A very special Champagne Dinner at Etain - Glasgow

Veuve Clicquot Atelier Evening, 25 April 2006.

As timing goes this must have been one of the most perfectly placed dinner opportunities. Etain in Glasgow's Princes Square (part of the Terrence Conran group who also run Zinc) organised one of their special tasting dinners, complimented with carefully chosen wines. This one was a bit unusual, in that Veuve Clicquot was the only wine served, albeit four different versions of it. And with the panel tripping off to Champagne soon, we couldn't miss this opportunity.

As the menu stated this unusual event highlights two interpretations of the same ingredients, creating a six course menu of two starters, followed by two main courses, and two desserts.

Each course is designed to compliment the specially selected Champagnes from the 1999 vintage of the house of Veuve Clicquot.

The evening became even more special with Veuve's winemaker, Cyril Brun, introducing the wines, as well as the faultless service at Etain.

Geoffrey Smeddle, Etain's chef had pulled the stops out and came up with a fantastic menu to accompany the wines.

The aperitif, Veuve Clicquot NV Rose, which was recently launched, is a lovely creamy, fresh introduction to the evening.

The menu really took off with the;

Salmon ballotine, warm beignet of smoked haddock, crushed broad beans & langoustine vinaigrette

followed by;

Poached Loch Duart salmon, fricassee of langoustines & broad beans with smoked haddock veloute

Both were served with the Veuve Clicquot Brut Reserve 1999.

I liked how this matched the poached salmon in particular. It was lovely and creamy. Some toasty character and fresh lemon zest as well as a bit of truffle oil (Pinot Noir?). Elegant and refreshing.

The main courses;

Roast breast of duck, seared foie gras, braised endive & aged balsamic

followed by;

Duck confit croquette with mango & cardamom compote; Poached, chilled foie gras with earl grey poached plums; Anise scented duck breast with sweet & sour endive & Szechuan oil

These were served with the Veuve Clicquot Rich Reserve 1999.

The Rich Reserve has 28 grams of residual sugar and therefore comes across a bit sweeter and technically makes this a Champagne in the 'sec' category. It is made from 60% Pinot Noir, with the remainder mainly Chardonnay and a little bit of Pinot Meunier. The grapes are all sourced from Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyard sites.

It has a rich confit nose. Lovely complex and delicious palate. Great balance and texture.

The combination with the poached foie gras and plums was absolutely out of this world. The flavours work together to find a perfect balance, the acidity and sugar from the Champagne almost melting the foie gras. Absolutely divine.

Dessert consisted of;

Elderflower jelly with fresh berries, almond & pear tart with apricot sorbet

followed by;

Hot apricot soufflé with elderflower sorbet

These were all served with Veuve Clicquot Rose Reserve 1999.

Although I liked the combination with the pear and almond tart, this didn't work as well for me with the apricot sorbet. The elderflower jelly was more subtle and didn't overpower too much.

The soufflé worked better for me as it picked up some of the biscuity Champagne characters.

After all that I struggled with the petit fours, even though they were homemade and delicious. At Etain they do things very well. The food was thoughtfully prepared, utterly delicious and the combination with Champagne was stunning. A real tribute to Geoffrey Smeddle, but also to Champagne in general. It shows this need not be just a pre-dinner drink, but easily stands its ground with a wide variety of flavours.

It has certainly put us all in the mood for our impending trip to Champagne. Watch this space for a wealth of sparkling information making its way onto the site.