good,” says Mr. Horváth.
“I find that it is only with an excellent competi-
tion that one can truly excel.” The company
founder is very fond of his business. “I really
wouldn’t need to work anymore,” he adds. “But
I just can’t help myself, I enjoy it too much.
People are made for certain things. Some might
invent an atomic bomb for example, and it runs
in my blood to be a businessman. And I feel
very positive about the current developments
here in Hungary.”
It does therefore not surprise that Mr. Horváth
has various projects in the pipeline for the fu-
ture of HOLLA Baromfi. “We are currently tak-
ing part in a tender for EU financing concern-
ing capacity and employment extension,” the
managing director explains. With this money,
the company plans to advance the processing
operation for magret goose liver on a very high
level of quality. “What’s more, for countries that
hollA BAromfi kft.
Kötönyi u. 22.6400 Kiskunhalas Hungary
+36 70 451 50 01
holla.info@gmail.com www.HOLLA.info.hu
don’t have a culture of fattened goose or duck,
we plan to prepare our magret in a way so it
can be dished up directly,” Mr. Horváth reveals.
“We want to surprise consumers with this con-
venience product which will be freshly vacuum
packaged and ready to be served so consum-
ers can immediately enjoy a bit of smoked or
filled foie gras, maybe with some bread
and peaches in syrup.”
www.european-food-journal.com
sAy “Cheese!”sAy “Cheese!”
Dairy products are a culinary delight in large parts of the world, and a good
cheese can put a smile on anyone’s face. Baked over a casserole, as a topping on a sandwich or salad, or by itself with a glass of wine, cheese is both delicious and nutritious. few companies know that better than Kőröstej Group, based in Budapest. managing Director gyula tráj tells european Business Journal about the company’s hAJDÚ brand, the significance of good customer relations and what the future has in store for the company that makes 25,000 t of cheese a year.
www.european-food-journal.com
Kőröstej Group is known for its middle eastern cheese specialties
www.european-food-journal.com
eBJ: What is the history behind Kőröstej
Group?
gyula tráj: Kőröstej Group was founded by Dr.
Riad Naboulsi in 1989. He started by selling
products on request as a side job, and eventu-
ally that became his main occupation. Since
1989, the company has grown into a group with
several locations producing a number of types
of cheese, like processed cheese and cheese
slices, or labneh and other cheese specialties for
the Arabic world as well as its domestic market.
eBJ: Kőröstej Group’s HAJDÚ brand is very well
known on the international market. What are
some of your best-selling products?
gyula tráj: There are quite a few of them. We
offer HAJDÚ Hungarian double cream white
cheese, HAJDÚ Kashkaval made of cow’s milk
and HAJDÚ Trappista, which is a clear favour-
ite in Hungary, as well as HAJDÚ Chilal type
cheese, HAJDÚ Labneh Balls, HAJDÚ
Parenyica – a smoked cheese, and HAJDÚ
Mozzarella. Our HAJDÚ Grill Cheese, known in
Middle Eastern cuisine as halloumi, is extreme-
ly important to us. We started developing it in
2012 and launched it in 2014. The market has
confirmed the distinction Product of the Year.
It was our first-ever marketing campaign, and
this is a real premium product.
eBJ: The topic of Middle Eastern cheeses keeps
coming up. Have the founder and his heritage
determined the course of the company?
gyula tráj: Yes. Dr. Naboulsi is in charge of
product innovations and has a real sense
of the industry. In terms of social aspects,
relationships are key in the Middle East,
and our cheese is sold on the basis of
personal contacts. We sometimes don’t
even have contracts with our customers.
There is so much trust placed in the word
of others.
gyula tráj, Managing Director of Kőröstej Group
www.european-food-journal.com
eBJ: Mr. Tráj, you haven’t been with Kőröstej
Group very long. What brought you on board?
gyula tráj: I’ve only been with Kőröstej Group
since February. Dr. Naboulsi still owns the com-
pany, and he used to be the Managing Director.
He realized, however, that his little family business
had grown into this group, and it had to be led ac-
cordingly. I have more than 20 years’ leadership
experience in other companies. My job is to keep
the family feel of our company while changing the
organization for a sustainable group.
eBJ: Where are your products situated in the
market, for example in terms of quality?
gyula tráj: Kőröstej Group was the only Hun-
garian company represented among the 450
products from 12 countries (Austria, Denmark,
Germany and Switzerland among others)
nominated in the Austrian Cheese Olympics
called Käsiade. A panel of 42 international ju-
rors evaluated each entry. They recognize only
cheeses of the highest quality. We entered the
competition with two products only, and won
the Gold Medal for our HAJDÚ Grill Cheese and
the Silver Medal for HAJDÚ Labneh.
NOVEMBER 2014
strategic Cooperation Agreement Long-term cooperation with the Hungarian government
eBJ: If we are not mistaken, you have recently
entered into an agreement with the Hungarian
Government.
gyula tráj: That is correct. A day before we got
the information about the success of
our two quality products, we signed
a Strategic Cooperation Agreement
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with the Hungarian government. It practi-
cally means that the government recog-
nised the effort our group made in the past
25 years. We are really proud of this document.
eBJ: What are your target markets?
gyula tráj: About 30% of our products are sold
on the domestic market. Of our exports, 80%
goes to Arabic countries, such as Saudi Arabia,
Lebanon, Jordan, the UAE, Iraq, Kuwait, Syria,
Qatar and Bahrain. There, we sell mainly to
wholesalers. The remaining 20% is for the EU,
in particular Germany, the Netherlands, Spain,
Greece and Romania, as well as Kosovo, Mac-
edonia, Montenegro, the USA and Taiwan. Su-
permarket and hypermarket chains are also our
customers.
eBJ: Where do you see Kőröstej Group in the
coming years?
gyula tráj: Growth is a key word. We’d like to
expand the HAJDÚ brand within Hungary and
strengthen its position on export markets. Right
now, it’s more popular on foreign markets. In-
side the company, we have a lot of consolida-
tion work before us. We want to align the entire
group for innovation and growth. We also plan
to examine our processes and figure out
how to get the most out of it.
www.european-food-journal.com
Kőröstej Kft.
Népfürdő u. 22.Building “B”, 9th Floor1138 BudapestHungary
+36 1 349 3521 +36 1 340 5439
mail@korostej.hu www.korostej.hu
APRIL 2014 product of the year in hungary HAJDÚ Grill Cheese
SEPTEMBER 2014 magyarBrands Most popular traditional Hungarian brands
OCTOBER 2014 gold medal, hAJDÚ labneh Competition of Hungarian cheese producers with 98 points out of 100
NOVEMBER 2014 gold medal, hAJDÚ grill Cheese and
silver medal, hAJDÚ labneh Käsiade – Austrian Cheese
Olympics. Chosen from among 450 products from 12 countries by 42 jury members, this award only
recognizes cheeses of the highest quality
Kőröstej Kft.
Népfürdő u. 22.Building “B”, 9th Floor1138 BudapestHungary
+36 1 349 3521 +36 1 340 5439
mail@korostej.hu www.korostej.hu
www.european-food-journal.com
thuri mAAg,
the Chüngel revivAl
thuri mAAg, the swiss celebrity chef, master of mushrooms and rabbit ambassador, clinks glasses with prince Albert of monaco: to a “maagical” meal – and of course an excellent wine!
the Chüngel revivAl
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About thuri maagThe woods. For the famous Swiss celebrity chef Thuri Maag, it is a magical place. During his days as a ski acrobat on the B squad of the Swiss national team, he sought out the woods merely for extended runs. When a friend introduced him to the world of mushrooms, however, it was love at first bite. Gathering mushrooms became a passion – an addiction even. Today, Maag is considered the master of mushrooms, and he has written many books about the tasty and aromatic ‘forest dwellers.’ He has also made a name for himself as a chef and restaurateur. For nearly two decades, he ran his restaurant Thuris’s Blumenau in Lömmenschwil. Since 2011 Maag has had a new mission: He is reviving rabbit, or ‘Chüngel’ in his dialect, in Swiss cuisine.
1952 Born in
Bachenbülach (Zurich)
1982 to 1990 maag’s big ‘chef time’ in rössli
restaurant
1994 to 2006
michelin star
1990 to 2007
his restaurant thuri’s
Blumenau in its heyday
2011 new role as
gastronomical consultant for delicacies of
rabbit
efJ: Mr. Maag, our culinary journey through Eu-
rope has now brought us to you in Switzerland.
You are a well-known Michelin-starred chef,
mushroom expert and cookbook author. Up
until now, we always thought that barley soup
and fried potato rösti where the national dishes
of Switzerland. Thanks to you, I have now been
made aware of something called Chüngel. Is
that another Swiss national dish?
Michelin-starred chef Thuri Maag is reviving ‘Chüngel’ as the Swiss national
dish. This unusually named ingredient is none other than rabbit meat. It can
even be used to make the famous Swiss stir-fried veal specialty Zürcher
Gschnetzeltes but without the traditional inclusion of kidney as his grandmother
would have insisted upon way back when. A definitive ‘yes’ to modernized cui-
sine, which the Swiss native always combines with regional products as well as
Swiss wines. Food fit for a prince – even Prince Albert of Monaco.
thuri maag: Absolutely. Rabbit – or Chüngel
as we say in Switzerland – has a long tradi-
tion, particularly in the Rhaeto-Romanic part of
Switzerland, the French-speaking part and the
Italian-speaking Ticino. In our family it was al-
ways eaten to mark special occasions. On high
feast days like Christmas and Easter or when
it was someone’s birthday, my mother always
cooked rabbit.
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efJ: How do you like Chüngel served best?
thuri maag: There aren’t just one or two reci-
pes but a whole range to choose from. On my
homepage delikantessa.ch, there are around 60
recipes. My favourite recipes have a distinctive
Swiss flavour: I make a Zurich-style stir fry but
not with the usual pork or veal but with rabbit.
It is an unusual interpretation that omits two
traditional ingredients: mushrooms and kid-
ney. Another delicious way to serve rabbit is to
smear saddle fillets with hot mustard, sprinkle
with breadcrumbs, parsley and garlic, and bake
in the oven. It is very tasty with a subtle heat
and a lovely juicy texture. Of course, the tradi-
tional way to make rabbit is in a stew. Because
I am an expert on mushrooms and culinary
fungi, I like to prepare this dish in autumn us-
ing seasonal autumn morel mushrooms. This
produces a dark and intense gravy. It is then
served with mashed potatoes made according
to a traditional recipe from Ticino.
efJ: Zurich-style stir fry with rabbit sounds a bit
as if Grandmother’s recipe has been given an
update. Is that right?
thuri maag: Absolutely. As the Swiss ambassa-
dor for rabbit, I demonstrate unexpected ways
of preparing rabbit to cooking enthusiasts at
various events. Even carpaccio or tartare of
rabbit are easy to make. Many people believe
that rabbit is just like chicken and mustn’t be
eaten raw, but that is not true. There is no
risk of salmonella in rabbit meat. It can be
prepared in exactly the same ways as veal or
beef.
efJ: Why does Swiss cooking need
bringing up to date?
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thuri maag: There is no need to bring it up
to date; it is already thoroughly modern.
Only tourists eat dishes like rösti and stir-
fried veal. We have a lot of good, Michelin-
starred chefs who are pioneering a more mod-
ern version of Swiss cuisine. Our food tradition
can be traced back to the start of the 19th cen-
tury when tourism took off and many large ho-
tels were built. Even then they served up ‘grand
cuisine.’ This developed into ‘nouvelle cuisine’
and even more creative interpretations. Today,
you will find inspired young chefs in every good
restaurant who are working to reinvent clas-
sic dishes for a modern audience, focusing on
making them healthy, simple and creative.
efJ: Let’s come back to Chüngel. Where does
rabbit meat come from?
thuri maag: There are Swiss farmers that offer
rabbit meat. However, they cannot possibly
cover all of the demand in the Swiss market.
I source my rabbit from Hungary, where the
animals are reared in accordance with Swiss
animal protection norms and regulations.
efJ: What is the Swiss response to the rabbit
revival?
thuri maag: As I mentioned at the start, there
is a long tradition of eating rabbit in a number
of regions in Switzerland. With regards to the
German-speaking parts of the country, I am
currently working to get people there fired up
about the benefits of Chüngel. In the old days,
virtually every family kept their own rabbits, but
that is no longer the case. Parts of the popula-
tion in Switzerland are no longer accustomed
to eating rabbit. I would like to spread the mes-
sage that rabbit is the healthiest meat you can
possibly eat. The meat helps lower cholesterol
and is also low in fat.
efJ: What does your job as an ambassador for
rabbit meat involve?
thuri maag: I travel around the country in a van
equipped with a fully working kitchen. In many
places I present my mobile cooking show. I
then cook as many as twelve different dishes,
which people can taste for free.
efJ: What is the reaction of tourists to the return
of rabbit?
thuri maag: That always depends on where the
tourists come from. Countries like Germany,
Italy, France or the Netherlands are happy to
embrace new ideas. Asians and Americans, on
the other hand, refuse to even try rabbit meat.
efJ: How do you explain that?
thuri maag: Well, I would at least say that the
Americans don’t have an eating culture. Of
course there are exceptions that prove the rule.
Generally speaking, the problems that a lot of
people have with eating rabbit stem from the
so-called ‘Bambi syndrome.’ Rabbits are seen
as cute and cuddly and therefore not for eating.
My response is always the same: piglets and
calves are cute, but they get eaten all the same.
What is so different about rabbit? The problem
is more one of squeamishness than the rabbit
meat itself.
efJ: As an ambassador for rabbit meat, is there
anything else you would like to say?
thuri maag: Just like fish, we should eat rabbit
once a week. It is healthy and will help people
live longer. It also lowers cholesterol, which
means you can treat yourself to an extra glass
of wine to drink with it.
efJ: As a Swiss-born chef, are you proud of
your country’s dining culture?
thuri maag: In Switzerland, we have a very high
standard of dining. I am also amazed at how
good the food is in our chalets – both in sum-
mer and in winter. The only problem that we
have in Switzerland: Everything is very expen-
sive. Produce costs twice as much here as it
does in the EU – that does make things harder
for us.
efJ: Are cheese fondue, rösti and barley soup
still Switzerland’s national dishes, or have they
been overtaken by more modern dishes?
thuri maag: Our national dishes will always
stay the same. We like to eat cheese fondue in
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winter, and when we go skiing,
we like to enjoy a hearty barley
soup.
efJ: What do the terms ‘regional
cuisine’ and ‘slow food’ mean to
you?
thuri maag: I have been living these
‘modern’ food trends for the past
20 years. I have always cooked re-
gional dishes. In my restaurant Thuri’s
Blumenau in Lömmenschwil, where
I cooked for 17 years, we only served fish
caught in Lake Constance and no sea fish at
all. Other ingredients were sourced from local
farmers and regional producers. That also in-
cluded Swiss wines.
efJ: We would now like to hear your opinion
about Europe’s culinary traditions in general.
In which other countries or towns can you also
eat well?
thuri maag: A lot has happened in Europe in the
last 15 years, above all in Spain. The restaurant
El Bulli in Barcelona is known for its avant-
garde regional cuisine and its molecular cook-
ing. I also know some sensational restaurants
in Holland, France, Germany and even Hunga-
ry. In the case of Germany, I would add the fol-
lowing caveat: the fine dining experience is only
really good in the top restaurants. In the middle
and lower segment, too little care is taken.
efJ: Where can the best markets in Europe be
found?
thuri maag: Wherever I am travelling, whether
it is to Lisbon, Hamburg or Budapest, I always
look for local markets with fresh products. I
think it is a kind of ‘cook’s compulsion.’
efJ: There is a saying ‘eat like a god in France.’
Can you think of an equivalent saying in relation
to Swiss cuisine?
thuri maag: Swiss cuisine is like a tennis match
with Roger Federer: every stroke is perfectly
executed, is incredibly creative and works
with the precision of a Swiss watch.
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DeliCiousGourmet Recipesgigolette de lapin aux trompettes de la mortshoulder of rabbit with black chanterelles
serves 4 as a main course 4 shoulders of rabbit, Selection MAAGique,
200 g each
1 tbsp flour
200 g white wine
300 g water
10 g chicken broth paste
10 to 15 g dried black chanterelles
1 green onion
2 cloves of garlic
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
Clarified butter or olive oil
method: Soak the black chanterelles in cold water that barely covers them for at least 30 minutes.
Don’t pour out the soaking water, though – a flavour carrier would be lost!
However, because there will be a lot of sand at the bottom of the bowl of soaking water, it is a good idea to pass the water through a coffee filter or pour it carefully into another bowl. Wash the softened mushrooms.
Season the rabbit, and sear it in olive oil or clari-fied butter. Add the onions and garlic, and sauté briefly.
Weigh out the rest of the ingredients, and mix them together in a separate bowl. Deglaze the rabbit with the mixture. Add the black chanterel-les and the soaking water.
Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes.
Remove the rabbit pieces from the sauce, keep them warm, and reduce the sauce to the desired thickness.
Put the meat back in the sauce, bring it to a boil, and serve.
tip: Serve with couscous, polenta, mashed potatoes or spätzle.
Gourmet Recipes
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paul spuhler’s Diced rabbit
Chüngel-g‘schnätzlets
serves 2 2 saddle of rabbit fillets or 260 to 280 g
50 g clarified butter
50 g fresh butter
50 g white wine
100 g broth/bouillon
50 g cream
25 g chopped shallots, sautéed separately
1 tbsp flour
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
method: Cut the saddle of rabbit fillets into slices 5-8 mm thick.
Season the meat with salt and pepper. Dust with the flour. Put the meat into a smoking hot sauté pan along with the clarified butter. Sauté briefly while stirring constantly. Don’t let the meat get too dark. Dump the meat into a sieve with a bowl under it. Pour the broth over the meat.
Add the shallots to the sauté pan, deglaze im-mediately with the white wine, and boil it down completely. Add to it the liquid collected in the bowl and reduce by half. Add the cream, and mount the butter into the sauce. Add the meat. Bring it to a boil, and arrange it on warmed plates. Serve the traditional way with ribbon noodles or a crispy rösti cooked from raw potatoes.
variations: My mentor also added chopped parsley. Fresh tarragon or chives would be another option. But – in all honesty – I wouldn’t add a thing!
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wAtChmAker’s DelightwAtChmAker’s Delight
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Switzerland is renowned for prime cheeses with authentic taste evoking alpine
pastures and first-class watches incorporating the country’s unrivalled atten-
tion to detail. Val d’Arve SA has managed to combine both of these unique quali-
ties. Located in the heart of the Swiss watchmaking region, the cheese maker of-
fers Le Délice de l’Horloger – Watchmaker’s Delight – an award-winning gourmet
cheese with intense, refined taste that pays tribute to Switzerland’s long-estab-
lished tradition in fine timepieces.
Val d’Arve is a Swiss cheese maker special-
ized in the production of soft cheeses. It is a
member of Laiteries Réunies de Genève, a
cooperative society consisting of eight firms
with activities in the areas of dairy and meat
products, trading, and logistics. Val d’Arve is
part of the dairies division, together with an-
other company: Nutrifrais. “We are focused on
soft cheese whereas Nutrifrais produces yo-
ghurts and desserts,” Managing Director Pierre
Charvet describes the division of labour within
the cooperative. Mr. Charvet has been with Val
d’Arve for 39 years and last year took over the
management of the entire dairy products unit
of Laiteries Réunies de Genève. The coopera-
tive society has a total of 400 employees and
generates annual revenues of 280 million CHF.
It has 700 members, including 200 milk produc-
ers supplying the dairy firms in the cooperative
with 53 million liters of milk annually. Val d’Arve
is rich in tradition, with the company’s origins
dating back to the year 1911. Today, combin-
ing tradition and innovation, the Swiss soft
cheese specialist employs 47 people and turns
over 18.5 million CHF. Every day, Val d’Arve
processes 70,000 l of fresh Geneva countryside
milk into a wide variety of high-quality gourmet
cheeses. Depending on the product, the com-
pany processes raw milk and ultra-heat treated
and pasteurized milk. The product range splits
into two brands: Val d’Arve and Jean-Louis. In
the Val d’Arve range, two cheeses stand apart:
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Le Tonneau d’Alpage (Barrel of the Alps), a
mild soft cheese in barrel form with authentic
taste that evokes Swiss alpine pastures, and Le
Délice de l’Horloger (Watchmaker’s Delight), a
gourmet cheese with an intense, refined taste.
Both cheeses won prestigious prizes at last
year’s World Cheese Awards in Birmingham,
the world’s largest cheese competition, which
displayed as many as 2,781 cheeses from all
continents in 2012. “Le Délice de l’Horloger
was honoured with a Super Gold medal, and Le
Tonneau d’Alpage received a Bronze medal,”
states Mr. Charvet. Another outstanding Val
d’Arve product is La Tomme de Ge-
nève, a soft cheese made 100% from
milk from the region of Geneva. “We
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use carefully selected milk from local sup-
pliers to manufacture natural, authentic
cheeses that are healthy, rich in taste
and easy to digest,” Mr. Charvet explains the
product philosophy of Val d’Arve. This philoso-
phy is not only highly admired in Switzerland,
where the company has two main customers:
the supermarket chains Coop and Migros. It
is also appreciated by cheese lovers in many
other countries all over the world, despite high
cheese prices and unfavourable exchange
rates with a strong Swiss franc. “We make up
for these disadvantages through constant,
first-rate quality and excellent customer ser-
vice,” explains Mr. Charvet. The main export
markets of Val d’Arve are France, Germany
vAl D’Arve sA
Chemin des Aulx 61228 Plan-les-OuatesSwitzerland
+41 22 8848150 +41 22 8848151
info-valdarve@lrgg.ch www.lrgg.ch
pierre Charvet, managing director of val d’Arve sA
and Belgium, followed by Canada, Hong Kong,
Australia, the UK, Finland and Lebanon. In the
domestic market, Coop and Migros account
for 80% of the total sales of Val d’Arve. The
remaining 20% fall to smaller food retailing
businesses and delicatessens. In the Swiss
market, Val d’Arve is the second-largest sup-
plier. “There is only one larger producer,” says
Mr. Charvet. To further grow its market posi-
tion, Val d’Arve is continuously developing new,
innovative cheese products that meet individual
customer (and consumer) demands. “We have
just developed a new type of cheese in heart
form, which is made from 100% organic
milk, for Coop,” states Mr. Charvet.
rAlf ZACherl,
“the regionAl fooD ClAssiCs Are As populAr As ever!”
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rAlf ZACherl, german tv chef
“the regionAl fooD ClAssiCs Are As populAr As ever!”
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efJ: Mr. Zacherl, let us accompany you on a
personal culinary journey of discovery around
Europe. Which European countries, cities and
regions do you think serve the best food and
drink?
ralf Zacherl: In the last few years, I have taken
a growing number of holidays in Europe and
have tried to get hold of the typical, local dishes
in each country I have visited. From Italy to
France and Spain, every country has its own
quirks and specialties so that it is difficult to
pick just one. On the whole, I have found that
countries that grow wine generally have good
In response to the question whether there is a German equivalent to the
French saying ‘eat like a god in France,’ German TV chef Ralf Zacherl is at a
loss. He thinks that too many Germans do their shopping according to the
principle that ‘greed is good’. However, there is no shortage of culinary highlights
in his home country. Authentic national dishes such as Nuremberg bratwurst
cooked over a fire of beech woodchips are still as popular as ever in the regions.
food. From a personal point of view, I was par-
ticularly excited by Portuguese cuisine and the
percebes. You can find lovely little restaurants
right on the Atlantic coast and in Porto or Lis-
bon. A nice glass of port to go with the meal or
wine from the Douro Valley – there is certainly
something to be said for that.
efJ: Where can the best traditional markets be
found?
ralf Zacherl: Again I have to say that every
country has its own wonderful local markets,
and I love wandering through them all. In Ger-
About ralf ZacherlRalf Zacherl’s career as a celebrity chef is a culinary journey in itself – especially through Germany. Among the first stops on his career path were the restau-rants 3 Stuben in Meersburg and the Traube Tonbach in Baiersbronn. And who can claim to have been the youngest star chef in Germany? Ralf Zacherl, of course. At the age of just 26, Ralf Zacherl earned a Michelin star as the head chef of Egbert Engelhardt’s restaurant Graues Haus. That was in 1997. After that the head chef landed in Djer-ba (Tunisia) at Athenee Palace. Even though he soon made his way back to Germany, his wanderlust stuck with him, and Zacherl loves Mediterranean cuisine. The Wertheim native also passes on a lot of his culinary knowledge as a TV chef. The list of series with which he has cooperated is long. At the top, there is the series ‘Die Küchenchefs’ for the channel VOX, in which Zacherl, along with his fellow TV chefs Martin Baudrexel and Mario Kotaska, helps restaurants in Germany that are doing poorly to get back on their feet. What a contribution to raising the culinary level in his home country!
1971 Born in
wertheim
1997 youngest
star chef in germany
(1 michelin star)
2003 Beginning of career
as tv chef
2004 expansion of independent
work as celebrity chef
2009 professional
chef on the vox television show
‘Die küchen-chefs’
(‘the head Chefs’)
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many, I particularly like the Christmas market
in Rüdesheim with delicious white mulled
wine, the weekly markets in Freiburg and the
Paul-Linke Ufer in Berlin – Kreuzberg lifestyle
included. But you should never limit yourself by
constantly looking for a personal favourite. The
most important thing is that everything is fresh.
efJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of
Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Eu-
rope in terms of culinary regions?
ralf Zacherl: Of course there are, and the best
thing about it is that culinary specialties fre-
quently cross national borders.
efJ: Which European country has the best food
specialties, and what are they?
ralf Zacherl: I don’t think you can rank different
foods because food, luckily, is not subject to
regulatory norms and everything is a matter of
personal taste. That is why a top ten list would
not be worth the paper it was written on. When
you are skiing in South Tyrol, you can’t beat
their bacon or egg-based delicacies. In Seville
at the height of summer, there is nothing better
than Andalusian gazpacho, and let’s not forget
the first Wiener schnitzel with asparagus at the
start of April.
efJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will
dominate in Europe in the future?
ralf Zacherl: I think that neither have real stay-
ing power. Instead I would prefer it if people
would simply pay more attention to what they
eat rather than how it is cooked. Whether it is
a quickly prepared but balanced snack for in
between or a relaxed dinner cooked slowly is
immaterial.
efJ: As a celebrity chef from Germany, you
have a special relationship with
German cuisine. Can you tell us about
some of your favourite recipes from
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your home country for our culinary jour-
ney?
ralf Zacherl: Granny Zacherl’s onion tart with a
glass of Federweisser in the autumn. No ques-
tion!
efJ: How important is food culture in Germany?
What trends and traditions can you discern
here?
ralf Zacherl: Fortunately, eating ‘sensibly’ is a
subject that more and more people are taking
an interest in. Particularly now, as modern tech-
nology speeds up the pace of life, preventing
people from switching off and increasing the
rate of stress-related problems such as burn-
out, many people are making a conscious effort
to improve their nutrition. This trend has been
going for a few years now, and I see it as very
positive, even if I would like to see the whole
thing move a bit faster.
efJ: Is there a German restaurant that you can
recommend?
ralf Zacherl: I would need much more time to
answer this question than you could possibly
give me. I have many colleagues who do fan-
tastic work every day and play their part in cre-
ating an outstanding dining culture here.
efJ: What about culinary clichés? Is sausage
and sauerkraut still the German national dish,
or has the nation’s favourite dish undergone a
modern ‘update’?
ralf Zacherl: I wasn’t aware that Germans were
still being labeled krauts or sausage eaters.
But, seriously, you may have to look for nation-
al dishes, but every region has its own absolute
classic such as fresh Nuremberg bratwurst
cooked over a fire of beech woodchips or curly
kale in East Frisia; they are out there and as
popular as ever!
efJ: In some countries there is a general saying
about the dining culture in that country, for ex-
ample ‘eat like a god in France’. Can you think
of a German equivalent that summarizes the
advantages of German cuisine?
ralf Zacherl: That’s a hard one; the French really
are ahead of us with food sayings. Unfortunate-
ly, the only saying that counts for a lot of Ger-
mans doing their food shopping is ‘greed
is good’. But we are working on that.
DeliCiousGourmet Recipesgranny Zacherl’s onion tart with federweisser wine and wild leaf salad
method:1. For the base, grate the orange zest and mix with the rest of the
base ingredients to form a dough. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic.
2. Peel the onions, wash the spring onions and slice both finely. Fry the chopped bacon in a pan until the fat runs. Add the sliced oni-ons and spring onions, and season well with salt, sugar, caraway seeds and pepper. Sweat for another 3 to 4 minutes and then remove from the heat.
3. Heat the oven to 180°C (fan). Mix the eggs with the sour cream and the orange zest. Season to taste. Roll the dough into a rectangle (roughly 35 cm by 40 cm) on a piece of baking paper.
Place on a baking sheet and with your fingers push the dough up around the edges to form a lip. Prick all over with
a fork. Mix the onions with the sour cream mixture and spread over the dough. Bake in
the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
tip: If you can’t be bothered making the dough yourself, you can use puff pastry instead. Roll out the pastry and bake blind (prick the pastry, line with paper and weigh it down with baking beans so the pastry doesn’t rise) before putting in the filling and baking.
ingredients: for 6 people for the base: 350 g flour120 g quark (curd cheese)1 orange (unwaxed)6 tbsp milk6 tbsp vegetable oilsalt, a little baking powder
for the topping: 800 g onions100 g streaky bacon, smoked1 bunch spring onions300 g sour cream3 eggs2 sprigs thymesalt, pepper, sugar, caraway seeds(Source: Kochen mit den Küchenchefs)
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as
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slimmer, heAlthier AnD meAsurABly youngerslimmer, heAlthier AnD meAsurABly younger
You have tried different types of diets but none of them have really worked?
Your doctor keeps telling you to eat more healthily in order to stop your cho-
lesterol levels from rising and to avoid getting diabetes? You would also like
to live more healthily in general, have beautiful skin and feel energetic all day?
Attila Hildmann promises he has the answer to all your problems. His ‘Vegan for
Youth’ concept is a 60-day challenge uniting a well-balanced vegan diet with
meditation and exercise. We spoke to the author of the new vegan testimonial
about the dangers of obesity and high cholesterol and his recipe for rejuvenating
your body and increasing your life expectancy.
®Ju
styn
a Kr
zyza
now
ska
Attila hildmann:
“vegan makes you younger and happier”
efJ: Mr. Hildmann, what was your motivation
for your latest book ‘Vegan for Youth’?
Attila hildmann: After our ‘Vegan for Fit’ chal-
lenge in my second book, many people told me
they felt younger and fitter. In fact, they looked
better and younger than before. The same was
true for me when I started living vegan. Accord-
ing to scientific measuring, I am 26 years old
and not 33 as stated in my passport. My aim
was to give these results scientific backing. I
believe that it is our responsibility to save peo-
ple from aging early or becoming ill due to bad
eating habits. There are many elderly people
who prove that a balanced lifestyle and diet
influence your life expectancy positively and
keep your body younger. I visited vegan monks
in Kyoto who are old as stone and energetic
‘Mammas’ in the Italian village of the centenar-
ians. I also talked to top-class scientists and
carried out many test series. They all verified
my hypothesis that food which is high in anti-
www.european-food-journal.com
oxidants, mediation, stretching and exercise
regenerate your body.
efJ: What makes your book different from other
vegan cookbooks?
Attila hildmann: The book was written to make
people healthier. In particular, I would like to
address obese people. ‘Vegan for Youth’ ab-
stains from all types of chemical additives and
cholesterol. Instead, my dishes contain great
volumes of antioxidants and important sec-
ondary phytochemicals, so-called superfoods,
which stimulate our immune system. At the
same time, the body is relieved as it does not
have to process fat or industrial sugar anymore.
As a result, suffering from cravings is pre-
vented, and your blood glucose levels normal-
ize. Your blood fat levels decrease, and your
vitamin levels are restored. You lose weight
without being hungry. No wonder that all the
participants in the challenge are enthusiastic
about their new quality of life.
efJ: What do you think: What makes the book
so successful?
Attila hildmann: From my previous books, peo-
ple learned that I do not make empty promises.
Many people are in danger due to obesity,
high cholesterol or the beginning of diabetes.
They need a concept that works. ‘Vegan for
Youth’ describes a diet that is based on the
latest scientific results. The positive results
have been verified by several scientists. I
am happy for everyone who learns to live a
healthier and happier life with my concept.
efJ: In a nutshell – what does ‘Vegan for
Youth’ mean?
Attila hildmann: The concept makes you
healthier and younger. The results have
been verified on the basis of the de-
velopment of telomeres. The shorter
our telomeres are, the more our body
ages. Once they are too short, our
chromosome strands open like shoe-
laces without caps – and we die. The ‘Vegan
for Youth’ challenge slows down the shorten-
ing process. Thus, your skin and organs stay
young for a longer period of time.
efJ: Who is your target group?
Attila hildmann: Everyone who would like to
live a healthier life and who does not feel
comfortable due to being overweight or
having dermal problems, diabetes or high cho-
lesterol.
efJ: Where do you find inspiration for
new recipes and dishes?
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Attila hildmann: I just keep trying out lots of
things. My trips inspire me, too. For exam-
ple, I integrated several ideas from my trips
to Japan and Italy into my new recipes.
efJ: First and foremost, you are a chef. How-
ever, quite often the media seems to put your
personality into the focus of attention. How do
you feel about this?
Attila hildmann: Well, I do not meet the typical
cliché of a vegan wearing Birkenstock sandals.
For sure, I am not going to change in order to
fit into any category. Of course, it is not always
nice to provoke people, but if it helps to estab-
lish a vegan lifestyle among a wider audience,
that is fine with me. Sometimes, the end justi-
fies the means.
efJ: Provocation as a marketing tool?
Attila hildmann: I do things my way, and I don’t
mince matters. Sometimes I provoke people
without even noticing. This is not a strategy.
efJ: What does vegan mean for you?
Attila hildmann: Generally speaking I live 99%
vegan. Regarding my diet, I am even 100% ve-
gan. Yet, I do not do this in order to get a good
reputation with certain people but because it
is something I want for myself. I believe that
following a 100% ethical approach makes you
blind to what is really important. It should be
our mission to change the bad eating habits
of our society. Therefore I do not tell people
what to do or not to do. I just offer an attrac-
tive alternative. Furthermore, it is a great way to
combine health and animal protection. Today,
speeding is prosecuted more consistently than
commercial cruelty to animals.
efJ: What are your upcoming new plans or
projects?
Attila hildmann: In December I will present my
new book ‘Vegan to Go’ with dishes that are
quick and easy to prepare and super-tasty
at the same time. I cannot wait to publish it.
At present, I am touring the USA. The market
there is even tougher than the German market.
Still, it is fun. I am doing many interviews and
TV shows, and I have several projects in the
pipeline.
efJ: Mr. Hildmann, do you have any words of
wisdom for us from your experience as an en-
trepreneur?
Attila hildmann: Sometimes you have to reach
for the stars. You have to remain true to your-
self and always give 100%. This attitude made
me what I am today.
Attila hildmann: Spicy bruschetta, zucchini rolls
with pumpkin filling and pesto topping, cashew
ice cream with brittle and warm cinnamon-
apple chutney. Together with freshly squeezed
fruit juices and interesting guests, this could be
a great format for a cooking show.
efJ: Mr. Hildmann, thank you very much for
your time.
hungry for more? Check out the recipes for a vegan Christmas meal at www.european-business-journal.com/news/articles/a_merry_vegan_christmas/
www.european-food-journal.com
tAsty? trenDy? teA!tAsty? trenDy? teA!
Square, ecological and a bit bland? Whoever thinks that tea is only for old gran-
nies or long-haired greenies has clearly missed the latest developments. Mount
Everest Tea Company GmbH, based in the north German town of Elmshorn not
far from Hamburg, knows exactly how to use its tradition and expertise in tea
import and refinery to please today’s taste buds and provide its customers with
a large variety of teas for everyone’s liking. But the highlight is the launch of its
new brand. With my-tbar, the company has managed to turn tea into a tasty and
trendy experience.
Mama Mango, Crispy Dream and
Milky Moon – these melodious names
are only a few examples of Mount Ever-
est’s high quality innovative my-tbar tea blends,
evoking ideas of hot summer days, cold winter
afternoons and comfortable, warm evenings.
“Our Mama Mango creation is very versatile as
it can be drunk either hot or cold. Crispy Dream
for example is perfect for Christmas time with
its almond and cinnamon aroma,” explains
Stephanie von Riegen. Responsible for prod-
uct management and public relations, the wife
of company owner Jens von Riegen is part of
the ninth generation running the family-owned
business and was also involved in the develop-
ment of the company’s own brand. “Up to now,
we have only served the wholesale and special-
ized trade. With my-tbar, which we launched in
September 2013, we also address the end cus-
tomers directly, and it is going really well,” she
reports. “Wherever we present our brand, our
new creations, people are very positive, and we
get many compliments.”
But it is not only the tantalizing smells of mix-
tures such as mango, pineapple and straw-
berry; lemongrass and orange; or
almond, cinnamon and
popcorn that attract
customers. Besides
the variety of delicious
blends, it is also the
approach to tea that
makes my-tbar so
special: Instead of tra-
ditional tea categories
such as black, green,
white, herbal or fruit tea, my-tbar uses
the playful flavour categories Gen-
tle, Creamy, Fruity, Fresh, Spicy
and Classic. “These help our
customers to identify with our
products,” explains
Ms. von Riegen.
“They say: ‘This is
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me. This is the kind of
flavour I like,’ and will find
a variety of blends of that
type to try out.”
Once the perfect blend is
found, customers need not
worry about remember-
ing ‘their’ tea’s name – all
blends are numbered, and to
find the favourite again, all that is necessary is
its number. This is also printed on the carefully
designed packaging, which clearly underlines
that Mount Everest’s my-tbar is different from
the competition and far from square. “Our
brand is a lifestyle product for young, innova-
tive people who might enjoy it in trendy cafés,
hotels or lifestyle boutiques,” Ms. von Riegen
says. “It is our first brand, the first one that
bears our name. We established it to be able to
guarantee high quality – something that is only
possible through a brand – and to be unique.”
Mount Everest achieves this aim by selecting
only the finest teas that were approved by
sample audiences for its brand.
Mount Everest Tea Company is run as a family
business in its ninth generation, and its roots
reach as far back as 1793. Originally situated in
Hamburg, the company moved to Elmshorn in
the early 2000s, after Mr. von Riegen had taken
over the lead in a generation transfer and re-
structured the entire business
in the 1990s. Since then it
has experienced steady
growth. Its core competen-
cy is the import, refinery
and distribution of high
quality black, green and
rooibos tea – a total of
550 different types from
the largest and most
renowned tea planta-
tions in India, Ceylon
and China. “With these
teas we serve the spe-
cialized trade, but we also produce blends for
wholesalers,” explains Ms. von Riegen. “Since
we established our brand my-tbar in 2013, we
also address end customers who can buy our
products in specialized shops or online in our
webshop.”
With my-tbar, Mount Everest is present on
social media as well as on national and interna-
tional trade fairs where it gets a lot of positive
feedback for its innovative products.
While Mount Everest markets its products
worldwide, there is a current focus on the Eu-
ropean regions, especially Eastern Europe.
“We want to grow, and we do plan to increase
our activities in the US market,” says Ms. von
Riegen. “I think we have a great brand – I truly
love our products and drink the tea myself.
Our advantage is that we produce the blends
ourselves, and we offer top quality – and only
top quality – at fair prices,” she adds. With this
enthusiasm and a delicious range of tea blends
for all tastes and occasions, Mount Everest is
bound to turn my-tbar into the trend bever-
age it truly deserves to be.
mount everest teA CompAny gmBh
Daimlerstrasse 1325337 Elmshorn Germany
+49 4121 79126 +49 4121 438879
info@mount-everest-tea.de www.mount-everest-tea.de
www.my-tbar.com
www.european-food-journal.com
Angèlique sChmeinCk,
up, up AnD AwAy in my BeAutiful Dining BAlloon
Angélique sChmeinCk, works in and above the clouds. in her hot air balloon restaurant, the Dutch chef takes us on a very special culinary journey.
up, up AnD AwAy in my BeAutiful Dining BAlloon
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About Angélique schmeinckAngélique Schmeinck pushes the boundaries of what is possible in the gastronomy sector: She cooks in a tethered hot air balloon called CuliAir Skydining! This is not just a challenge for her but also for her guests for whom she cooks her gourmet dishes high above the ground. As well as this unique restaurant, Schmeinck’s career as a top chef is peppered with other high points. In 1988, she won a Michelin star for the restaurant De Kromme Dissel in Heelsum and repeated the feat in the following two years. The Dutch native is also a cookbook author with seven titles to her name. “Flavour Friends Vegetables and Flavour Friends Fruit” is her best-known and most successful book in her home country to date and describes the technique of culinary mind mapping. Angélique Schmeinck can also be seen on television, mainly on the 24Kitchen cooking channel.
1964 Born in
gelderse huissen
1988 to 2000
guarded a michelin star for her gour-
met cooking in the restaurant
De kromme Dissel in heelsum
2003 the tethered
balloon restaurant is created – and
takes off
2010 Develops a career as a
television chef with tv channel
24kitchen
2014 her new cook-book ‚impress your friends’
is published to accompany
the tv series of the same
name
efJ: Ms. Schmeinck, you are a Dutch master
chef, and you own the hot air balloon restaurant
CuliAir Skydining. This is a very special and
unique culinary journey high above the Nether-
lands.
Angélique schmeinck: Yes, and it’s also the ad-
venture and excitement of being in the air. With
a hot air balloon, you can go up 3 km high,
sometimes even above the clouds. So imagine
being in the basket of a balloon with a won-
derful glass of champagne, a nice sea bass or
lobster on your plate. You are going through
When Angélique Schmeinck cooks, the Michelin-starred chef from Holland
thinks in meters rather than oven temperatures. That is because she cooks
her signature dishes way up above the clouds inside a hot air balloon – prob-
ably the biggest oven in the world. It is part of her hot air balloon restaurant Cu-
liAir Skydining, floating high up in the skies above Holland – and sometimes the
Alps. Ms. Schmeinck also takes credit for making Dutch cuisine more creative.
She invented culinary mind mapping.
the clouds – and above the clouds, the sun is
shining.
efJ: That really sounds fantastic. Did you fulfill a
personal dream with balloon dining?
Angélique schmeinck: Sure. I started with CuliAir
Skydining in 2003.
efJ: How did you hit on that idea?
Angélique schmeinck: Well, it’s as simple as it
is logical. The art of imagination as well as the
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courage to fantasize are both important in cre-
ating things like that. For me as a chef, it was
important to realize that the balloon is a very
large hot air oven. Since the hot air rises, I had
to ask myself what would happen if I hung up
all kinds of food inside the balloon.
efJ: What temperature can we expect to find
there?
Angélique schmeinck: The average temperature
is about 90°C, which is close to that of an or-
dinary kitchen oven. At this temperature, slow
cooking is possible. It actually takes more
time until everything is done, but all the juice
remains inside the fish or chicken. The protein
doesn’t dry out as is the case when food is
heated at higher temperatures.
efJ: Tell us a bit about the cooking show during
the flight.
Angélique schmeinck: We use the hot air in the
balloon for cooking. Therefore, the balloon is
equipped with a control system. Iron baskets
carrying the dishes like fish, chicken or mus-
sels are pulled up to a height of approximately
45 m, just below the dome of the balloon. The
temperature is about 90°C there. When the
dishes are done, they come down with the help
of the control system and I pick them up. Then
I start my live cooking show on a table that pro-
jects outside the basket where I add vegetables
and sauces to the dishes.
efJ: That sounds rather dangerous.
Angélique schmeinck: It’s not. The balloon was
built in England to be very safe. It is kitted out
with the best possible technical equipment for
balloon cooking.
efJ: When do you know the food is cooked?
Angélique schmeinck: We did a lot of experiments
to get find the answer to just that question. On
board, we also have sensors. They allow us to
determine the temperatures at all dif-
ferent heights. Thus, as regards the
cooking, I have to think in meters.
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efJ: How would you describe the dining
experience?
Angélique schmeinck: It is a once-in-a-lifetime
experience. We go ballooning in Holland and
sometimes in Austria, too. For example, in win-
ter we go ballooning above the Alps in a 3.5
hour trip on which I serve glühwein and winter
dishes.
efJ: When you are ballooning in Holland, what
do you see when you look down?
Angélique schmeinck: We often fly over the prov-
ince of Gelderland, located in the heart Hol-
land. There are windmills, meadows, rivers and
beautiful landscapes to see.
efJ: Do you serve Dutch cuisine on board?
Angélique schmeinck: I always use seasonal and
regional products from our country such as
green or white asparagus, organic chickens
which had a “happy outdoor life” and mush-
rooms from the woods. Also, we source our
seafood from the Dutch coast, where wild sea
bass is one of the native species.
efJ: What about the recipes?
Angélique schmeinck: I have my own style of
cooking, which means combining regional
products with the art of lateral thinking. It’s all
about the essence of tastes and flavours. Our
guests are having a big adventure; their senses
are wide open. Therefore, I serve dishes with
a great depth of character, which balance with
the taste of adventure.
efJ: Does that mean you wouldn’t serve the
Dutch national dish stamppot during the flight
just because it would not be adventurous
enough?
Angélique schmeinck: That’s true, but there are
exceptions. In winter time, I probably would
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cook stamppot, of course a very special one
with spices and concentrated flavours so that it
would become a really exciting dish.
efJ: How do guests react to the dining experi-
ence high in skies?
Angélique schmeinck: They are all flabbergasted.
efJ: Speaking of the food culture in the Neth-
erlands: Is your balloon restaurant part of this
culture?
Angélique schmeinck: I would instead say that
CuliAir Skydining is part of the creative thinking
for which our country is famous.
efJ: Can the balloon restaurant also be under-
stood as a way of escaping the cliché that the
Netherlands is a mere cheese country?
Angélique schmeinck: This cliché is absurd. We
have long been well known for our creativity,
for our high ranking when it comes to Michelin
stars. There are many new young chefs who
know the art of cooking creatively and healthily.
And, yes, it’s true that stamppot can even be
served in a restaurant with three Michelin stars
as long as it is prepared with the best potatoes,
vegetables and cooking techniques. Then it can
have a place in your memory as a meaningful
dish. As you can see, tourists need to go a lit-
tle bit further to discover the mentality of Dutch
cuisine.
efJ: By the way, what do you see as your own
contribution to the culinary landscape of the
Netherlands?
Angélique schmeinck: I invented the so-called
culinary mind map to help creativity take a gi-
ant leap forward in Dutch cuisine. I wrote a
book about it called “Flavour Friends”. Just for
a short explanation of flavour friends,
please name a vegetable from your
home country.
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efJ: Sauerkraut.
Angélique schmeinck: All right,
here we go. What matches best
with sauerkraut? As an answer you
can perhaps come up with seven ingredi-
ents because your short-term memory can
only remember seven things. You may say: “I
put some cream in it, add different spices or
fruits.”
efJ: In comparison, what can be achieved
with the culinary mind map?
Angélique schmeinck:Just to stay with our
example, I put the word sauerkraut at the
center of the culinary mind map. All around it,
I put down about 175 best food relationships
for sauerkraut. Without this mind map, you
wouldn’t be able to think of such a great num-
ber of best friends for sauerkraut. In my book
I developed this kind of culinary mind map for
82 different vegetables.
efJ: What are your own very best
friends for sauerkraut?
Angélique schmeinck: I would recom-
mend a
creamy
sauerkraut
soup with Dutch
shrimp and a cream of
potatoes.
Sauerkraut
with oysters, wal-
nuts and potatoes is
also one of my favourites.
You have the saltiness of the oys-
ter, the creamy texture of the potatoes,
a nice fish flavour and the crunch of the
walnuts.
efJ: Is there anything else that would help
someone discover his or her own creativity?
Angélique schmeinck: It’s always worth taking
your time to find the right answer about what
is missing from a dish. So don’t think too hard
to find the answer immediately. Just remember
what Albert Einstein did: When he couldn’t find
the solution to a problem at once, he just lay
down on a sofa and trusted his creative mind
with the hope that the answer would pop up
before his eyes at some stage. And that is usu-
ally what happened. Two days or a week later,
he found the right answer. What a far more
relaxing way to find creative solutions!
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Whether it’s a summer barbecue, a party or just a special moment in your
life, a delicious cocktail makes every situation just perfect. There is a wide
range of flavours available today suiting every taste. Whether you like it
sour, sweet, fruity or creamy, in most bars you are spoilt for choice. Yet, mixing
a cocktail is much more than just pouring and mixing different liquids
in one glass. Every drink is a challenge depending on the
right amount and order of the ingredients. Every bartender
will probably agree that mixing a creamy cocktail is the
supreme discipline. Usually, alcohol and milk or cream
do not go together. The mixtures often flock or even
clot. This is where Creamy Creation in Rijkevoort, the
Netherlands, comes into the game. As the name says,
the company is a specialist in creamy drinks with a
strong focus on creamy alcoholic beverages. In this
market niche, the subsidiary of FrieslandCampina is the
undisputed world market leader. Steven Alexander, man-
aging director of Creamy Creation, is positive that the
company will be able to accelerate its growth in the
coming years, too.
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CreAmy temptAtions from the BArCreAmy temptAtions from the BAr
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“The market for creamy liqueurs and cock-
tails has been growing constantly over the
last few years,” he says. “Experts expect
it to continue growing until 2020 at the least, at
an annual growth rate of around 3%. Of course,
there are regional differences. The European
market is quite mature, for example. Here, we
even expect a decline of 1 or 2% every year.
The United States is a promising market with
constant growth rates. At present, Latin Amer-
ica and Asia are growing at a very fast pace.
People’s average income keeps rising, and with
the growing emancipation of women, they have
more spending power, too.”
The product portfolio of Creamy Creation is
based on two main pillars. These are alcoholic
drinks and nutritional beverages. Accounting
for around 90% of the business volume, alco-
holic drinks are the mainstay of the business.
Here, Creamy Creation focuses on creamy li-
queurs and cocktails.
Creamy liqueurs and cocktails
In the creamy liqueur sector, the company
transforms traditional spirits like whisky, rum
or cognac into innovative taste sensations.
Combining flavours like chocolate, coffee or
nut with fresh cream, Creamy Creation creates
timeless and luxurious drinks that soothe and
delight your senses. Recognizing the signs of
the times, all the drinks are available in high
and low-fat varieties. The alcohol content rang-
es between 12 and 20%. If required, the drink
expert is able to produce a cream liqueur from
its clients’ own distilled alcohol. “Coffee-based
liqueurs are always popular,” says Mr. Alexan-
der. “We offer trendy variations such as latte
macchiato, double espresso or dulce de leche.”
The company’s fruity cream liqueurs are a
sweet blend of fresh fruit flavours such as
strawberry and banana with cream. “Popular
fruit flavours are strawberry and banana, peach
and mango,” explains the managing director.
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steven Alexander, managing director of Creamy Creation
www.european-food-journal.com
“Yet, there is a wide range of exciting new fruit
flavours and combinations available. There are
endless possibilities to develop new creations
and recipes.”
The company’s cocktail selection is as tempt-
ing as the liqueur portfolio. There is a wide
range of batidas and piña coladas available,
sending you on a journey to sunny beaches
with all-time favourites like fresh mango colada
or fruity strawberry colada. All the drinks are
available with or without alcohol.
innovation: yoghurt-based cocktails
At present, yoghurt-based cocktails are in
great demand thanks to their light and healthy
nature. “Compared to traditional cream, yo-
ghurt is perfect for mixing with wine, soda or
juice or even with sparkling wine,” says Mr.
Alexander. “Ready-made sparkling cocktails
are also an option. Thanks to their low alco-
holic content, they are ideal for a low-calorie
diet. We developed our own technology, which
we had patented. This opens up a whole new
world of cocktails. Against the background of
the prevailing health and wellness hype, we are
recognizing a growing demand for our yoghurt
drinks. We expect it to last longer.”
high-quality nutritional drinks
In the nutritional sector, Creamy Creation fo-
cuses on high-quality drinks such as weight
management drinks, high-protein sports drinks
and drinks that are specially formu-
lated for inner health and well-being.
All drinks are tailored to the individ-
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ual needs of the clients. Creamy Creation
covers the complete value-added chain
from concept development and R&D, contract
manufacturing and packaging, to consultancy
on legal and administrative affairs related to
launching a new product.
“It was just a small step to move into the mar-
ket for nutritional drinks as you need the same
technology,” explains Mr. Alexander. “Here,
our flavour know-how is an important
competitive advantage for us.”
A global reach
Creamy Creation is a subsidiary of Friesland-
Campina, a world-leading dairy cooperative
from the Netherlands. When Baileys was intro-
duced in the 1970s, the company started work-
ing on alcohol and dairy mixtures. After three
years of tests and research, FrieslandCampina
was able to commence production. “Next year,
we will have been operating as an indepen-
dently operating company for 35 years,” says
Mr. Alexander. “From the very beginning, we
have operated on an international basis. The
opening of our US business was a major mile-
stone in the development of our company. The
approval processes are just so difficult. We
started selling to US customers around 2000.
In 2006, we established our own supply point
in upstate New York. From there we cover the
United States as well as Canada. We are a true
global player today with customers around the
world.”
technology, creative power and service attitude
Over the years, Creamy Creation kept intro-
ducing unique technologies and products. The
company’s ‘Infinity’ concept once more proved
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the company’s innovative strength and crea-
tive power as well as its customer-oriented ap-
proach. Infinity is a technology-based concept
of mixables made for acid drinks, for examples
with inclusion of juices. Another example is
what is internally called the ‘Pure’ concept:
Using oils from nuts to stabilize the drinks, the
drinks keep the natural flavours intact, deliver-
ing an exceptional natural taste profile.
“We make the most stable drinks in the world,”
says the managing director. “Our products do
not deteriorate easily and have an extremely
long shelf life. Our technologies are unique,
and our R&D department keeps working on im-
provements to our existing products and
on new creations. All our creamy
drinks are based on three major
www.european-food-journal.com
components. These are cream, alcohol and
sugar. It is always a challenge to mix those.
Also, we lay great emphasis on our flavours.
We work with one of the best-known alcohol
flavourists in the world – Wim Koolhaas. Every-
body in the industry knows
him. He helps us to be and
to stay best-in-class.”
Last but not least,
Creamy Creation is not
just a supplier of drinks.
“We are much more than
this. We are a partner
developing solutions in
cooperation with our cli-
ents. We create tailor-made
solutions, and eve-
ry customer gets
their own formula-
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wim koolhaas, one of the best-known alcohol flavourists in the world
www.european-food-journal.com
tion. We identify our customers’ needs
and transfer them to concepts. Business
intelligence is a keyword for us. We initiate
portfolio management, make trend presenta-
tions and so on.”
The strategy is paying off. Creamy Creation
services distillers all over the world and is a
sought-after partner among movie stars who
aim to launch their own creamy liqueur. Draw-
ing on a dense network of independent bot-
tlers, Creamy Creation is able to support them
from A to Z.
“we are good at technology, flavours and taste”
In the coming years, international expansion
is high on the company’s agenda. “We aim to
enhance our market position in the USA and in
Asia,” says the managing director.
“In the long run, we might even
establish a subsidiary in Asia.
The global market is large,
and we still have to make
foot prints in new regions. In
addition to our expansion plans,
we will continue to invest in qual- ity
programs in order to increase the quality and
shelf stability our products. Our vision is to
consolidate our market-leading position and to
continue our growth strategy. We want to be
the number-one partner for the whole industry
and the best-in-class in cream liqueurs. We are
good at technology, flavours and taste.
And we do understand the needs of our
customers. These are excellent precondi-
tions for further growth.”
frieslAnDCAmpinA CreAmy CreAtion Bv
Hoogeindsestraat 315447 PE RijkevoortThe Netherlands
Global Communication Manager:Darleen Peters
+1 585 344 3303
darleen.peters@ frieslandcampina.com
www.creamy-creation.com/en
www.european-food-journal.com
BP 18 - 09201 SAINT-GIRONS CEDEX
Phone +33 (0) 5 61 66 01 63Fax. +33 (0) 5 61 96 09 40
accueil@jeanfaup.com
Manufacturer and refiner of BethmaleCheese from the Pyreness
get one of 15 available cam-
paign codes for the march 2015 foodtec
issue!
+49 5971 921610
www.european-food-journal.com
the Cheese wAy
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The pioneering spirit has prevailed: When entering the premises of DeJong
Cheese BV in the Dutch town of Alphen, the visitor is surprised by the huge
volume of goat’s milk that is processed at the company’s facilities day after day,
made into wonderful fresh and soft goat’s cheese in many varieties. The dairy
specialist has always been a pioneer in the cheese making industry and already
concentrated on goat’s cheese at a time when dairy products from goat’s milk
were not so common.
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“Goat’s cheese is popular in the Netherlands
and in the United Kingdom. In addition, we see
increasing demand from other European coun-
tries like Germany. On the whole, the market
perspective for goat’s cheese specialities has
experienced a considerable upsurge in the last
few years,” points out owner and director Ar-
jan de Jong. It was his father who started goat
farming back in 1985. Only ten years later, the
de Jong family decided to embark on cheese
making itself, producing goat’s cheese from
its own milk. When the demand for its cheeses
grew, the dairy bought additional quantities of
milk from other farmers. Today, some 15 goat
farms supply about nine million liters of milk
every year. “We stopped our own milk produc-
tion in 2003 in order to focus exclusively on the
production process, processing huger quanti-
ties,” says Mr. de Jong. “In 2011, we chose
the name DeJong Cheese to better market
our products internationally. By now, we al-
ready export 70% of our production.” DeJong
Cheese is constantly on the lookout for new
products and is able to adjust quickly to the de-
mands of its customers. “We deliver to the food
processing industry, among them manufactur-
ers of ready-to-eat meals. Just think pizza, pas-
ta and salads. In addition, wholesalers and the
retail market are among our customers,” notes
Mr. de Jong. The retail segment is still relatively
new to DeJong Cheese. Here, the focus is on
big supermarket chains rather than on small
specialist stores. However, for its specialist
clientele, the dairy has introduced a line called
Alphenaer, a more artisanal cheese in selected
ripening stages. “Only the best cheeses are
selected by our specialists,” adds Mr. de Jong.
The product focus is on fresh and soft goat’s
cheese and on specialities like Brie and Cam-
embert. “When our customers told us that soft
cheese was hard to cut, we developed fresh
goat’s cheese crumbles for salads and pizzas,
and we have also designed our own machin-
ery to meet product specifications,” stresses
Mr. de Jong. As goat’s milk is harder to come
by than cow’s milk, DeJong Cheese has also
launched crumbled cheese from cow’s milk.
In total, the company has three varieties in this
product line: two made with cow’s milk and a
third one that is made using goat’s milk. “These
three have just been introduced with new pack-
aging,” says Mr. de Jong. “A new brand called
Supercheese will also be presented to the mar-
ket. We will make Supercheese and our crum-
bled cheese varieties a success. Goat’s
cheese is definitely gaining in popularity.”
DeJong Cheese Bv
Het Sas 145131 RC AlphenThe Netherlands
+31 13 5081316 +31 13 5083301
info@dejongcheese.nl www.dejongcheese.nl
get one of 15 available cam-
paign codes for the march 2015 foodtec
issue!
+49 5971 921610
AlAin DuCAsse,
the revolutionAry of hAute Cuisine
AlAin DuCAsse, the three-star chef with french roots, merges haute cuisine with the concept of ‘naturalness’
the revolutionAry of hAute Cuisine
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www.european-food-journal.com
About Alain DucasseIn 2005, French chef Alain Ducasse set a so-far un-matched record. He became the first and only chef to hold three Michelin stars simultaneously for three restaurants: Plaza Athénée in Paris, Louis XV in Monte Carlo and Alain Ducasse at the Essex House in New York. His expansive restaurant empire also includes the luxury restaurant Le Jules Verne located in the Eif-fel Tower in Paris. The Michelin-starred chef defines luxury as the ability to use natural ingredients that are produced sustainably in small quantities. It is a luxury that he uses to particularly impressive effect in his Plaza Athénée restaurant, which reopened in 2014. The mas-ter of gourmet cooking is also the author of the culinary encyclopedia ‘Grand Livre de Cuisine’. Within its pages, Ducasse shows how much the Mediterranean region has inspired and moulded his cooking.
1956 Born in
Castel-sarrazin, in southwestern
france
2005 first chef to
win three michelin stars simultaneously
for three different
restaurants
2007 the standard work ‘grand
livre de Cuisine’ is published
2008 Ducasse
becomes a citizen of monaco
2014 reopening
of his restaurant
plaza Athénée in paris
It may have been a twist of fate that Alain Duca-
sse – after achieving everything possible in the
world of Michelin-starred cuisine – should have
slipped so easily into the role of a revolution-
ary. He has already been fostering his idea of
‘natural cuisine’ with great passion for 25 years.
It is expressed in the trilogy of ‘fish, vegetables,
grains,’” which can currently be experienced
in his relaunched restaurant Alain Ducasse au
Plaza Athénée.
He is the entrepreneur among the world’s great three-star chefs. French-born
chef Alain Ducasse presides over a gastronomic empire that encompasses
25 restaurants. He is quoted as having said he wants to elevate the status of
the French gastronomy sector to a similar level to that enjoyed by the German
car industry. He can only have been talking about its reputation for excellence
rather than its industrial efficiency because the vision he is currently pushing
ahead with is the most radical and comprehensive form of naturalism the world
of haute cuisine has ever seen.
where haute cuisine and nature come together
It is akin to gilding the lily and an insult to boot
when a natural ingredient is smothered in artifi-
cial flavours. That is why Ducasse wants to cel-
ebrate the natural flavours of the fish and veg-
etables he uses in his dishes and bring them
to the fore. He is also concerned with issues of
sustainability and environmental conservation.
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“Nourishing oneself in
a healthier and more
natural way is an ex-
pectation and a neces-
sity that it is now time
to implement in haute
cuisine.”
Can this vision be com-
pared with saving French
cuisine, which for years
has been crying out for
new ideas and visions. The
Cuisine Francaise may have
been added to UNESCO’s list
of intangible world heritage
treasures in 2010, but parts of
its gastronomy sector do not
really live up to the accolade. Restau-
rants that have made an unsavoury name for
themselves by serving food that has been
warmed up in the microwave cast a small but
visible shadow over an otherwise exemplary
gastronomic landscape.
Maybe what is needed is the radical vision and
pizzazz of someone like Ducasse to take up the
baton and reclaim French cuisine’s position at
the avant-garde of international gastronomy.
His trilogy of naturalness has been many years
in the planning and therefore can be anchored
in a highly convincing concept.
It is not as if he does not have the time to think
everything through to the last detail. It has been
a long time since he worked as a chef for many
hours a day over a hot stove. Because of a se-
rious accident in the 1980s, Ducasse cut back
his cooking activities.
But is it really so important that he continue to
demonstrate his talent in the kitchen? No, as
a visionary and entrepreneur, Ducasse really
has nothing more to prove. The actual cooking
can be done by others. What is truly impor-
tant is that he is there to steer the business
and share his creativity, expertise and techni-
cal skills. That is what he does par excellence
and which allows him to continue to do great
things. Of course, he needs a team he can trust
to support him. That is particularly the case at
Plaza Athénée, where the ex-
ceptional restaurateur Alain
Ducasse is supported in his
dream of creating ‘natural
cuisine’ by his worthy pro-
tégé and Executive Chef
Romain Meder.
the trilogy lives
The menu is proof
enough that the trilogy
is alive. Dishes such
as ‘Quinoa cultivated
in Anjou’, ‘Vegeta-
bles from the Cha-
teau de Versailles’ and
‘Lobster from Cotenin’ show the way. The
names of the dishes are the key to the actual
restaurant philosophy; they provide the expla-
nation and logic behind the trilogy. Without a
garden, there would be no chefs. There would
be no fresh vegetables and luscious fruits
growing in the famous Chateau de Versailles
to be delivered to the chopping boards of the
restaurant kitchens just a few hours after har-
vesting.
Even the fish is ‘hand-picked’. It is sourced
from fishermen who still use traditional fish-
ing methods. They want to live their lives in
harmony with nature and take a stance against
the overfishing of the world’s oceans. The grain
that makes up the third element in the trilogy is
sourced from a treasure chest of rediscovered
ancient grains. Among them is red corn, which
is grown by farmers in the Basque region of
France. Ducasse is convinced that these sim-
ple products with their new flavours can enrich
and enhance gourmet dishes.
That is why we can have confidence in Duca-
sse the revolutionary that he will guide French
haute cuisine to greener pastures and give it
a fresh new look. He can always remind him-
self of his mission by looking out of one of the
rooms in the Plaza Athénée onto the Paris land-
mark, the Eiffel Tower, and cheering on himself
and others to never stop ‘working harder, faster
and better.’
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serves 4
Prepare the vegetables flakesPeel and wash 2 young carrots with tops, 4 spring onions, 5 green asparagus spears, 12 radishes and 1 small tender fennel bulb. Cut the asparagus tips into pieces about 8 cm long. Slice all the vegetables into the finest possible flakes with a mandoline slicer or a vegetable peeler and keep cool.
Cook the quinoriPreheat the oven to 160°C (gas mark 3). Peel and chop 1 white onion. Rinse 200 g of quinori.Heat a flameproof casserole dish with 2 tbsp olive oil and sweat the onion for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the quinori and mix. Then add twice its volume in water (500 ml) and stir again.Bring to a boil, then cover and put in the oven for 15 minutes. Add 4 tbsp of chopped cooked tomato to the quinori and return the casserole dish to the oven for another 5 minutes.
DeliCiousGourmet RecipesCasserole of quinori, crispy vegetables and herb pestofrom “nature, simple, healthy and good” by Alain Ducasse (p. 335)
© F
ranç
oise
Nic
ol &
Jea
n de
l Mor
al
prepare the herb pestoWhile the quinori is cooking, wash and pick the leaves of 2 sprigs of chervil, 2 sprigs of coriander, 3 sprigs of parsley and 3 sprigs of basil. Peel and mince 1 garlic clove.Put in the bowl of the blender with 2 tbsp pine nuts, 2 tbsp argan oil and 6 tbsp oat milk.Blend until the mixture is smooth. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper, and pour the pesto into a sauce boat.
to finish your dishCombine the vegetable flakes in a large bowl and season with 2 tsp olive oil, a pinch of salt and 3 twists of freshly ground black pepper.Take the casserole dish out of the oven and add the vegetables to the top. Cover immediately and place the casserole dish on the table along with the sauce boat of herb pesto.Lift the lid so that everyone can enjoy all the aromas. Then gently stir the vegetables into the grains and serve.Diners can then help themselves to the herb pesto.AD- Quinori is a mix of red quinoa, long-grain brown rice, chickpeas, white quinoa and sesame.PN – A superb cocktail of vitamins, mineral salts, fiber, complex carbohydrates and vegetable protein, without a trace of gluten. This dish is highly nutritious so there’s no need for meat or fish on the menu, but a little cheese (to complete the protein) and a piece of fruit would be welcome.
Diversity AnD exClusivityDiversity AnD exClusivity
Gourmet Recipes
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The Bordeaux region is known to be the largest winegrowing area in France,
producing more than 700 million bottles of Bordeaux wine annually, includ-
ing table wines and some of the most expensive and prestigious wines in
the world. Les Vignobles André Lurton S.A.S. located in Grézillac, France, con-
tributes to this highly productive business sector. The old-established family of
winegrowers maintains seven vineyards on an area of 600 ha and pro-
duces four million bottles of white, rosé and red wine a year.
www.european-food-journal.com
The history of Les Vignobles André Lurton
dates back to 1897 when Léonce Récapet,
grandfather of the present owner André
Lurton, purchased the historic estate Château
Bonnet in Grézillac, France. The surrounding
vineyards of Château Bonnet had already been
planted by the De Reynier family in the 16th
century and were continuously expanded over
the following centuries. Mr. Lurton took over
the family estate in 1953 at a time when both
Château Bonnet and Bordeaux wines were in
bad condition.
“At that point in time, the family maintained
vineyards of 30 ha,” explains Pascal Le Fau-
cheur, general director of Les Vignobles André
Lurton. “Mr. Lurton took the opportunity and
expanded the growing area to a total of 300 ha.
In 1965, he also purchased another estate on
the opposite side of the Garonne river, Château
La Louvière, which was built in 1792. By means
of long-lasting craftsmanship, the property was
restored and turned into a magnificent manor
house again. In 1991, Château La Louvière
became a historic monument and is today
considered one of the region’s most beautiful
estates.”
Over the past years, several additional pur-
chases and refurbishment regarding both
vineyards and estates have taken place. In
1973, for example, Château de Rochem-
orin was acquired, which was once home of
the famous French philosopher and author
Charles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu.
“At the present time, Les Vignobles André
Lurton owns seven estates: Château Bonnet,
Château Couhins-Lurton, Château La Lou-
vière, Château de Rochemorin, Château de
Cruzeau, Château Grossombre de Saint-Jo-
seph and Château de Barbe Blanche,” states
the general director. “The business itself
operates as an S.A.S., a private limited share
company with André Lurton as president and
his three children on the management board.
A brother of the present owner also main-
tains numerous vineyards under the name of
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pascal le faucheur, general director of les vignobles André lurton
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Lurton and has made a name for himself in
recent years.”
At the moment, Les Vignobles André Lurton
employs a team of 200 people at its headquar-
ters in Grézillac and additional locations in Bor-
deaux. “Our vineyards amount to 600 ha, 470
ha of which are dedicated to red wine,” says
Mr. Le Faucheur. “Seven appellations provide
a broad portfolio of 27 different white, rosé and
red wines.”
One of Les Vignobles André Lurton’s most well-
known and prestigious wines is the Château
La Louvière, which is available in white and red
varieties. “Château La Louvière has long been
famous for its white wines,” explains the gen-
eral director. “In fact, they were praised by Ca-
nadian merchants as early as the 17th century.”
The elegant La Louvière ranks among the finest
dry white wines of the Pessac-Léognan appel-
lation and is marked by the varietal
character of Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Further-
more, the family of winegrowers is particularly
proud of its white wine Château Couhins-Lur-
ton Cru Classé de Graves. Its fruity characteris-
tics are determined by 100% Sauvignon Blanc
grapes, which provide excellent preconditions
for years of maturation. “In terms of volumes,
our Château Bonnet wines are most
popular on the market,” states Mr.
Le Faucheur.
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“We sell more than one million bottles of
the Château Bonnet white wine a year.
Approximately 80% of its rosé variety is
exported abroad.” Apart from its broad range
of high-class wines, the winegrowing company
generates its annual turnover of 25.5 million
EUR by means of further services and offers.
Some of its estates, for instance Château La
Louvière, are open all year long to the general
public and are available for tours, events and
wine tastings. Events like general meetings,
product launches, galas or anniversary celebra-
tions can be hosted in the 150 m² cloister room
of Château La Louvière. “At the La Louvière
estate, we also have seven guest rooms avail-
able,” says the general director. “They are often
used by journalists or participants of events.”
Concerning its range of white, red and rosé
wines, the French company cooperates with
several distribution partners on the domestic
and foreign markets. “We have more than 5,000
customers from all over the world,” explains
Mr. Le Faucheur. “Only a small share of 10% is
sold on the farmer’s market in Bordeaux. About
50% of our production volumes are distributed
on the French market, for example to large su-
permarket chains, small wine cellars, specialist
stores, hotels and restaurants.” Les Vignobles
André Lurton’s most important export markets
are found in the USA, Canada, China, Sweden,
Germany, Belgium and Norway. “The Château
Bonnet rosé is particularly popular among
Swedish consumers,” states the general direc-
tor. “All in all, our export sales amount to eleven
million EUR.”
In terms of distribution, Les Vignobles André
Lurton places great emphasis on direct cus-
tomer contact. Clients often visit the vineyards,
cellars and estates to get an accurate impres-
sion of the winegrower’s products. “Constant
communication and public relations are highly
important in our business,” says Mr. Le Fau-
cheur.
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“By these means, we have become one of the
most renowned and largest winegrowing com-
panies in the Bordeaux region. Les Vignobles
André Lurton has played an important part in
the positive development of this winegrow-
ing area. With Michel Rolland and Denis Du-
bourdieu, we also have two extremely capable
winemaking consultants who work hard to
obtain the very best grapes from our various
terroirs – with the greatest respect for the en-
vironment.” Speaking of environmental issues,
Les Vignobles André Lurton attaches high im-
portance to sustainable measures. Apart from
its international ISO 14001 certification for en-
vironmental management, the winegrower pays
great attention to biodiversity, lighter bottles
and packaging material, recycling processes
and reduced energy consumption.
In the future, this successful strategy will be
developed even further. “Wine tourism is an
essential economic factor in the Bordeaux re-
les vignoBles AnDré lurton s.A.s.
Château Bonnet33420 GrézillacFrance
+33 557 255858 +33 557 749859
contact-val@andrelurton.com www.andrelurton.com
gion,” summarizes the general director. “It is
promoted by the government, municipalities
and local winegrowers themselves. In the time
to come, it will become important to strengthen
this position and invite more tourists and wine
connoisseurs to our vineyards and es-
tates.”
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greg koCh
AmAZing Beer for europegreg koCh, Ceo & Co-founder of stone Brewing Co.
AmAZing Beer for europe
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efJ: Mr. Koch, you are the CEO of Stone Brew-
ing Co., the first independent American craft
beer brewery to be to run in Europe by the end
of 2015. How can Europe benefit from craft
beer?
greg koch: Europe already has thousands of
amazing craft brewers that are making incred-
ible beers. For example, BrewDog (Scotland)
is recognized around the world. The tiny new
Vagabund Brauerei (Germany) has become a
very popular place for locals in Berlin’s Wed-
ding neighborhood. Baladin (Italy) is 20 years
old and considered one of the leaders of Italy’s
incredibly vibrant craft brewing landscape. Eu-
ropeans benefit greatly from having a quality
range of choice and diversity. Stone Brewing’s
presence will simply add to the diversity of
choices for discerning consumers.
efJ: Your European headquarters will be locat-
ed in Germany – a country which is regarded
worldwide as the beer nation and the master of
the art of brewing. How will Stone Brewing en-
rich the German brewery landscape?
greg koch: We brew styles that are completely
different from traditional German styles, and
very different from modern industrial styles. We
approach the brewing of our beer with the pas-
sion of an artist.
greg koch, Ceo & Co-founder of stone Brewing Co.
The craft beer revolution has Eu-
rope in its grip. One of the compa-
nies spearheading this revolution,
the cult Californian brewery Stone
Brewing, has chosen Berlin as its Eu-
ropean headquarters. From the end of
2015, on a site that previously housed
a gasworks, craft beers with unusual
names such as Oaked Arrogant
Bastard Ale will be brewed and sold.
European Food Journal spoke with
the CEO of Stone Brewing, Greg
Koch, about his beer philosophy and
Europe as a target market.
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efJ: Are we also talking about different flavours
and a distinguished attitude?
greg koch: Yes, yes, yes. And the main differ-
ence that you would probably expect is that
the flavour profile is bigger. Our beers have big
character, with rich flavor and aroma. Our beer
is completely different from the industrial beer
that the majority of the world drinks. Industrial
beer represents the lowest common denomina-
tor. There is industrial American beer, industrial
Dutch beer, industrial Japanese beer, industrial
Mexican beer, and yes, also industrial German
beer. Industrial beer has become so common
that most people know little else.
efJ: So this is a worldwide trend?
greg koch: Exactly. For centuries, brewing has
been a noble art, designed by and for the peo-
ple. Tragically, industrialization and pandering
to the lowest common denominator have fueled
brewing’s deterioration into a mere commodity.
So much so that most of the world no longer
thinks of brewing as an art. Instead, they view
it as something with little if any character, to be
purchased as inexpensively as possible.
efJ: But what about the famous German purity law?
Doesn’t it prevent the beer from losing quality?
greg koch: The so-called Reinheitsgebot is
nothing but a great misunderstanding. It’s nick-
named ‘purity law’ but has nothing to do with
purity. It is an antiquated tax law from 1516,
that only began being used as a marketing term
and relabeled as so-called ‘purity law’ some-
where around the 1950s. Modern industrial
brewers around the world are able to make
poor quality beer that falls within the technical
guidelines of the Reinheitsgebot. This will assist
in understanding the Reinheitsgebot:
http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/
reinheit.htm
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efJ: Well, the German purity law says that
beer should consist of barley, hops, water
and yeast.
greg koch: May we instead simply refer to it as
the “Reinheitsgebot” since it’s not, and never
was, a “purity law”? At Stone Brewing, 95%+
of our volume falls within the guidelines of the
Reinheitsgebot, but the flavors and character
of our beer would be considered very strong by
most German beer drinkers. We use dramati-
cally more hops and more barley, and our beer
is much much more expensive to brew.
efJ: It would be interesting to know about your
personal definition of purity.
greg koch: Purity means that we are not putting
anything into our beer that is not of high quality.
efJ: So, have people fallen into the trap of a
German cliché?
greg koch: Yes. The conversation in Germany as
in many parts of the world has been reframed
so much with this idea of purity law. Nobody
really understands what it means. It’s just
rhetoric and is often used as an excuse to sell
you cheap beer and make you think that it is
still okay. Cheap industrial beer with a “Purity”
stamp on it is still cheap industrial beer.
efJ: But industrial German beer is still success-
ful. The masses buy German beer here that is
produced by big beer companies such as the
Radeberger Group.
greg koch: Yes, industrial beer is still the leading
style beer around the world. If Germans want
to take pride that they are drinking the same
style of industrial beer as the Chinese and the
Mexicans and the Americans, they can relax
and continue to enjoy their industrial beer. It is
not my job to convince anybody they should
drink craft beer. It’s my job to make amazing
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beers. It’s simply for somebody else to decide
for themselves if they like it or not.
efJ: Don’t you address any target groups?
greg koch: My target group is people who de-
cide for themselves that they like good beer.
People who aren’t satisfied with industrial beer,
and want something different. When it comes
to other aspects, such as personality or demo-
graphics, I don’t know, and that’s not my busi-
ness.
efJ: But why is Berlin the place to be for your
company?
greg koch: We found a piece of property that we
really like: the historic 1901 gasworks buildings
in Berlin-Mariendorf. These buildings have a
unique and very special character, and they will
offer us the ability to grow and to create this
special environment for people who would like
to come and visit us.
efJ: The German capital is, after all, known for
its alternative culture and a huge landscape of
organic stores. And the Slow Food movement,
which you are also a member of, is strongly
represented there.
greg koch: Honestly, we didn’t pick Berlin be-
cause we thought that there will be any particu-
lar number of people that want our beer. We
know that the fans of our beer are scattered
across Europe. That being said, Berlin is a won-
derful place and I’m very excited to be able to
call it home!
efJ: Why are you so sure that the Germans will
enjoy it?
greg koch: Germans, like all people, really have
good taste. That’s part of our basic nature
as human beings. Because we are, after all,
99.999% genetically the same – aren’t we?
efJ: I think so.
greg koch: Well, the difference in taste
between craft beer and industrial
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beer is actually not within that 0.001%. It
is actually within our nurture…the result
of how we’ve been raised and what we’ve
been exposed to. So, if people don’t think of
themselves as craft beer drinkers, it is mostly
because they have not been exposed to it.
When we opened in San Diego in 1996, people
were not really aware of craft beer. Most people
didn’t even like our beer. It was very strange for
them. It just takes time for people to get used
to the idea that beer can be more than the in-
dustrial stuff in the television commercial.
efJ: Do you think that the future belongs to mi-
crobreweries like you?
greg koch: There is more and more of it. I trav-
elled the world early this year during a four-
month sabbatical. I went to New Zealand,
Australia, South-East Asia, Italy, Spain, Eastern
Europe and Germany, and found that small
brewers are growing like crazy everywhere. As
more and more people learn about craft beer,
more and more people are gravitating towards it!
efJ: How do you comment on the fact that peo-
ple are drinking less beer in Germany?
greg koch: Well, that is not a new development.
Beer consumption has been declining there for
many decades. I am fine with people drinking
less beer.
efJ: Why?
greg koch: Our beer is not about mass consump-
tion. We have been growing as a company by
greater than 45% each year on average for 18
years. I’ll repeat that: greater than 45% each
year for 18 years. I suppose that is an unusual
position in any business category anywhere in
the world. We have never advertised. And we
don’t make things that most people thing they
like. The people who do like what we do love
what we do – since we do it with passion, integ-
rity and character.
efJ: At the production level, we are talking
about different hectoliter numbers. For in-
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stance, the Radeberger Group produced eleven
million hl in 2012. What will be the dimension of
your production in Berlin?
greg koch: It’s fractional – not even a tiny slice
of that. However, there is not much of a rela-
tionship. If you look at a great chef restaurant
which uses farm-to-table quality ingredients –
do they care what McDonald’s does?
efJ: Will the ingredients for craft beer come
from the surroundings of Berlin?
greg koch: A lot of the ingredients will be of lo-
cal origin. We will also be using some American
hop varieties that are not available at other
places. But there are also new German hop
varieties that some German hop growers create
to keep up with the demand for the craft beer
style.
efJ: In what proportion will the ingredients be
sourced?
greg koch: It will be 95% European sourced and
ingredients, and probably more than half of it
will be German sourced. But I can’t say that
for certain. That is an expectation, not a direct
quote.
efJ: The new Stone Brewing Co. is an integral
part of a world of beverage, Slow Food and
beer production in Berlin-Mariendorf. What ex-
actly is the idea behind this world?
greg koch: We will create a destination unlike
anything Berliners have seen before. The res-
taurant and gardens will be expansive
and highly unique. Stone Brewing
World Bistro & Gardens – Berlin will
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be an environment that takes you away
from the harsh reality of over-commer-
cialization and brings you into our world
of artisanship. Our beers are big, bold and
dramatically different than traditional German/
European styles. The menu at Stone Brewing
World Bistro & Gardens – Berlin will highlight
local and organic food with eclectic and crea-
tive preparations. Our goal is to bring the entire
‘Stone experience’ to Berlin.
efJ: How many jobs will be created by Stone
Brewing in Berlin?
greg koch: We will begin with 70 brewery-related
jobs. Once Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gar-
dens – Berlin is open, that will add nearly 100
full-time and part-time jobs.
efJ: Would a US-EU free-trade agreement have
made it easier for you to gain access to the Eu-
ropean market?
greg koch: The biggest barrier for us is trans-
porting our beers that are meant to be con-
sumed fresh. It takes quite a bit of time, effort
and money to transport our beers to Europe.
By opening Stone Brewing Co. – Berlin, we’ll
be able to brew the beers and distribute them
across Europe. As a result, we’ll be reducing
our carbon footprint, getting fresh beers to our
fans and bringing down the costs associated
with having our beer available in Europe.
efJ: How will you transport your beer across
Europe?
greg koch: We will do it by refrigerated contain-
ers – sometimes by train, sometimes by truck.
efJ: And not by plane?
greg koch: No, the carbon footprint is too high.
efJ: What about the price for craft beer prod-
ucts? Good-quality beer justifies a higher price,
is that correct?
greg koch: Most certainly yes. But we do not
compete on price.
efJ: By what percentage will the price be higher
than the industrial beer prices?
greg koch: 1.5 to three times more expensive.
We make several beer styles that range at dif-
ferent prices.
efJ: People in Europe have the fear that Amer-
ica will flood the European markets with ge-
netically modified products. You are quite the
opposite of this. Can we regard your slow food
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approach as an American statement for
genetically unmodified food?
greg koch: I am against genetically
modified products, absolutely. But I also
would like to point out that America is
much much more than Budweiser and
McDonald’s.
efJ: Do you work together closely with
other European companies, and do you
still need business partners?
greg koch: Since we are a US-based
company, we are working with a number
of European-based companies – archi-
tects, contractors, equipment suppliers
– to help bring our vision to life. We have
not yet finished selecting all of our busi-
ness partners.
efJ: Are European companies interested
in selling your beer?
greg koch: Yes, we have importers and
distributors across Europe waiting to get
our beer.
efJ: What are the most important Euro-
pean countries for Stone Brewing?
greg koch: Germany is surely at the top.
Sweden, Denmark, Italy, the UK, France
and Belgium are also highly interesting.
efJ: Since you are the personality behind
Stone Brewing, let’s talk about you per-
sonally. As regards your appearance, you
seem like a folk-rock star to me.
greg koch: I once dreamed of being a gui-
tar player.
efJ: Who were your role models?
greg koch: Matthias Jabs, the guitar play-
er of the German band The Scorpions
was among them.
efJ: Are you sad that you didn’t become
a rock star?
greg koch: No, I am enjoying my life very
much, and I feel very rewarded with be-
ing able to carry forward the craft beer
revolution every day.
efJ: Do you have a song that best de-
scribes the craft beer revolution?
greg koch: The craft beer revolution is nu-
anced, varied and wide in its character
so that it is represented by the music of
human existence. For some people it
might be Vivaldi; for others it would be
Metallica. For me it’s both.
efJ: What is your personal dream as CEO
of Stone Brewing? Is it about delivering
some kind of American dream to Europe
– what do you think?
greg koch: My personal dream is to free
everyone from the chains of oppression
of low expectations, to get away from
over-commercialization and generic low-
est-common-denominator same-same-
ness and enlighten them to what a
world of craft beer can offer.
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