“Champagne helps the wonder,” said the writer George Sand. Even Krug must think so. Krug is one of the main maisons in the world of sparkling wine. To celebrate its last edition – the 169th one – of Grand Cuvée, it developed a series of immersive musical experiences online to enjoy in front of a glass of wine of the new Èdition. This synesthetic experience merges wine tasting, sounds, voices, and audios 8D. It is curated by the Belgian songwriter and producer Ozark Henry and the VOCES8, an international choral singing group.
The project is a musical interpretation of the Grand Cuvèe, the best symbol of the brand set up in 1843. The wine production, carried out by the Chef de Caves Julie Cavil, has similarities with the work of an orchestra director who has to connect different instruments. Every year, Cavil and the tasting committee start a creative process by tasting hundreds of wines to evaluate the melodies, and then they proceed with the composition, in which each of them is essential for the final result.
In this case, the starting point was the harvest in 2013. It was an exceptional year that gave the wines chromatic elegance and fullness, further accentuated in the blend with dozens of reserve wines from different vineyards and années (the oldest is one of 2000). The result is a champagne with soft and refined tones, lively effervescence, characterized by floral, fruit and citrus notes, with touches of gingerbread. It is suited to a wide variety of matchings, from simple food such as aged Parmesan to gourmet dishes, from fish (oysters or grilled prawns) to desserts (carrot cakes, cheesecakes, tarte tatin).
The Grand Cuvée 169 represents the last chapter of a century-year-old process started by the founder Joseph Krug, an idealist and unconventional winemaker who aspired to obtain, year after year, the best champagne, regardless of climate change. His dream is now honored by the first chapter of a series of immersive experiences.
Among the estimators of the new entry in Krug’s maison, there is the chef Ciccio Sultano of Duomo di Ragusa, two Michelin stars kept from 2006, and a brand ambassador. He praises the maison because it is an expression of simplicity (which, according to him, is a synonym of uniqueness). He matches the KGC 169 èmè Èdition with four basic dishes: caponata, olives with onions, tomatoes and basil, sauce of anchovy and crunchy bread. Together with the wine, they create “a moment of lightness and carefreeness that we all need”. What better way to toast the post-pandemic restart?
Chef in Town- a food and beverage column curated by
Intl Editor Francesca Romana Riggio
