Dijon Burgundy

John LINDGREN

A Gastronomic Heaven in the Heart of Europe - Bangkok to Dijon


"Final call for Mr "Linngleenn " AF 169 destination Paris – Final call…" “Final call for…”


I heard my name announced and left the ultra modern and luxurious new Air France business class lounge after my second glass of Champagne Duval Leroy Fleur de Champagne, non vintage, and headed swiftly for Gate E65, Suwarnabhumi International Airport. Air France 169 the “night flight” is the daily service to Paris departure at 23.05 hours.

As soon as we reached cruising altitude of 10.000 meters, the food trolleys rolled out of the galley loaded with a choice selection of gourmet meals. Impeccable service by a cabin crew smartly dressed in Christian Lacroix haute couture uniforms. The in-flight menu and wines are absolument, veryy French! Hors d'Oeuvre: Duck foie gras terrine with gingerbread and marinated dried fruit. To match the goose liver I chose Nicolas Fuillante Blancs de Blancs, Champagne.
Main Course: Lamb noisette accompanied by bean puree and snow peas with olive oil the tender lamb was washed down with a red Bordeaux Haut-Medoc Chateau de Villambis 2005 Cru Bourgeois. And for dessert: Selection des Fromage, of course; Camembert, Comte and Saint Maure with a glass of Port Tawny 10 years old. The Illy coffee and XO cognac was tempting but I decided to have another glass of the Nicolas Feuillante Champagne, nv produced entirely from the vitis vinifera Chardonnay grape.

Approximately 10 hours later Captain Jean-Paul Bouchard smoothly lands the white tricolor liveried Airbus 340-300 with a full payload at "CDG" Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport, the ever expanding hub and HQ of Air France/KLM one of world's largest air carriers since the merger with the Dutch airline Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij, in 2004. Paris ground temperature: 7 degrees Celcius or 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Bonjour Paris!


Off the plane and on to the train. But, first a steaming hot shower at the AF arrival lounge "Salon de Arrivee " at Charles de Gaulle hall-B. A comfortable, secluded business class area with wood paneled changing rooms, high tech shower facilities cubicles, big fluffy white towels and delicious RogeR&Gallet bathroom accoutrements.


The lounge snack/breakfast counter shelves filled with freshly baked chocolate croissants, fruit and hot coffee, muesli, yoghurt, juices, and a plethora of glossy French, international magazines and newspapers and complimentary a high-speed internet access. I think to myself "arrive in better shape” the old Cathay Pacific (CX) slogan as I bounce out of the arrival lounge showered, shaved, booted and suited.

The underground train station is situated next to the CDG arrival hall. A 35 minute train ride to the legendary Gare de Lyon and hop on the TGV "Train de Grande Vitesse" the original French version of what the Japanese call the bullet train "Shinkansen". The British may have invented the locomotive but it was the French who smashed the 300 kph barrier for passengers trains. The TGV high tech network now serves all corners of France. For the wine aficionados and gourmets there are 2-3 hour high-speed train connections from Paris to the coveted vineyards of Bordeaux, Strasbourg (Alsace) and Dijon (Burgundy). From my window seat, 1er classe on the TGV Dijon-Lausanne (Switzerland) I notice as we as we shoot down the tracks running parallel with the auto route motorway that the cars driving in slow motion at 120 kph and we overtake like a wind in speeds 250 to 300 kilometers per hour.


As I step down from the train at Dijon station (La Gare) I see my man from Burgundy Tourist promotion Board. Monsieur Claude on the platform with his sign held high. Mr LINDGREN, correctly spelled in upper case. " Bonjour Monsieur, he exclaims, surprised that I speak the language of Moliere and Rabelais. “Monsieur. No! English, please!” I refuse to communicate in English, when I am in France. “Francais s’il vous plait, Monsieur ”!

My first impression, emerging from the grey, nondescript railway station, was of another dreary, congested bleak modern city. But alas, I was wrong. Dijon (Dee-sho-onn ) the ancient capital of Burgundy was a city of a hundred Gothic churches, palatial splendor, medieval timbered villas and cobble stoned narrow alleys and also the seat of power for one of the mightiest states in Europe.
Led by the Valois dukes les ducs, these lands stretched through present day Belgium and the Netherlands. The guide book tells me and Monsieur Claude adds "the dominance of the Valois dukes lasted for 113 years and through the Hundred Years’ War and ended when finally falling to France in 1477."Five hundred-thirty years ago. But more than 600 of the Romanesque castles, thousands of churches and chapels have miraculously survived the urban development”.


He adds: "And look how well we have preserved the old Dijon!” No high rise office towers, no condominiums, no mega-Cineplex shopping malls – and no Starbucks - yet”! "Today our peaceful and still provincial Burgundy is one of the most prosperous regions in France, historically, gastronomically and culturally. Our logo is the escargot, the snail (Helix pomatia) he says. "The logo of Burgundy Regional Tourist Board (CRT) www.bourgogne-tourisme.com " It's here on my business card. Voila! - Escargot!" After being delivered by Mr Claude to my hotel, Sofitel La Cloche. I write in my notebook: "Another vintage four star Sofitel property. La Cloche dates from 1885. A "Grand Hotel" par excellence with flags flying from the balcony, grey stone, fin-de-siecle conservative elegance, complete with high ceilings, pink-and-gray marble floors, Oriental carpets, comfortable and elegant rooms and a guest list as impressive as Sofitel Hanoi including King of Belgium Albert the I st, Ferdinand de Lesseps (Monsieur Le Suez canal), Joan Baez (60s folk singer), the Sultan of Morocco and Grace Kelly, the iconic movie star who became the Queen of Monaco).


The hotel décor was favored by Napoleon III who checked in on the 1st June 1856". I checked in on 19th of September 2007 and my guest room is certainly smaller than the emperors – but has a balcony overlooking Place Darcy, a park and a bus-stop.


For a first time visitor, a Burgundian dinner should commence with a with a kir because Dijon is the birthplace of Canon Felix Kir, a priest who was both mayor of Dijon and a resistance fighter during the German occupation of France.

The famous aperitif which would later carry his name kir consists of two parts dry white wine, traditionally aligoté, a lesser Burgundy varietal and splash of crème de cassis, a sweet liqueur made from the local blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum) that grow on the Burgundian hillsides. His favorite drink was a mix of white Burgundy wine and cassis. The dinner venue is the elegant dining room of Sofitel La Cloche overlooking the a small garden with a pond ans a statue. My aperitif, kir is accompanied by a selection of amuse bouche; foie gras, canapés and Burgundy's picnic classic, jambon persillé. jellied ham with parsley which is or ham cooked in a terrine with fresh parsley and served cold. A short walk in the garden and the hors d'ouvre: 12 escargots or edible snails , swimming in butter garlic and parsley on a hot, black heavy cast iron pan. A chilled bone dry Chablis 1er cru Vaucoupin, 2005 Domaine Alain et Cyril Gautheron to wash down the mollusks and the main course Beef Bourguignon ( "bour-gunn-gjonn") sounds complicated but it's simply a stew with a bit of red wine thrown in. You can't beat a good, hearty, rustic meal which is as French as La Baguette, Le Peugeot and the Eifel Tower. To match the slow cooked beef a Pinot Noir, of course. Our maitre d’hotel chose Moray-Saint Denis, 2005 Domaine Alain Jenanniard. Burgundy in the glass and on the plate. Gastronomic heaven: Vive La Cuisine Bourguignonne!


Since I am in the land of cheese Fromage I reminiscence Charles De Gaulle who said “How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?” So a cheese platter for dessert, a must. There is the Époisse, the grand cru of Burgundy cheeses with an overwhelmingly strong smell and 'melt-in-the-mouth', velvet texture.

Emperor Napolen Bonaparte was a particular fan of Époisses and the legendary epicure Brillat-Savarin classed it as the "king of all cheeses". Another classic stinker is the semi-soft cheese Citeaux produced by the monks at the Abbaye de Cîteaux. Annual production 70 metric tons. Also a raw cows milk cheese but with milder aroma than it’s cousin Epoisse.
So the adage "Bonne appetite et large soif " fits perfectly for Burgundy. A tad lost in translation it means: "Good eating and good drinking". Hence, when in Dijon, you should do as the Dijonnais are said to do - eat & drink. Burgundy, Dijon has the ambiance, the food and the wine. Trust me .



The wines some of the finest in the world – such as Romanee Conti, La Tache, Richebourg, Le Musigny and Le Montrachet. One bottle of the ‘78 vintage of this Grand Cru “super Chardonnay” was sold at a Sotheby's New York auction in 2002 for whopping 23. 929 dollars.



Even Bob Dylan mentions Burgundy wines in his 60s Tom Thumb’s Blues: “I started out on Burgundy but soon I hit the harder stuff”.
Today, Burgundy has 3.000 estates (or domains) 113 vine merchants (or negociants) and produced 1.5 million hectoliters or 200 million bottles with 63 percent white wine and 37 percent red wine. But only two grapes. Chardonnay for the white and Pinot Noir for the red. The wines being divided into four quality/price levels: Regional Appelations, Communal Appelations, Premier Crus and the super star Grand Crus accounting only 2 percent of the total production.
One of the Grand Cru labels is Chateau Romanee Conti or Domaine Romanee Conti (DRC) a legendary Burgundy red wine; 100 percent Pinot Noire produced in small quantities, 7.000 bottles per year creating a huge worldwide demand.


That is why a bottle (75 cl) of Chateau Romanée Conti will set you back USD 3,000 and even more. A well stored bottle of the DRC 1978 vintage was sold at USD 25. 000 in at an wine auction also in New York.
Last, but not least the Dijon mustard Le moutarde de Dijon, the "condiment of kings". Dijon has reigned as France's mustard capital since Gallo-Roman times. Burgundy still produces about 70 percent of France's premium mustards.

Today, Dijon mustard comes in many different flavors including walnut, blue cheese, raspberry, cognac, tarragon and colors such as yellow, blue, green red and a super strong lime green tarragon blend which will immediately make your legs tremble, your scalp and throat itch and your eyes water. The most sought after brands are Grey-Poupon and Maille.


My favorite since my student days in France is “GP” Honey Mustard made with white wine. Its fat free, low carb loaded with a powerful mustard seed flavor. Delicious on hotdogs and turkey or ham sandwiches. Not every one would appreciate this strong flavor but it is certainly worth a try if you like the true, natural unadulterated mustard seed flavor.

Make no mistake; Dijon the capital of Burgundy is a charming pedestrian and bicycle friendly town with filled with landmarks of Romanesque architecture the perfect ambiance be a gourmand, a hedonist and wine bibber at a fraction of Paris restaurant dining and wining prices. After my dinner I retired to my room and started digesting my first day impressions of Dijon, Burgundy, France.
I closed my notebook, capped my ball pen and fell asleep on the heavenly featherbed with duvet and four pillows in room 101 Sofitel la Cloche.
RESOURCES:

AIR FRANCE KLM
www.airfrance.co.th
www.airfrance.com

Sofitel La Cloche
14 Place Dijon
2100 Dijon
www.hotel-lacloche.com

Maison de la France
French Tourist Office South East Asia
541 Orchard Road # 11-02
Liat Towers Singapore 238881
www.franceguide.com/sg



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