Reims, France

Charles de Casanove

Avoiding the really large champagne houses, I found myself at Casanove. I was the only person present when I happened to stop in, which afforded me undivided attention. I requested to taste the larges variety of flavor profiles that they offered. Each glass that i had was delicate and nuanced, but ranged from being more clean and dry to dynamic on the palate, including experiences of plum and concord grape. I also tasted a vintage 2013, blanc de blanc, blanc de noir, and special cuvee. 

Tresor de Champagne

Another champagne experience was visiting this establishment that offers the opportunity to taste a variety of grower champagnes. Each is carefully curated and a different selection is open each day. Not only was the ambiance playful, but it was delightful to select the type of tasting that I would do across many different producers.

La Foch

Service at this restaurant was formal and lacked personality with the restaurant housed in an equally formal space with clean lines and lacking warm touches. I left with highly deviant impressions on this Michelin experience, as there was clearly technique that somehow missed the mark on flavor integration for me.

Mushroom puree

This delivered a simple umami bite, definitively mushroom with a thick and creamy texture, but lacked in highlighting flavors such as acid or spiciness. 

Sushi with celery root and nasturtium 

This was a pleasant bite of perfectly tender fish and I appreciated the creativity to utilize nasturtium as the spiciness rather than wasabi. Overall, tasty without being memorable. 

Mussels with leek

This dish provided a curry spicing to the mussels, which I anticipated enjoying, but found that the leeks detracted significantly from the plate. The leeks were presented as raw with a tough texture that was not cohesive with the rest of the dish.  

Seared Tuna

This was served with a beautifully delicate dashi broth with endless depth and the most perfect vegetables each the most perfect version of their variety that I have ever eaten. Absolutely presented with perfect taste and texture! However, the seared tuna did not have a detectable seasoning and the simple sear did not integrate well with the remainder of the plate. 

Bread and Butter

A gluten free bread was presented with algae butter and salted butter. 

Pineapple 

Poached pineapple that was cloying sweet and highly sticky texture with the foam atop it not adequate to compete nor balance the extreme sweetness of the pineapple. I was uncertain how to appreciate the intention behind the dish as it lacked other flavors and depth.

Fruit

The final palate cleanser was diced fruit. It was prepared without regard to acidity as each fruit included was high in acid, actually to such an overdone degree that my palate stung as though it was being burned by the acidity, which may have also been impacted by the prior dish of pineapple, an equally acidic fruit. 

Overall, I did not find that I appreciated the cuisine at this Michelin restaurant for my preferences, but others give it high regard.