Behind the French Menu

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Inside a Chocolatier
Photograph courtesy of David
www.flickr.com/photos/davidw/1353935738/

Chocolat - Chocolate

Pieces of chocolate, bars of chocolate.
Chocolate in powder form, and chocolate the drink.

Surprisingly, France is not one of the top five of the world's consumers of chocolate (per capita). The French view chocolate as a product that depends on quality, not quantity and quality chocolate is an expensive habit.

Chocolatiers - specialized chocolate shops

The best chocolatiers make their own chocolates with unique flavors, fillings, and shapes. Many chocolatiers have fantastic window displays that show their owner's abilities to create sculptures in chocolate. Some of these displays can leave you standing there for half-an-hour or more.

The work of a master chocolatier.
"Star Wars" - "Millennium Falcon" made of chocolate
Made by the Chez Nathalie chocolatier in Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire, France.
Photograph courtesy JPC24M
www.flickr.com/photos/cjp24/25723426602/

The first time I visited a French chocolate emporium in the company of knowledgeable chocoholics was an amazing experience. My companions were serious consumers from Japan who had made many visits to the best chocolatiers of Switzerland and Belgium. However, here on their first visit to Paris with time to visit the top chocolatiers, it knocked their socks off! The artistic creations astonished these chocolate experts, but what really had them asking for encores was the variety of chocolate tastes. The chocolate combinations, the range of tastes, the matching of chocolate with fillings they had never considered before, and the different textures added so many new flavors that they returned every afternoon during their week’s stay.

If you are into chocolate and in France, ask at your hotel for the nearest chocolatier. Even small towns still support at least one. Visiting a French chocolatier will be a very different experience to purchasing chocolates at home.

Roy - A chocolatier in Paris.
Photograph courtesy of Roy Chocolatier

Few of today's chocolatiers can today afford to produce their own chocolate directly from the bean. They buy the chocolate base and produce unique chocolates tailored to individual tastes and extraordinary chocolate creations. However, Valhrona, France’s largest high-quality chocolate manufacturer does make their chocolates from the bean on up. More on Valhrona later on.

Chocolate desserts in French restaurants.

In France's best restaurants, they employ a Maître Pâtissier, an expert pastry chef. He or she will be a graduate of a three-year cooking school, and for the top-level restaurants will have five or more years' experience before joining. These pastry chefs must also be experts in chocolate desserts, for, in France, all serious dessert menus include at least one or two chocolate offerings. In smaller restaurants, the chef or sous chef may specialize in the dessert menus. Buying in your dessert offerings, as many small restaurants do, will, however, forever ruin a chef's and his or her restaurant's reputation.

A Valrhona chocolate desert
Valrhona Chocolate Saint Ramon
Gianduja Chocolate Espresso, Pistachio Madeleine
Photograph courtesy of Bob B. Brown
www.flickr.com/photos/beleaveme/3280856811/

Chocolate desserts on French menus:

Boules de Glace au Sauce Chocolat - Scoops of ice-cream with a chocolate sauce.

Feuillantine Chocolat aux Fruits Frais – Thin leaves of puff pastry separated by chocolate and fresh fruits.

Feuillantine Croustillante au Chocolat, Crème Anglaise.

Photograph courtesy of patrick janicek

www.flickr.com/photos/marsupilami92/40058563040/

La Tartelette Chocolat-café, Glace Vanille Bourbon - A coffee and chocolate tart served with a Bourbon-vanilla ice-cream.

Vanilla pods on the vine

Photograph courtesy of Avinash Bhat

www.flickr.com/photos/68177867@N00/305006748/

Vanilla is another New World discovery. Christopher Columbus and his conquistadors in 1502 could not pronounce the native name tlilxochilt, so they chose a name related to the vanilla pod's appearance. For its Spanish name, the conquistadors used the word vaina, which means a sheath, like a sword and its sheath. When the conquistadors arrived home, vaina became vainilla in Spanish, vanille in French, and vanilla in English.

The vanilla the conquistadors brought home was wild vanilla, which continued to remain wild and expensive for 400 years. Vanilla began to be cultivated in the 19th-century, and its cultivation is still a work in progress. Vanilla requires a great deal of hand-labor, and so it is not inexpensive. The major growers are Madagascar, Indonesia, Mexico, and China. The cultivated black vanilla pods from around the town of Sambava in the North of Madagascar are considered the best of the best, and you will pay a lot for those. Luckily, the majority of the world's vanilla crop is the less expensive Bourbon or Madagascar-Bourbon vanilla. The Bourbon in the Bourbon vanilla's name is linked to the name of France's ex-king and queens; that, however, is another story.

Profiteroles aux 3 Chocolats – Profiteroles covered in three different types of chocolate.

Who makes the best chocolate cake?

The most important professional patisserie competition in the world is the Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie, the world pastry cup. Every competition includes at least one chocolate cake per team. The Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie is held every two years in Lyon, France, under the President of France's auspices. Each country that makes the finals sends a team that includes a pastry chef, a chocolate maker, and an ice specialist. The competitors have nine hours to produce a whole range of desserts.

The 2019 Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie
Photograph courtesy Pastry Freak.fr

The origin of the cocoa bean

Chocolate is made from the cocoa bean, and the beans originated in South America. For at least one thousand years, before the conquistadors arrived, chocolate had already been a popular and even then, a relatively expensive drink. Drinking chocolate was also part of Aztec religious ceremonies. By the time the conquistadors arrived, cocoa beans had already been exported from the South American mainland and were being grown in the Caribbean Islands and areas that include parts of modern Mexico.

Autumn gift of French chocolates.
Photograph courtesy of patrick janicek
www.flickr.com/photos/marsupilami92/38211246882/

The conquistadors themselves did not find chocolate very appealing and viewed it as a bitter native drink. The conquistadors brought everything they found home, every plant, every animal, anything that grew, and much that did not and so chocolate still made it to Spain on the first ship home.

The story of the conquistadors bringing home cocoa, according to tradition, has Christopher Columbus finding a canoe full of native South Americans who had their canoe filled to overflowing with cocoa beans. Columbus apologized for not bringing his credit card but collected all the cocoa available and promised to send a check in the mail. I believe that the owners are still waiting for the check. However, when Christopher Columbus returned home in 1502, Spain had chocolate and a member of the canoe's crew to instruct on the preparation of the chocolate drink.

To the surprise of the Conquistadors, the bitter chocolate drink they thought was a waste of space became a hit among the Spanish aristocracy. Chocolate was found to be very tasty when mixed with honey. Until the 17th century, sugar was much more expensive than honey.

Until the late 1500s, nearly 100 years after the bean's discovery in South America, Spain monopolized the world's supply of chocolate. In the early years of the Spanish monopoly, chocolate was sold at prices only the very, very rich could afford.

Chocolate enters France.

Chocolate entered France from Spain through the Pays de Basque, which is the Basque country on the French side of the Pyrenees. The city of Bayonne is the capital of the Pays de Basque, and in 1492 and 1497, Bayonne saw the arrival of Spanish and Portuguese Jews escaping the Inquisition. Many of those refugees were expert bakers, and in Bayonne, they became experts at working with chocolate. They made chocolate cakes, called tortas. The method of baking these chocolate cakes had been invented by Portuguese Jewish bakers who had escaped from Portugal, but rather than traveling to Bayonne, they had traveled to Livorno, the Italian port city. These Livorno bakers sent their family members in Bayonne the recipe for tortas, which became an instant success in France. The chocolate cakes sold well alongside sweetened chocolate drinks.

The Spanish chocolate monopoly did not last, and neither did the Jewish chocolatiers in Bayonne. The Bayonne locals learned how to make chocolate cakes from the Jews, who openly shared their knowledge. Then the locals founded a chocolate making guild that banned anyone Jewish from working with chocolate in Bayonne. Bayonne's Jewish bakers and chocolate makers had to leave and went elsewhere to buy the beans while avoiding the Spanish monopoly. They began to purchase cocoa beans from plantations that had been set up in the Caribbean. In addition to cocoa, they also began importing sugar and vanilla from the Dutch, who also had set up other plantations.

Now chocolate became a product for the growing French middle classes; however, that is not the story's end. King Louis XIV, for financial reasons, probably related to one of the never-ending French wars with the English, entered the picture. King Louis issued a French Royal Patent, a grant of a monopoly, limiting the production of any chocolate products in France. From the 28 May 1659, a Monsieur Chaillou in Paris received a 29-year monopoly on the supply, manufacture, and sale of chocolate. Then, if you wanted chocolate in France, at least chocolate that was not smuggled in, you could only buy it from Monsieur Chaillou. The good Christian chocolatiers of Bayonne could still make chocolate products, but now they had to buy their chocolate from Monsieur Chaillou. Once again, chocolate was very expensive in France.

Monsieur Chaillou's chocolate monopoly finally ended, but by then, the French market had already been opened up by English and French smugglers. The English were now growing cocoa on their island colony of Jamaica, just another proof that monopolies do not work long. By the end of Monsieur Chaillou's agreement, the English were also producing chocolate, the drink, and the cakes, in England. Elsewhere the Dutch, who had previously created a market for brandy and Cognac from France, had also become involved in chocolate production and its export.

Chocolate in the 18th century.

At the beginning of the 18th century, many countries were in the chocolate business; however, they all were limited in their knowledge. They only knew how to produce plain chocolate confectionery and chocolate drinks. Even in the 18th century, there were no plain chocolate bars, and milk chocolate was not even dreamed of.

Then in 1828, a Dutch chocolate-maker Conrad J. van Houten invented a way to make a cocoa powder. Following that, in 1849, an Englishman called Joseph Fry with his wife Anna mixed sugar and cocoa butter using the Dutch invention; voila, they produced the first plain chocolate bar. By 1907 the Fry's already employed over 4,000 people, and in 1919 they merged with another company called Cadburys.

Vintage Cadbury's chocolate advert
Photograph courtesy of Gavin Llewellyn
www.flickr.com/photos/gavinjllewellyn/6074399311/

Milk chocolate bars would have to wait another twenty-five years from the creation of the first plain chocolate bar. Then, in 1875, Daniel Peter, a small chocolate manufacturer in Vevey, near Lausanne, Switzerland, entered the picture. Daniel produced the first bar of milk chocolate using condensed milk developed by a Swiss milk product manufacturer Henry Nestlé. Nestlé until then had specialized in milk for babies. When milk chocolate bars became, available Daniel Peter's discovery turned the cacao bean from an important commodity into a super commodity.

In 1929, the descendants of Daniel Peter merged their business with Nestlé. Today Nestlé is the world's largest producer of raw processed chocolate, and many world-famous chocolatiers buy processed chocolate from Nestlé. If your needs are big enough, Nestlé will produce a special chocolate for you and deliver it to you in a massive 15 kg (33 lb) plus slabs. With a nice 15 kg slab, you may flavor and differentiate your product, and, of course, how you identify your market is your decision.

Buying chocolate and chocolate on the menu in France

Chocochino - Chocochino. A hot chocolate drink was made like a cappuccino with froth on top; hence Chocochino. Most Chocochinos will have powdered chocolate sprinkled on top for effect.

Chocolat Amer or Amère - Bitter chocolate. Amer or Amère may well be on your dessert menu, describing dishes made with bitter chocolate.

Chocolat au Lait – Milk chocolate.

Chocolat Blanc – White chocolate.

Chocolat Bonbons – Chocolate sweets, candies. There are a huge number of different names for chocolate candies used by French chocolate producers. Far too many for even the book behind this blog.

Chocolat Chaud - Hot chocolate; the drink. Often part of a child's breakfast.

Chocolat Liégeois – A chocolate version of Café Liégeois, a dessert. This is a cold dessert; it is not a variation on a cup of coffee. This is chocolate, ice cream, and whipped cream, all made into a thick and creamy dessert. Sometimes it will come with added liquor for that extra punch. Your menu may also offer the original coffee-based version. (Contrary to what may seem obvious, the original Café Liégeois does not come from Liege in Belgium, it is a French creation).

Crêpe au Chocolat – A crepe served with chocolate spread; this is a favorite of street stalls that offer crepes, but it will also be on the menu in crêperies.

Chocolate truffles.
Photograph courtesy of Syoko Matsumura
www.flickr.com/photos/okoysm/35333499802/

Chocolate Mi-Amer – A slightly bitter chocolate; not as bitter as chocolat amer.

Chocolate Noir - Black or bitter chocolate.

Chocolat (tablette) or Tablette de Chocolat – A bar of chocolate; a bar of milk chocolate is a tablette de chocolat au lait.

Croissant au Chocolat – A croissant with a chocolate filling. The second most popular croissant in France. First place is held by the traditional butter croissant.

Glace au Chocolat – Chocolate ice-cream.

Milkshake au Chocolat – A chocolate milkshake, a successful import from North America.

Mousse au Chocolat Amère – A mousse made with bitter chocolate.

Tarte au Chocolat Amer – A chocolate tart made with bitter chocolate.

Tartine et Chocolat – Bread or a sliced baguette spread with chocolate spread; many a French child's breakfast favorite.

Chocolaterie – A shop that sells chocolates. These shops may sell good chocolates, but they are not selling their own product; that would be a chocolatier. Note the difference between the words Chocolatier and Chocolaterie.

The best chocolate in France
and definitely one of the best chocolates in the world
Valrhona

The best chocolate in France is the chocolate made by a company called Valrhona. Valrhona call their product the Grand Cru Chocolat. It will be on many French dessert menus by name. Valrhona will also be on many other menus throughout the world. My own Valrhona chocolate surprise came when I saw a Valrhona chocolate-based dessert in the least expected California destination. A restaurant in the Big Sur, California, USA. had a Valrhona dessert on its menu. Even with the distance, the Big Sur had chosen the best.

The Big Sur
Photograph courtesy of Luca Nebuloni
www.flickr.com/photos/nebulux/14988282005/

Valrhona's factory is in the small and attractive town of Tain-L'hermitage in the Rhone Valley. Valrhona's owners took the name for their chocolate from French words for valley, vallée, plus Rhone. Taken together, they account for the name Valrhona. When in the area, you may take a factory tour and see how their chocolate is made. At the end of the tour, you may taste their product, and they will, not unsurprisingly, allow you to buy some. To buy Valrhona chocolate in France and elsewhere, click on the Valrhona multi-language website below:

Click here and choose your country and language.

The Chocolate: Bars Grands Crus (Ambiance).
Photograph by Yann Geoffray courtesy of Valhrona

Studying chocolate

Many of the visitors coming to the Valrhona chocolate factory are not tourists; many are training to be chefs or are already experienced professional chefs studying new techniques. They will be spending their time at the École du Grand Chocolat Valrhona, the School of the Grand Chocolate of Valrhona.

Valrhona runs two other chocolate schools, one is in Versailles, just outside Paris, and the other in Tokyo, Japan. At these schools, chefs come to take advanced courses in the use and preparation of chocolate. These are very intensive 2-4-day courses that take place throughout the year. Their courses cover an astonishing number of subjects, all connected to chocolate. Also visiting will be a number of France's top chefs either as visiting professors to demonstrate their craft or to experiment with new chocolates.

Student chefs training at the Valrhona École du Grand Chocolat.
Photograph courtesy of Valhrona.
Tain l'Hermitage

If you came to Tain l'Hermitage to visit the chocolate factory, make sure to leave time to explore the local Route des Vins, their local wine road. Tain l'Hermitage is a beautiful place to make your base camp from where you may enjoy tastings of the Côtes du Rhône, AOP wines. The Côtes du Rhône vineyards are all around the town, and the town and immediate area have many excellent restaurants.

The town of Tain L'Hermitage has an annual Salon des Vins de Tain, an exhibition of wines from the whole area with over 80 vintners participating. This exhibition lasts for four days and begins on the last Friday in February. At this wine salon, Valrhona brings their chocolates to add to the celebrations. The exhibition takes place together with Tain L'Hermitage's sister town of Tournon (Tournon-sur-Rhône) on the other side of the River Rhône.

Click on, or copy/paste the French language below website and use Google or Bing translate:

http://www.salondesvinsdetain.fr/

Then you will know where to go and what to consider trying.

These are the appellations from the Rhone Valley
that will be on the show.

These towns of Tain L'Hermitage and Tournon needed boats to cross over and meet with their neighbors and family until 1825. Then they were connected by a double wire suspension bridge designed by Marc Seguin (1786-1875). Among his many other achievements, Marc Seguin was the inventor of the wire suspension bridge and built nearly similar 200 bridges in France alone. In 1847 Seguin built another bridge between the two towns; that pedestrian bridge is still used, and that is now the oldest wire-cable suspension bridge in the world. Since then, of course, a more heavily traveled road bridge connects the two towns.

The oldest double-wire suspension bridge in the world.
Pedestrians only.

Tain L'Hermitage's Fête des Vendanges is a wine festival that celebrates only their own wines. That celebration lasts for three days, beginning the second Friday in September. Their English language website is:

http://int.rendezvousenfrance.com/en

Where is Tain L'Hermitage

Tain L'Hermitage is in the department of Drôme in the region of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region; it is 85 km (53 miles) from Avignon and 75 km (47 miles) from Lyon. It set on the River Rhône. Its sister town of Touron (Tournon-sur-Rhône) is in the department of Ardeche, also in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.

The French language web site for the Tain L'Hermitage Tourist Information Office is:

http://www.hermitage-tournonais-tourisme.com/fr/
Google and Bing translate make it easily readable.

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