A Culinary Journey through Europe
www.european-food-journal.com
A Culinary Journey through Europe
www.european-food-journal.com
Dear Reader, Six world-famous Michelin-starred chefs have taken us on a personal culinary journey through Europe. We kick off in Italy – where three-star chef and avant garde gastronome Massimo Bottura calls home. His restaurant in Modena is nothing short of an experimental laboratory where the future of Italian cuisine is bubbling merrily on top of the stove. After this emotional rollercoaster we arrive in Budapest where Tamás Széll spirits us away to sample the culinary secrets of Hungary and explains why Hungary’s national dish is definitely not called ‘goulash’. The next chef on our journey is the Swiss mushroom expert and rabbit meat ambassador, Thuri Maag, who is currently celebrating the comeback of ‘Chüngel’ in Swiss cuisine. In Germany, we are welcomed by TV-chef Ralf Zacherl who is a big fan of regional cuisine. At the Dutch border our journey really takes flight – literally. In the spectacular hot air balloon restaurant operated by the Dutch Michelin-starred chef Angélique Schmeinck. Our next stop is France, where haute cuisine is undergoing a period of huge change. The initiator of this upheaval is the great three-star chef and revolutionary, Alain Ducasse, who is merging haute cuisine with the concept of ‘naturalness’. All of the chefs we interviewed have also given us some valuable insider tips about the culinary secrets just waiting to be discovered throughout the European continent: Recipes, the best markets, national dishes and regional specialities. Join us on our culinary journey in the following pages and experience the colourful panoply that is European cuisine. Enjoy! Your editorial team
PAGE 9
PAGE 25
PAGE 74
The Trip PAGE 39
PAGE 49
PAGE 60
About Jeffrey Blair Catrett
Guest editorial by
Jeffrey Blair Cartrett, Academic Director of the Institut Paul Bocuse, France
The future of gastronomy: Boring or blasé no longer works
Jeffrey Blair Catrett has been the Academic Director of the renowned Institut Paul Bocuse in Ecully, France, since 2012. The majestic French chef Paul Bocuse founded the Institut Paul Bocuse personally in 1990. It claims to be the ‘guarantor of French know-how internationally’ as regards culinary practices and hotel and restaurant management. With Mr. Catrett spearheading the academic research area, the institute has an outstanding personality who possesses 25 years’ experience and administration at some of the world’s most prestigious institutions. Before joining the Paul Bocuse Institute, Mr. Catrett was Dean of Kendall College in Chicago and the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne. He has also successfully negotiated partnerships with elite academic and industry partners.
www.european-food-journal.com
A subtle yet critically important evolution is affecting today’s gastronomy and foodservice. During the last few decades, great culinary talents worldwide have attracted guests to their tables to discover the excellence of first-class cuisine. Such kitchen greats as Paul Bocuse have generously shared their knowledge and transmitted their expertise to every corner of the globe. The creative talent of the best gastronomic minds has led customers to see chefs not as competent craftsmen as they might have 50 years ago, but rather as fine artists very much front and center in their restaurants. The chef led; the people followed and appreciated.
www.european-food-journal.com
Television food channels, Internet food blogs, expert-based and crowd-sourced criticism, advanced distribution supply chains, democratized global travel: All have led to a much greater understanding of and also demand for good food. Whole generations of customers worldwide are now savvy to quality food, to a variety of cuisines, to restaurant concepts and lifestyle designs, to exciting locations from gastronomic citadels to the street. Today’s educated customers are now reversing the order of things and are driving the demand for the types of food they want at the prices they want to pay, at the times they want it and in the places they want to eat it. The quirky nature of Generation Y is matched by the increasing, finicky necessity of the aging Baby Boomers, and customer tastes are fragmenting and multiplying. The great variety of today’s lifestyles means that chefs must now respond to demands for healthy food sensitive to specific diets, to food that respects environmental constraints, to food that is fun to eat in casual or novel surroundings, to authentic cuisines restructured, to technological supports for service, to food as part of a broader cultural panoply. This new fragmentation of tastes seems to lead often to a clash in wants and desires difficult to resolve into a single offer. Food scandals and environmental concerns push for local prod-
ucts and organic farming, while experience and boredom demand the exotic and the global. Awareness of waste encourages the use of ugly and forgotten vegetables, while love of the beautiful suggests ever-more refined plating and science-based adventuring. Health issues and allergies require healthier meals; uber-luxury (one-upping mass luxury) seeks ever greater extremes. Deeper knowledge demands the authentic, yet over-exposure yearns for the revolutionary. Technology enables efficiency in service and production (food can be 3-D printed) and is embraced by a new generation; the digital world has given rise to a yearning for social contact and a return to old institutions like the table d’hôte. There are, nevertheless, some discernable directions for restaurateurs, hoteliers and caterers. One size will no longer fit all. In a world of fragmented tastes, differentiation is a necessity. Quality is necessary at all levels. The old trade-off between price and quality no longer applies. Real crises have alerted the world to www.european-food-journal.com
real awareness of environment and health. Whereas the public previously proclaimed their interest in these issues while secretly wanting excess when dining out, they are now part of the mainstream. Design and style (even the stylized search for the revolutionary) are sine qua non. Boring or blasĂŠ no longer works. People are less gullible and less forgiving. Price gouging and inflation for brands in place of real value for money will no longer fly in most markets. And most importantly, the chef and the establishment will find themselves less and less able to dictate behaviours. Mealtimes, restaurant types, dress codes, menus, pricing, ingredients, even the physical boundaries of the eating space will more and more be defined by the consumer. In a world of increasingly savvy consumers with largely fragmented tastes who are quickly bored and ready to move on to the next offer, the importance of creativity and innovation are at an all-time premium, but service providers must be ready to react to and even bow to the whims of this new public.
www.european-food-journal.com
Guest article
Agnès Giboreau, Research Director at the institute Paul Bocuse
About Agnès Giboreau Agnès Giboreau is head manager of research at the Institut Paul Bocuse. She has a PhD in Food Science and an MSc in Cognitive Psychology. She instructs research supervision in Neurosciences and Cognition at the University of Lyon. Her research activity aims at better understanding the pleasure of eating and its relation to health from both perceptual and behavioural perspectives. Projects focus on the meal experience in a multidisciplinary approach and rely on studies conducted in real situations. This is done through the unique facilities of the experimental restaurant, a Living Lab (labelled Enoll) where professional experts work together with scientists, contributing to food design and production as well as table design and service. The results are published in peerreviewed journals and conferences, and are communicated to the food service and hospitality sectors by training future professionals as well as specific cooperative programs.
The experimental restaurant
www.european-food-journal.com
The center for food and hospitality research, Institut Paul Bocuse, studies consumer eating behaviour mainly in relation to out-of-home consumption. Three main components are important in understanding consumer behaviour: habits (what food they usually consume, where, when, how), choice (what food they choose in a restaurant, based on which criteria: price, quantity, label) and perception (how much they like a food, for which sensory reasons: appearance, texture, taste, aroma). The research center conducts human-centered investigations aimed at increasing our understanding of restaurant customers. Projects are conducted in the Living Lab, an experimental restaurant where diners book their meals, lunch or dinner as in a commercial restaurant, paying for their meal but agreeing to be part of experiments while being filmed or asked questions. These studies allow us to analyze various factors affecting consumer habits, choice and perception in real contexts, which is a new trend for consumer research. For instance, children’s vegetable preferences have been studied in this context with the conclusion that 7- to 11-yearold, pre-adolescents prefer crunchy textures (Morizet et al., 2011) – see the example on the level of consumption for carrots. This approach also allows us to study the emotional state of diners in the restaurant as it is influenced by the surrounding visual ambiance. www.european-food-journal.com
Five colour schemes (reference, red, blue, white and green) were set up for one week each at the experimental restaurant. The results of this investigation show the effect of colour on the emotional state of customers in the first minutes after arriving at the restaurant, with the red colour scheme leading to a more tense emotional state. However, under all conditions, guests experienced more positive feelings after the meal: feelings of admiration, being pleasantly surprised and reassurance all increased for all of the colour schemes tested. In summary, taking context into account in consumer research is important when evaluating the effect both the food and the environment have in terms of consumer satisfaction. Thus, the Living Lab at the Institut Paul Bocuse is a powerful tool that we can use to re-create a real-life situation and help professionals to drive innovation in a consumer-centered approach.
www.european-food-journal.com
Massimo Bottura,
Italian chef, who currently holds three Michelin stars
© Paolo Terzi
“Don’t mess with the Pope, soccer or grandmother’s recipes” www.european-food-journal.com
About Massimo Bottura Massimo Bottura is an Italian chef from Modena with three Michelin stars to his name. He describes his close affinity with Italian cuisine by saying, “My bones are made of Parmigiano Reggiano, and balsamic vinegar rushes through my veins.” His hometown of Modena is also home to his restaurants: Trattoria del Campazzo opened its doors to customers in 1986 and was joined by Osteria la Francescana in 1995. Bottura has even expanded beyond his Italian home. He now has an eponymous restaurant in Istanbul called Ristorante Italia di Massimo Bottura. The avant garde/traditional-style cuisine espoused by the Italian chef is known throughout the world and has been recognized with a long list of awards. Bottura won three Michelin stars in 2011. Just how much his international fans adore his work is shown in an award from Restaurant Magazine: Osteria La Francescana is placed third on a list of the 50 best restaurants in the world in 2014. 1962
© Paolo Terzi
Born in Modena
1995
The famous Osteria Francescana opened its doors
2011
Three Michelin stars for Massimo Bottura
2013
Ambassador for Food in the Year of Italian Culture in the United States
2014
Osteria Francescana is voted third-best restaurant in the world for the second time in a row
Italians love food and pleasure. Italian chef Massimo Bottura, who currently holds three Michelin stars, is hugely respectful of traditional food culture in his home country. His grandmother’s recipes are revered like sacred texts. However, they can only survive if they continue to evolve, says the grand master of avant-garde cuisine in an interview with European Food Journal. Just as a lemon tart can be broken into pieces to make something new, art lover and music aficionado Massimo Bottura believes he can transform – and save – traditional Italian cuisine.
EFJ: Mr. Bottura, let us accompany you on a personal culinary journey of discovery around Europe. Which European countries or cities do you think serve the best food and drink? Massimo Bottura: I love travelling… but I do it often for business and not enough for pleasure. Rarely do I have the chance to wander a city on my own and discover it little by little. I am usually visiting chef friends or an art gallery or museum. Nonetheless, when I travel, I
always try to experience new cuisines and eat at simple places to understand how people are eating locally. Street food is a good indicator of how healthy or rich the food economy is in a city. Usually good street food leads to interesting restaurants. It’s hard for me to say the cities where you can eat the best because I have chef friends everywhere. When I am in Paris, London, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Amsterdam or San Sebastian, I visit them – and therefore have a very biased view. We talk, we eat, and www.european-food-journal.com
© Paolo Terzi
we share stories. I always ask them to choose the dishes for me. Today you really can eat well in so many places that have never been famous for their food, such as Sweden or Holland. This is due to a general awareness about the value of good food and the importance of reviving traditions and improving upon them. Some people are nostalgic about the past. In my opinion, we have never eaten as well in Europe as we do today. EFJ: Where can the most beautiful traditional markets be found? Massimo Bottura: Markets are everywhere if you look. Paris has several market areas – each with its own flavour. I love the shopping street Rue Montorgueil as well as the new curated Marché Saint-Martin. It all depends what you are looking for. London’s Brick Lane near Spitalfields is always fantastically colourful with very delicious street food. Stockholm’s covered market is small but charming and www.european-food-journal.com
specializes in herring and seafood. We had a fabulous herring-based lunch there last March. Amsterdam’s Bloemenmarkt flower market on the barges is just a feast for the eyes. The one I know and am most fond of is the beautiful covered food market in Modena. On a Saturday morning, I love to wander around the Albinelli Mercato, a covered market from 1919, in the center of the city beside the main square next to our 11th century Romanesque church. Not only do I have a chance to catch up with our fruit and vegetable vendors, our fishmonger, and other stalls in the market, but I always grab a warm baccalà fritter from my friend Massimo Manzini for an early aperativo or stop by Schiaoni Bar, where the Fantoni sisters make a great cotechino and salsa verde sandwich.
Shopping in a market is about buying the food but also about the buzz. We run into friends and socialize and nibble while we shop, which is so much more fun than pushing around a cart in a supermarket. EFJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Europe in terms of culinary regions? Massimo Bottura: Each area of Europe has been defined by its food culture, the landscape and climate, as well as by the immigrants who have settled there. The kitchen is a place for exchange and cultural collisions – even clashes. Sometimes these clashes form the most interesting flavours. Our kitchen is filled with young chefs from all over the world and all over Italy. Each individual is unique and brings with them a food culture that adds to the diversity. Are there distinct food regions? There are clear food trends that I am seeing such as Nordic cuisine, which is re-inventing itself with ideas and ingredients once thought to be of little or no value. Northern Europe, countries like Holland, Brussels and Germany, are searching for a deeper and more personal connection to their kitchen after years of copying the French. This is very exciting and groundbreaking. The French are beginning to let down their hair
and their strict dining codes to make room for more accessible dining establishments, which is leading to a welcome twist on French traditions. Spain has led the way with innovation, not only technique but new dining concepts, for the past 15 years and now is reaching into its rich past to bring forth Spanish traditions that have been neglected over the years. England, especially London, is playing host to so many interesting restaurants and chefs. It has become the food capital of Europe. Just think, only 20 years ago, it was a food desert! And Italy, well, there is always a good meal to be found here, but today more than ever, there is a group of young chefs who are pushing the boundaries of Italian cuisine and finding new ways to express the known and beloved flavours of Italy from Piedmont in the north to the deep south in Sicily. EFJ: Which European country has the best food specialties, and what are they? Massimo Bottura: That is a very tricky question to ask to an Italian. I feel fortunate to live and work in Italy, where we have some of the most incredible producers and products in the world. There is no substitute for Parmigiano Reggiano. We use several ages of Parmigiano Reggiano in the restaurant from different local producers. It
www.european-food-journal.com
© Thomas Ruhl
is the most amazing cheese I have ever worked with in the kitchen – and an integral part of our terroir. Another irreplaceable product is traditional balsamic vinegar from Modena. Then there is extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany or Lake Garda, Liguria or Umbria, Calabria or Sicily. Each has its own microclimate and personality. All contribute to a healthy and flavourful kitchen. Capers from southern Italy – Puglia, Sicily and Pantelleria – are the base of many sauces and the secret ingredient to many recipes. Tomatoes from Naples, grown in the soil enriched with volcanic ash from Vesuvius. Citrus fruits: Sorrento lemons, Sicilian oranges, Calabrian Bergamot lemons. Not to mention the wines made all over Italy – from Friuli in the far northeast to Pantelleria in the far southwest. At the end of the day, any successful kitchen begins with understanding the value of relationships with artisans, cheese makers, butchers, fishmongers, farmers, olive oil producers. They are our heroes.
chefs. This is the trend for the next decade, not fast food, and maybe forever. Someday instead of chef superstars, there will be farmer superstars. That will be a great day indeed. EFJ: As a celebrity chef from Italy, you have a special relationship with Italian cuisine. Can you tell us about one of your favourite recipes from Italy for our culinary journey? Massimo Bottura: My favourite Emilian dish is tortellini. I grew up under my grandmother’s table hiding from my three older brothers. Nonna Ancella was always making egg pasta and folding tortellini for our large family. I not only have an emotional attachment to tortellini but a gastronomic one, as well.
Massimo Bottura: Modena is the land of slow food and fast cars, but really not only Modena, all of Europe. Think of all the cured meats being made artisanally, the handcrafted cheeses and naturally leaven breads. All slow food. Then think of Formula 1 race cars – built in Germany, the UK and Italy. Modena alone produces Ferrari, Maserati and Lamborghini cars. Engineering and dreams of speed meet artisans, chefs and farmers, who are redesigning our menus and our palates to bring us back to our terroir. The more we focus on terroir, on the amazing resources we have been given by our ancestors, the more we are able to create recipes with lasting value. Ethics and aesthetics go hand in hand. Think about the power of slow food and how it has changed a generation of
www.european-food-journal.com
© Per Anders Jorgensen
EFJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will dominate in Europe in the future?
EFJ: How important is food culture in Italy? What trends and traditions can you discern here?
Massimo Bottura: Food is everything to Italians. Italian cuisine is internationally praised, but too often gets stuck in the notion of grandma’s kitchen. I don’t know exactly why, but people in general do not want Italian cuisine to evolve. I often say that in Italy, there are three things you really don’t dare mess with: The Pope, football (soccer) and your grandmother’s recipes. 20 years ago we did take on those recipes and traditions, and it’s been our great journey to see if we can bring Italian cuisine into the 21st century. That is the trend in Italy right now. We are preserving our past by making it more contemporary – by letting it evolve. I know that sounds like a contradiction, but it is not. What is important to remember with Italian food is that it should be light, healthy and seasonal. EFJ: Let’s talk about your restaurant Osteria Francescana. Where is it located, and what culinary highlights can your guests expect to enjoy? What dining style do you follow? Massimo Bottura: Osteria Francescana is on a small side street called Via Stella in the center of medieval Modena. Every morning people pass by to say hello, from the mayor to the
© Paolo Terzi
They are small packages of Emilian flavour, perfectly balanced and complete. Traditionally they are served in capon broth. At my restaurant Osteria Francescana, we serve them in a Parmigiano Reggiano sauce made without heavy cream but with water and emulsified Parmigiano Reggiano. We boil the tortellini in capon broth so that they can acquire the flavour of the broth, then dress them with the parmesan cream. Delicious! Of course there are other traditional dishes that I serve at Osteria Francescana, modified and I hope improved. Cotechino with lentils is a typical Emilian meal. Cotechino is a large sausage that is boiled for hours. Instead of boiling it, we steam it in Lambrusco. This not only helps degrease the sausage but gives it a wonderful flavour. I then prepare traditional egg pasta ravioli and fill them with a mixture of cotechino and lentils. This is a way of eating cotechino 365 days a year. It is flavourful but light.
www.european-food-journal.com
© Paolo Terzi
postman, and they often find me sweeping the street in front of the restaurant or my wife fixing the flowers pots at the entrance. We are the first ones to care about where we live and work. You make a first impression only once. My kitchen can be defined as ‘Tradition in Evolution’. I revisit traditional recipes and ideas and make them contemporary. This is my specialty. I try very hard to respect tradition, but also to respect ingredients, heroic farmers, butchers and fishermen. Sometimes I have to ask if our traditions respect the ingredients, and if they don’t, then it is time to rework them. ‘Tradition in Evolution’ means bringing the best of the past into the future. We have been working on this idea for 20 years, and we may continue for 20 more. The more I look into the archives of Italian cuisine, the more I find. That is why I am always saying, “Come to Italy with me.” A chef can describe his country better than anyone. EFJ: What about culinary clichés? Are pizza and pasta still the Italian national dishes, or have the nation’s favourite dishes undergone a modern ‘update’? Massimo Bottura: Italy is known for its pizza and spaghetti abroad. These are foods Italians eat regularly, but I wouldn’t say they are national dishes. Each region of Italy has its specialties. In Liguria, the Genovese eat pasta with pesto.
www.european-food-journal.com
In Sicily they use almonds and mint in many of their dishes, and the regional dish is actually couscous, harking back to the Moors who invaded the island centuries ago. The Emilians make hand-rolled egg pasta and serve it with various ragus and seasonal sauces. Rome is famed for its carbonara – egg and bacon – recipe as well as cacio e pepe – cheese and pepper – sauce. In Piedmont they make tortellini called plin with a braised meat sauce. Pizza and spaghetti populate mass culture and a mass culture idea of Italy, but these dishes don’t make up the daily diet in Italy. Actually the widespread love of Italian food has made it more difficult to get my ideas across. Italian cuisine is so loved and adored that no one wants to let it evolve and change. This is a problem for a contemporary chef who is influenced by music, art and the cross-pollination of ideas. It has been very hard for me to move Italian cuisine forward in Italy, and after all these years, nearly 20, with three Michelin stars, there are still people who are sceptical about what we are doing. Reading my new book cover to cover, you can get a new perspective on Italian cuisine, at times seen from under the table or upside down, but really, the cookbook is all about Italy and my love for my country, its ingredients and its traditions.
Delicious
Gourmet Recipes
OOPS! I DROPPED THE LEMON TART Lemongrass gelato:
Tart crust:
200 g whole milk 50 g double (heavy) cream 3 stems lemongrass 30 g sugar 40 g sugar syrup Grated zest of 1 lemon 10 drops Villa Manodori Essenziale lemon oil
40 g cold butter 20 g icing (confectioners’) sugar 1 egg yolk 50 g flour 2 g ground spices (a mixture of star anise, cinnamon, juniper, pepper and cardamom)
Process the ingredients in a thermal mixer and bring them to 85°C (185°F) at full speed. When it reaches temperature, remove and strain the liquid. Let cool in a bowl over ice. Freeze in a Pacojet container and process just before serving.
In a bowl, knead together the cold butter and sugar by hand. Add the egg yolk and flour, and knead thoroughly until smooth. Let rest for 2 hours in the fridge. Roll out the dough on a silicone baking mat until it is 2 mm (1/8 inch) thick. Use it to line moulds with the diameter of 8 cm (3 ¼ inches) at the base and 6 cm (2 ½ inches) at the top to obtain the shape. Bake at 160°C (320°F) for 8 minutes.
Mint sauce: 50 g fresh peppermint leaves 20 g mineral water 6 g Xylitol 0.5 g mint essential oil Bring a pan of water to a boil and blanch the mint in it for 10 seconds, then cool in iced water. Blend the mint thoroughly with the other ingredients, making sure the temperature does not go above 35°C (95°F). Pass it through a fine sieve.
www.european-food-journal.com
OOPS! I DROPPED THE LEMON TART Zabaglione:
Lemon powder:
85 g egg yolk 50 g sugar 80 g lemon juice 80 g Amalfi limoncello
1 lemon
Prepare a pan of boiling water and a heatproof bowl the right size to sit over it without touching the water. Whisk the egg yolk and sugar in the bowl with the hand whisk, off the heat. When the sugar has dissolved well, set the bowl over the pan of boiling water and continue beating vigorously. As soon as the eggs are warm and before they start to thicken, add the lemon juice and limoncello gradually, pouring them very slowly, while continuing to whisk energetically. When it is well whisked and frothy, with a creamy texture, it is ready to be served.
www.european-food-journal.com
Wash the lemon, cut it into thin slices and remove the pips (pits). Put the slices in a dehydrator at 30째C (86째F) for 5 days. Process in a thermal mixer and pass the powder through a fine sieve.
To serve: 4 g candied lemon (rind and pulp) 2 g candied bergamot 1 g candied ginger 1 g lemon powder 1 g capers Arrange the ingredients on the plate. Splash the plate with the zabaglione and add a quenelle of lemongrass gelato in the center. Place the tart crust on top of the gelato, then gently crush it before serving.
Massimo Bottura’s new cookbook ‘Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef’ – Review
Things are steaming, sizzling and bubbling in the Modena lab The contrast could not be starker: With its impressive burgundy binding emblazoned with gold letters, it looks more like a scientific treatise written by a respected international economist towards the end of the 19th century than a cookbook. When you open the book, however, the impression is entirely different: an emotional fireworks display of astonishing images – garnished with recipes boasting unusual sounding names like ‘Hunting the Pigeon,’ ‘Pollution’ and ‘Tribute to the Monk’. And take a good look at the cappuccino in the cup – is that really cappuccino as we know and love it? The illustrations. It is hard to express in words exactly what we are seeing here. The pictures have the same physical effect as an elevator rocketing upwards only to hurtle down again, giving you a sense of weightlessness. A black and white portrait of the well-known Italian top chef, Massimo Bottura, in which he is covering his eyes with hen’s eggs. The work in the kitchen: billowing steam, heavy pans on the gas cooker, bustling activity in the background, laughter. On the next page, a large, lemon-yellow image that looks like a piece of coral. Is that an Italian recipe? Confusion and disgust are the emotions elicited by the image of a decapitated pig’s head and black bin bags tied with string on the street next to it. A book with the title ‘L’Arte di Mangiar bene’ published in 1891 is pictured next to the CD album cover of ‘New York’ by Lou Reed. Massimo Bottura, the man with the beard from Modena, even devotes a double-page spread to honouring the great Italian cheese Parmigiano Reggiano in his new cookbook ‘Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef’. We may not be able to see all the way into Massimo Bottura’s Italian soul, but we do learn a lot about him, his life and the things he thinks are important. First and foremost, among these is the essence of Italian cuisine, which he wants to keep by changing it. It is an ongoing experiment that he introduces to us in his highly autobiographical, emotionally charged new work. “Come to Italy with me,” he calls to us and stretches out his hand. Accept his invitation and you will see Italy from a different perspective and, by the end, perhaps understand what Picasso and hare’s blood have in common. Massimo Bottura: Never Trust a Skinny Italian Chef, Phaidon, London / New York 2014, 296 pp. – www.phaidon.com www.european-food-journal.com
!
PRODUCTS
Pasta & Company S.r.l. More about Pasta & Company S.r.l.
Agnolotti alla Piemontese Packaged in keep-fresh packs of 2 kg (expiration: 12 days) and in modified atmosphere packages of 350 g to 1 kg (expiration: 21 days)
www.pastaecompany.it
Pasta & Company S.r.l. More about Pasta & Company S.r.l.
Handmade Tagliatella Packaged in keep-fresh packs of 2 kg (expiration: 12 days) and in modified atmosphere packages of 500 g to 1 kg (expiration: 16 days)
www.pastaecompany.it
Pasta & Company S.r.l. More about Pasta & Company S.r.l.
Orecchiette Packaged in keep-fresh packs of 3 kg (expiration: 12 days) and in modified atmosphere packages of 350 g to 1 kg (expiration: 16 days)
www.pastaecompany.it www.european-food-journal.com
Corsini Biscotti S.r.l.
Putting Italian biscuits on the map Sweet and crunchy Cantuccini are the perfect accompaniment to coffee but are also popular as an accompaniment to dessert wines and sweet liqueurs. Cantuccini biscuits are a Tuscan speciality made with sweet almonds and twice baked for extra crispness. The bite-size biscuits are cut from a baked log filled with whole, skinned almonds and returned to the oven to toast the cut edges of the almonds and give the biscuits their incomparable crunch. The open texture of the biscuit makes it perfect for dunking, soaking up the coffee in its open pores so that the biscuit crumbles in the mouth in an explosion of flavour. As with so many simple pleasures, it is hard to stop once you have started.
www.european-food-journal.com
Made the traditional way
Celebrate Christmas with a delicious traditional Italian panettone
A taste of Tuscan lifestyle: almond cantuccini
Corsini’s Tuscan cantuccini are made according to a recipe that has been handed down through generations of the Corsini family for nearly a hundred years. Only the finest quality ingredients go into their manufacture to ensure their characteristic flavour. In addition to its traditional almond cantuccini, Corsini also offers chocolate and orange peel versions of this classic treat. Almond cantuccini are one of Italy’s best-known bakery exports and are enjoyed around the world as a sweet taste of the relaxed Tuscan lifestyle. To stand out in a crowded market, Corsini places its faith in traditional artisan baking techniques and an emphasis on authenticity. What sets Corsini’s products apart from those of its competitors is the obvious care and attention that go into their production and the high level of craftsmanship.
www.european-food-journal.com
Christmas Italian style One of the most successful products to conquer the lucrative holiday season is the traditional Italian sweet bread, panettone, which is commonly eaten around Christmas and New Year. Panettone is a celebration bread made with an enriched dough and studded with jewel-like candied citrus peel and raisins. It offers a lighter alternative to the more stodgy Christmas fare commonly served in Northern Europe. This and the fact that it is not easy to make at home go some way to explaining its growing popularity in non-traditional markets. Enriched doughs are known for being tricky to work with because adding sugar, butter and eggs to the dough retards the action of the yeast, making it difficult to achieve the light, open texture of a good panettone. Needless to say, Corsini’s panettone scores highly in all categories, including flavour, texture and appearance. The company also offers more unusual versions featuring the addition of untypical flavours such as chocolate, cherries, apricots and chestnuts. Just because a product has a long tradition doesn’t mean that it is forbidden to tinker with the recipe.
Traditional Tuscan specialities are also on the menu
Makes a perfect gift: Polendina
Tradition is written large at the Corsini bakery. Its baked goods are made using the same basic ingredients and the same processes as nearly a hundred years ago, without additives, preservatives or artificial flavourings. The results speak for themselves. In a product range comprising over 140 different specialities, including traditional Italian breakfast biscuits, a full selection of cakes and tarts as well as delicious filled biscuits, it is hard to single out one that typifies the unique Corsini product philosophy. One product which manages to embody both the traditional values and modern outlook that are characteristic for Corsini’s approach is polendina, one of Corsini’s own creations based on a traditional Tuscan recipe. Polendina is a soft, rounded cake made using chestnut flour. Polendina was created using an ancient Tuscan recipe but reinterpreted for a new generation. It takes the typical cake ingredients of eggs, butter, hazelnuts and almonds and adds another typical component of Tuscan cuisine, extra virgin olive oil, into the mix to give the cake a delicious flavour and unique moistness. Packaged in a traditional wooden box, polendina is the perfect gift to take round to friends for any occasion.
Business Profile
COMPANY NEWS
PRODUCTS
INTERVIEWS
PINBOARD
LinkeD in
Google+
www.european-food-journal.com
The signature cake of Tuscany Another classic Tuscan sweet is panforte. This densely rich cake made with honey and packed with whole nuts is sold in a traditional paper wrapping and should be enjoyed in small slivers. The flat, round cake dusted in icing sugar can be seen in bakery windows throughout Tuscany and is a popular souvenir for tourists to take home with them because of its long shelf life. Corsini’s panforte is one of the specialities that have made the Corsini name and bakery famous. It used to be prepared by nuns using honey and pepper. Later on, spices were added to give it the flavour we know today.
Panforte features in every Tuscan bakery window display
www.european-food-journal.com
Corsini Biscotti srl Via Cellane, 9 58033 Catel Del Piano-Monte Amiata (GR) Italy +39 0564 956787 +39 0564 956615 info@corsinibiscotti.com www.corsinibiscotti.com
Marmellate Quarenghi was founded in 1914, it has along history founded on quality and on the experience of its own family tradition. Today it is well established in the Italian Food Industry. The company specializes in producing jams, marmalades, semi-processed foods, fillings, and candied fruit. Its products are to be found in Pastry Shops, Food Labs, Confectionary Factories, Retailers and Distributors. Our jams, marmalades, stuffings and fillings , with chunks of fruit or fruit pureè, are for use before or after baking, for fillings, and for garnishing (cakes, strudels,jam tarts, biscuits,short pastry, puff pastry, leavened pastry and similar products) Our Glazes are ideal for cake toppings and glazesd, pastrie and similar products, for use after baking and freezing. Our Candied fruits made with italian fruits (orange, lemon, pumpkin‌)
ORGANIC PRODUCTS Biological jams, marmalades, stuffings and fillings for fillings and toppings to be applied before and after baking, using fruit from biological farming. The products are genuine and quality.
CERTIFICATIONS HACCP SYSTEM KOSHER FOODS
Marmellate Quarenghi Pozzolengo-BRESCIA-ITALY phone +39 030 918492 fax +39 030 914614 www.quarenghi.eu info@quarenghi.eu
Tamás Széll,
Hungary’s trendiest and best-known chef, gives short shrift to clichés about Hungarian cuisine
“It’s not a joy for us when tourists ask for ‘goulash’”
it’s gulyás!
www.european-food-journal.com
www.european-food-journal.com
About Tamás Széll Tamás Széll is a young and successful, Michelinstarred chef from Hungary, who cooks his amazing dishes in the popular Onyx restaurant in the heart of Budapest. In terms of success and fame, 2011 was a standout year for Tamás Széll, that really put him on the map. In March, he won a Michelin star for his cooking skills in the Onyx restaurant in Budapest, and in the autumn he won the Hungarian final of the prestigious cooking competition Bocuse d’Or. Two years later, the Budapest native won tenth place in the Bocuse d’Or world final held in Lyon. In Hungary, too, he has won numerous awards: In 2008 and 2010, he walked off with first place in the competition. ‘Hagyomány és Evolúció’ (Tradition and Evolution). This is one of the leading gastronomic competitions in Hungary. 1982
Born in Budapest
2003
Winner of the Hungarian food competition Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, Budapest
2010
Winner for the second time of the Hungarian food competition ‘Hagyomány és Evolúció’
2011
Winner of a Michelin star for his cooking skills in the Onyx restaurant, Budapest
2013
Placed tenth at the prestigious Bocuse d’Or competition in Lyon
Tamás Széll, Hungary’s trendiest and best-known chef, gives short shrift to clichés about Hungarian cuisine. He can get quite irate when tourists in Hungary ask for ‘goulash’. The Hungarian specialty is not called ‘goulash’ but ‘gulyás’, he says. And gulyás is not a stew, but a soup!
EFJ: Mr Széll, let us accompany you on a personal culinary journey of discovery around Europe. Which European countries, cities and regions do you think serve the best food and drink? Tamás Széll: I don’t think I could name any one place. Every place I’ve been, I’ve liked for different reasons. The gastronomic uniqueness of each location should be taken seriously. Those who do so are cleverer. Their foods are better. They concentrate on regionality, on tourism. Lyon is different from Paris, which is different from Copenhagen, Munich, Milan and so on.
EFJ: But perhaps you have a personal favourite? Tamás Széll: If I had to name an absolute favourite, then it would be Cape Town in South Africa. I encountered an incredible gastro and wine culture there, and that was over ten years ago. They live in a completely different world and are doing just fine with domestic tourism. They weren’t so interested in what was happening in Europe. They are proud of their local ingredients. I tasted countless varieties of gazelle, antelope and lamb – and they were all prepared well!
www.european-food-journal.com
It is interesting that despite being surrounded by three oceans, they prefer four-legged and winged creatures over seafood. Even then, you could have showered them with a fistful of Michelin stars. And if my information is correct, they have neither Michelin nor Gault & Millau publications. As far as I know! EFJ: Where can the most beautiful traditional markets be found? Tamás Széll: There are numerous such markets, and everywhere there is something that attracts chefs. The Fény Street market is where the wishes and desires of chefs are most likely to meet with those of similarly serendipitous and driven growers of unique produce. But what foreign visitors are most curious about is Budapest Market Hall, the Vásárcsarnok. It is the biggest market and the most beautiful. The building is one of a kind, and the location provides a splendid view of the city. Downstairs is the market itself; upstairs are small eateries and
www.european-food-journal.com
pubs. It is a popular place among Hungarians, as well. Unfortunately, restaurant store rooms and refrigerators cannot be stocked from there. EFJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Europe in terms of culinary regions? Tamás Széll: Nothing differentiates regions around the world more than gastronomy. Of course there are thousands of dishes, or styles of dishes, whose origins are debated to this day. But even so, a tiny country such as Hungary is an absolute, clearly defined culinary region. Concerning this country’s culinary region alone, we could write volumes – about both the bad, ingrained customs and the worldfamous, authentic traditions! EFJ: Which European country has the best food specialties, and what are they?
www.european-food-journal.com
Tamás Széll: It would be a luxury, coming from me, if I were to name an absolute favourite. I am open to and curious about everything. Breathing in everything is what I live for. Of course it does happen that occasionally I suck in bad smells as well… It’s my job to think clearly; for this, I get constant inspiration by acquiring gastronomic experiences. I couldn’t say that a Noma dish is any more a favourite than one tasted in Troisgros. They are completely different, and yet both are brilliant. But isn’t that the point of gastronomic regions? EFJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will dominate in Europe in the future? Tamás Széll: Both of them have their place; that’s what they’re there for. Tennis and football. They’re both completely ‘the same’ game, aren’t they? After all, they’re both played with balls! One person plays or watches one, another person the other. Or both. It depends on what mood they’re in. It would be silly to compare one group of fans with the other. They are completely different. If both are excellent, then everyone will be happy! EFJ: As a celebrity chef from Hungary, you have a special relationship with Hungarian cuisine. Can you tell us about some of your favourite recipes from your home country for our culinary journey? Tamás Széll: I could go on for hours answering this question… My problem is that I could list all of the Hungarian clichés – which when prepared well hold their own in the restaurant – but I like to make them at home, as well. For example: chicken paprika, curd cheese noodles, fish soup, goulash soup. But I must say that goulash soup fits well within the framework of fine dining. Some are even as good as the original. But I won’t share the recipe because I’m sure it would put people off, and no
www.european-food-journal.com
one would want to prepare it after that. Better to taste it.
may find both true Hungarian lines and those which are more open to the world.
EFJ: How important is food culture in Hungary? What trends and traditions can you discern here?
EFJ: What about culinary clichés: Is goulash still the national dish of Hungary, or has the nation’s favourite dish undergone a modern ‘update’?
Tamás Széll: Hungarian gastro culture is absolutely fashionable and is in the spotlight at the moment. But we are just at the beginning of the journey. I feel a mixed, civil war-type atmosphere. Side by side we see the new and modern dishes along with the stale old ones, as well as the truly traditional. Hungarians are confused. They are still not able to see the correct path clearly. But it is a fact that not just the good, but the better restaurants prefer to purchase from abroad. That is a really a big problem for everyone. I would be extremely cautious about calling that culture! Whip-wielding cowboys with their goulash soup are also Hungary, but we are not just that!
Tamás Széll: Let’s make one thing clear first. The world believes that goulash is that one-dish meal which we prepare from slowly cooked beef heavily seasoned with paprika. However, this is not “goulash” but pörkölt! Goulash is prepared similarly, but it is not a thick stew; it is a thick soup in which there are potatoes and possibly csipetke – a tiny hand-made pasta. It never contains carrots, celery or other vegetables. It is a soup, not a stew! Also, we don’t call it ‘goulash’ but gulyás. We don’t pronounce the LY in the middle of the word as L but as Y, like at the very end of ‘joy’ – so it’s ‘goo-yash,’
EFJ: Let’s talk about your restaurant, the name of which is Onyx. Where is it located, and what culinary highlights can your guests expect to enjoy? What dining style do you follow? Tamás Széll: The Onyx is located in the heart of Budapest on Vörösmarty Square, close to embassies, hotels and tourist attractions. The restaurant has had a Michelin star since 2011; its name comes from the onyx stone, of which there is a lot in the restaurant. We like to communicate through our tasting menus, and we like to draw on everything in the world. At the Onyx, you
www.european-food-journal.com
www.european-food-journal.com
not ‘goo-lash.’ It’s not a joy for us when tourists ask for ‘goulash.’ And gulyás has not gone through any update. The way each chef prepares his own version, that’s not an update. It’s either successful or a dead end. Try getting a good pizza in Naples! It’s the same situation here with gulyás. As a national dish, it’s available everywhere, but you’ll need a magnifying class to find a good one.
Tamás Széll: It’s certainly true that Hungarians can put together heavenly feasts because they know how to eat. The problem here at home is that they look for quantity; quality is somewhere lower down the list. This needs to change. Then the French saying would be true about us as well.
EFJ: In some countries there is a general saying about the dining culture in that country, for example ‘eat like a god in France’. Can you think of a Hungarian equivalent that summarizes the advantages of Hungarian cuisine?
www.european-food-journal.com www.european-food-journal.com
Delicious
Gourmet Recipes My very own Hungarian layered potato casserole 1 kg potatoes 6 to 8 eggs 100 g smoked Hungarian sausage (kolbász) 800 to 900 ml cream 1 clove garlic 2 to 3 sprigs thyme (dried) salt
Cook the eggs in boiling salted water for approximately three minutes. After three minutes, remove from heat and allow them to sit for an additional seven minutes in the hot water. After that, immediately cool them in cold water. This is the only way to achieve the desired result: the eggs won’t overcook, and the egg yolks won’t be crumbly or have a greyish outer surface. Peel the eggs once they have cooled. While the eggs are cooking, cut the sausage crosswise into thin slices. Grate the garlic, crumble the thyme leaves. Add the garlic and thyme to the cream. To this add enough salt so that it is slightly salty in taste. Keep in mind that the potatoes will also be salted by the cream. Once this is done, begin assembling the casserole. The potatoes are used raw; they are not cooked prior to assembly. www.european-food-journal.com
Clean the potatoes, then cut into 2 to 3 mm thick slices using a potato slicer. Immediately place the potatoes onto a tea towel in order to extract as much water as possible. Slice the eggs using an egg slicer. The casserole will have three layers of potatoes and two layers each of sausage and egg. In a high-walled casserole dish, layer first the raw potatoes, then the sausage and the egg slices. Splash some of the seasoned cream on top of the first layer. Do the same for the next layer. Finish with a layer of potatoes and the remaining cream. Cook in a pre-heated oven at 120°C for 2 to 3 hours. Cooked at this temperature for this length of time, the potatoes will be soft, and the cream will thicken. The dish will be the most delicious prepared this way. The result is a fantastic, golden-brown layered potato casserole.
Ferenc Horvรกth, owner and managing director of HOLLA Baromfi Kft.
Perfect poultry While poultry generally enjoys a high popularity, consumers with more distinct taste buds might be inclined to try out something other than simple chicken or turkey products. Hungary-based HOLLA Baromfi Kft. captivates customers with duck and goose products of a select quality and provides a perfect example of the very productive and highly innovative Hungarian food processing industry.
www.european-food-journal.com
“We are active in the processing of poultry, specifically goose and duck,” explains company owner and Managing Director Ferenc Horváth. “Our main products are goose and duck liver – foie gras, goose and duck breast – magret, goose and duck legs, as well as roast goose and duck. Our products are of exquisite taste and outstanding quality.” From roast duck to fattened up poultry, all animals processed by HOLLA Baromfi are bred without use of medication, allowing for a very high quality in meat and exceeding in taste. The company is fully aware of the customers’ expressed wish to consume meat only of excellent quality and free from any noxious substances. “It is a particular trait of Hungarian water birds to be granted a natural way of life before slaughter,” Mr. Horváth explains. With its quality poultry, HOLLA Baromfi serves the wholesale trade as well as major hotel chains and wholesale chains that are directly involved in import, domestically as well as abroad. While a preceding company was already in existence in 1992, the company in its current shape was founded in the year 2006, when Mr. Horváth managed to consort with a large poultry and roast duck integrator who was also interested in working with geese. Continuous development and improvement of the processing machinery led to increased requests from abroad, which, in return, made necessary an adjustment of the technical quality of the production. “It was a reciprocal and continuous
www.european-food-journal.com
development. We never received any support, never took out any loans, but financed it in our own right,” the managing director recalls. At its location in Kiskunhalas, HOLLA Baromfi employs 130 members of staff and processes about 15,000 pieces of poultry a week, which it markets at home and abroad. Main foreign markets are Russia, the Far East and Japan, as well as some European countries including Belgium, France and Italy. “We already serve markets in the Arab world and in the Far East, we deliver to North Vietnam,” says Mr. Horváth. “Once the embargo against Russia is over, we will be delivering there, too. Russian consumers are increasingly enjoying our products. We also hope that conditions will be right soon to enter the German-speaking markets,” he adds. HOLLA Baromfi’s main marketing channel is direct marketing via telephone and through direct visits of existing and potential customers. With all necessary certificates in place – including ISO 9001 and HACCP – concrete personal relations where these can be presented establish and increase trust and credibility. In the Serbian capital of Belgrade the company recently introduced its products to a well-known chain of restaurants. Furthermore HOLLA Baromfi presents its quality products at trade fairs. “We can offer to our customers excellent quality in products as well as in the way we serve them,” Mr. Horváth explains the advantages of his company. “We attach special importance to fair relationships and see our customers as our partners.” HOLLA Baromfi also places emphasis on timely deliveries
and always provides the agreed quantity at the agreed price. “Of course, our competitors are also very good,” says Mr. Horváth. “I find that it is only with an excellent competition that one can truly excel.” The company founder is very fond of his business. “I really wouldn’t need to work anymore,” he adds. “But I just can’t help myself, I enjoy it too much. People are made for certain things. Some might invent an atomic bomb for example, and it runs in my blood to be a businessman. And I feel very positive about the current developments here in Hungary.” It does therefore not surprise that Mr. Horváth has various projects in the pipeline for the future of HOLLA Baromfi. “We are currently taking part in a tender for EU financing concerning capacity and employment extension,” the managing director explains. With this money, the company plans to advance the processing operation for magret goose liver on a very high level of quality. “What’s more, for countries that
don’t have a culture of fattened goose or duck, we plan to prepare our magret in a way so it can be dished up directly,” Mr. Horváth reveals. “We want to surprise consumers with this convenience product which will be freshly vacuum packaged and ready to be served so consumers can immediately enjoy a bit of smoked or filled foie gras, maybe with some bread and peaches in syrup.”
HOLLA Baromfi Kft. Kötönyi u. 22. 6400 Kiskunhalas Hungary +36 70 451 50 01 holla.info@gmail.com www.HOLLA.info.hu www.european-food-journal.com
Say “Cheese!”
Dairy products are a culinary delight in large parts of the world, and a good cheese can put a smile on anyone’s face. Baked over a casserole, as a topping on a sandwich or salad, or by itself with a glass of wine, cheese is both delicious and nutritious. Few companies know that better than Kőröstej Group, based in Budapest. Managing Director Gyula Tráj tells European Business Journal about the company’s HAJDÚ brand, the significance of good customer relations and what the future has in store for the company that makes 25,000 t of cheese a year.
Kőröstej Group is known for its Middle Eastern cheese specialties
www.european-food-journal.com
www.european-food-journal.com
Gyula Tráj, Managing Director of Kőröstej Group
EBJ: What is the history behind Kőröstej Group? Gyula Tráj: Kőröstej Group was founded by Dr. Riad Naboulsi in 1989. He started by selling products on request as a side job, and eventually that became his main occupation. Since 1989, the company has grown into a group with several locations producing a number of types of cheese, like processed cheese and cheese slices, or labneh and other cheese specialties for the Arabic world as well as its domestic market. EBJ: Kőröstej Group’s HAJDÚ brand is very well known on the international market. What are some of your best-selling products? Gyula Tráj: There are quite a few of them. We offer HAJDÚ Hungarian double cream white cheese, HAJDÚ Kashkaval made of cow’s milk and HAJDÚ Trappista, which is a clear favourite in Hungary, as well as HAJDÚ Chilal type cheese, HAJDÚ Labneh Balls, HAJDÚ Parenyica – a smoked cheese, and HAJDÚ Mozzarella. Our HAJDÚ Grill Cheese, known in Middle Eastern cuisine as halloumi, is extremely important to us. We started developing it in 2012 and launched it in 2014. The market has confirmed the distinction Product of the Year. It was our first-ever marketing campaign, and this is a real premium product. EBJ: The topic of Middle Eastern cheeses keeps coming up. Have the founder and his heritage determined the course of the company? Gyula Tráj: Yes. Dr. Naboulsi is in charge of product innovations and has a real sense of the industry. In terms of social aspects, relationships are key in the Middle East, and our cheese is sold on the basis of personal contacts. We sometimes don’t even have contracts with our customers. There is so much trust placed in the word of others.
www.european-food-journal.com
EBJ: Mr. Tráj, you haven’t been with Kőröstej Group very long. What brought you on board? Gyula Tráj: I’ve only been with Kőröstej Group since February. Dr. Naboulsi still owns the company, and he used to be the Managing Director. He realized, however, that his little family business had grown into this group, and it had to be led accordingly. I have more than 20 years’ leadership experience in other companies. My job is to keep the family feel of our company while changing the organization for a sustainable group. EBJ: Where are your products situated in the market, for example in terms of quality? Gyula Tráj: Kőröstej Group was the only Hungarian company represented among the 450 products from 12 countries (Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland among others) nominated in the Austrian Cheese Olympics called Käsiade. A panel of 42 international jurors evaluated each entry. They recognize only cheeses of the highest quality. We entered the competition with two products only, and won the Gold Medal for our HAJDÚ Grill Cheese and the Silver Medal for HAJDÚ Labneh. www.european-food-journal.com
November 2014
Strategic Cooperation Agreement Long-term cooperation with the Hungarian government
EBJ: If we are not mistaken, you have recently entered into an agreement with the Hungarian Government. Gyula Tráj: That is correct. A day before we got the information about the success of our two quality products, we signed a Strategic Cooperation Agreement
April 2014
Product of the Year in Hungary HAJDÚ Grill Cheese
September 2014 MagyarBrands Most popular traditional Hungarian brands
OCtober 2014
with the Hungarian government. It practically means that the government recognised the effort our group made in the past 25 years. We are really proud of this document.
Gold Medal, HAJDÚ Labneh Competition of Hungarian cheese producers with 98 points out of 100
EBJ: What are your target markets? Gyula Tráj: About 30% of our products are sold on the domestic market. Of our exports, 80% goes to Arabic countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan, the UAE, Iraq, Kuwait, Syria, Qatar and Bahrain. There, we sell mainly to wholesalers. The remaining 20% is for the EU, in particular Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Greece and Romania, as well as Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, the USA and Taiwan. Supermarket and hypermarket chains are also our customers.
November 2014 Gold Medal, HAJDÚ Grill Cheese and Silver Medal, HAJDÚ Labneh Käsiade – Austrian Cheese Olympics. Chosen from among 450 products from 12 countries by 42 jury members, this award only recognizes cheeses of the highest quality
EBJ: Where do you see Kőröstej Group in the coming years? Gyula Tráj: Growth is a key word. We’d like to expand the HAJDÚ brand within Hungary and strengthen its position on export markets. Right now, it’s more popular on foreign markets. Inside the company, we have a lot of consolidation work before us. We want to align the entire group for innovation and growth. We also plan to examine our processes and figure out how to get the most out of it.
Kőröstej Kft. Népfürdő u. 22. Building “B”, 9th Floor 1138 Budapest Hungary +36 1 349 3521 +36 1 340 5439 mail@korostej.hu www.korostej.hu
www.european-food-journal.com www.european-food-journal.com
Thuri Maag,
the Swiss celebrity chef, master of mushrooms and rabbit ambassador, clinks glasses with Prince Albert of Monaco: To a “maagical” meal – and of course an excellent wine!
The Chüngel revival
www.european-food-journal.com
About Thuri Maag The woods. For the famous Swiss celebrity chef Thuri Maag, it is a magical place. During his days as a ski acrobat on the B squad of the Swiss national team, he sought out the woods merely for extended runs. When a friend introduced him to the world of mushrooms, however, it was love at first bite. Gathering mushrooms became a passion – an addiction even. Today, Maag is considered the master of mushrooms, and he has written many books about the tasty and aromatic ‘forest dwellers.’ He has also made a name for himself as a chef and restaurateur. For nearly two decades, he ran his restaurant Thuris’s Blumenau in Lömmenschwil. Since 2011 Maag has had a new mission: He is reviving rabbit, or ‘Chüngel’ in his dialect, in Swiss cuisine. 1952
Born in Bachenbülach (Zurich)
1982 to 1990
Maag’s big ‘chef time’ in Rössli restaurant
1994 to 2006
Michelin star
1990 to 2007
2011
His restaurant Thuri’s Blumenau in its heyday
New role as gastronomical consultant for delicacies of rabbit
Michelin-starred chef Thuri Maag is reviving ‘Chüngel’ as the Swiss national dish. This unusually named ingredient is none other than rabbit meat. It can even be used to make the famous Swiss stir-fried veal specialty Zürcher Gschnetzeltes but without the traditional inclusion of kidney as his grandmother would have insisted upon way back when. A definitive ‘yes’ to modernized cuisine, which the Swiss native always combines with regional products as well as Swiss wines. Food fit for a prince – even Prince Albert of Monaco.
EFJ: Mr. Maag, our culinary journey through Europe has now brought us to you in Switzerland. You are a well-known Michelin-starred chef, mushroom expert and cookbook author. Up until now, we always thought that barley soup and fried potato rösti where the national dishes of Switzerland. Thanks to you, I have now been made aware of something called Chüngel. Is that another Swiss national dish?
Thuri Maag: Absolutely. Rabbit – or Chüngel as we say in Switzerland – has a long tradition, particularly in the Rhaeto-Romanic part of Switzerland, the French-speaking part and the Italian-speaking Ticino. In our family it was always eaten to mark special occasions. On high feast days like Christmas and Easter or when it was someone’s birthday, my mother always cooked rabbit. www.european-food-journal.com
EFJ: How do you like Chüngel served best? Thuri Maag: There aren’t just one or two recipes but a whole range to choose from. On my homepage delikantessa.ch, there are around 60 recipes. My favourite recipes have a distinctive Swiss flavour: I make a Zurich-style stir fry but not with the usual pork or veal but with rabbit. It is an unusual interpretation that omits two traditional ingredients: mushrooms and kidney. Another delicious way to serve rabbit is to smear saddle fillets with hot mustard, sprinkle with breadcrumbs, parsley and garlic, and bake in the oven. It is very tasty with a subtle heat and a lovely juicy texture. Of course, the traditional way to make rabbit is in a stew. Because I am an expert on mushrooms and culinary fungi, I like to prepare this dish in autumn using seasonal autumn morel mushrooms. This produces a dark and intense gravy. It is then www.european-food-journal.com
served with mashed potatoes made according to a traditional recipe from Ticino. EFJ: Zurich-style stir fry with rabbit sounds a bit as if Grandmother’s recipe has been given an update. Is that right? Thuri Maag: Absolutely. As the Swiss ambassador for rabbit, I demonstrate unexpected ways of preparing rabbit to cooking enthusiasts at various events. Even carpaccio or tartare of rabbit are easy to make. Many people believe that rabbit is just like chicken and mustn’t be eaten raw, but that is not true. There is no risk of salmonella in rabbit meat. It can be prepared in exactly the same ways as veal or beef. EFJ: Why does Swiss cooking need bringing up to date?
Thuri Maag: There is no need to bring it up to date; it is already thoroughly modern. Only tourists eat dishes like rösti and stirfried veal. We have a lot of good, Michelinstarred chefs who are pioneering a more modern version of Swiss cuisine. Our food tradition can be traced back to the start of the 19th century when tourism took off and many large hotels were built. Even then they served up ‘grand cuisine.’ This developed into ‘nouvelle cuisine’ and even more creative interpretations. Today, you will find inspired young chefs in every good restaurant who are working to reinvent classic dishes for a modern audience, focusing on making them healthy, simple and creative. EFJ: Let’s come back to Chüngel. Where does rabbit meat come from? Thuri Maag: There are Swiss farmers that offer rabbit meat. However, they cannot possibly cover all of the demand in the Swiss market. I source my rabbit from Hungary, where the animals are reared in accordance with Swiss animal protection norms and regulations. EFJ: What is the Swiss response to the rabbit revival? Thuri Maag: As I mentioned at the start, there is a long tradition of eating rabbit in a number of regions in Switzerland. With regards to the German-speaking parts of the country, I am currently working to get people there fired up about the benefits of Chüngel. In the old days, virtually every family kept their own rabbits, but that is no longer the case. Parts of the population in Switzerland are no longer accustomed to eating rabbit. I would like to spread the message that rabbit is the healthiest meat you can possibly eat. The meat helps lower cholesterol and is also low in fat. EFJ: What does your job as an ambassador for rabbit meat involve? Thuri Maag: I travel around the country in a van equipped with a fully working kitchen. In many places I present my mobile cooking show. I then cook as many as twelve different dishes, which people can taste for free.
EFJ: What is the reaction of tourists to the return of rabbit? Thuri Maag: That always depends on where the tourists come from. Countries like Germany, Italy, France or the Netherlands are happy to embrace new ideas. Asians and Americans, on the other hand, refuse to even try rabbit meat. EFJ: How do you explain that? Thuri Maag: Well, I would at least say that the Americans don’t have an eating culture. Of course there are exceptions that prove the rule. Generally speaking, the problems that a lot of people have with eating rabbit stem from the so-called ‘Bambi syndrome.’ Rabbits are seen as cute and cuddly and therefore not for eating. My response is always the same: piglets and calves are cute, but they get eaten all the same. What is so different about rabbit? The problem is more one of squeamishness than the rabbit meat itself. EFJ: As an ambassador for rabbit meat, is there anything else you would like to say? Thuri Maag: Just like fish, we should eat rabbit once a week. It is healthy and will help people live longer. It also lowers cholesterol, which means you can treat yourself to an extra glass of wine to drink with it. EFJ: As a Swiss-born chef, are you proud of your country’s dining culture? Thuri Maag: In Switzerland, we have a very high standard of dining. I am also amazed at how good the food is in our chalets – both in summer and in winter. The only problem that we have in Switzerland: Everything is very expensive. Produce costs twice as much here as it does in the EU – that does make things harder for us. EFJ: Are cheese fondue, rösti and barley soup still Switzerland’s national dishes, or have they been overtaken by more modern dishes? Thuri Maag: Our national dishes will always stay the same. We like to eat cheese fondue in www.european-food-journal.com
winter, and when we go skiing, we like to enjoy a hearty barley soup. EFJ: What do the terms ‘regional cuisine’ and ‘slow food’ mean to you? Thuri Maag: I have been living these ‘modern’ food trends for the past 20 years. I have always cooked regional dishes. In my restaurant Thuri’s Blumenau in Lömmenschwil, where I cooked for 17 years, we only served fish caught in Lake Constance and no sea fish at all. Other ingredients were sourced from local farmers and regional producers. That also included Swiss wines. EFJ: We would now like to hear your opinion about Europe’s culinary traditions in general. In which other countries or towns can you also eat well? Thuri Maag: A lot has happened in Europe in the last 15 years, above all in Spain. The restaurant El Bulli in Barcelona is known for its avantgarde regional cuisine and its molecular cooking. I also know some sensational restaurants in Holland, France, Germany and even Hungary. In the case of Germany, I would add the following caveat: the fine dining experience is only really good in the top restaurants. In the middle and lower segment, too little care is taken.
EFJ: Where can the best markets in Europe be found? Thuri Maag: Wherever I am travelling, whether it is to Lisbon, Hamburg or Budapest, I always look for local markets with fresh products. I think it is a kind of ‘cook’s compulsion.’ EFJ: There is a saying ‘eat like a god in France.’ Can you think of an equivalent saying in relation to Swiss cuisine? Thuri Maag: Swiss cuisine is like a tennis match with Roger Federer: every stroke is perfectly executed, is incredibly creative and works with the precision of a Swiss watch. www.european-food-journal.com
Delicious
Gourmet Recipes
Gigolette de lapin aux trompettes de la mort Shoulder of rabbit with black chanterelles Serves 4 as a main course 4 shoulders of rabbit, Selection MAAGique, 200 g each 1 tbsp flour 200 g white wine 300 g water 10 g chicken broth paste 10 to 15 g dried black chanterelles 1 green onion 2 cloves of garlic Salt Freshly ground pepper Clarified butter or olive oil
Method: Soak the black chanterelles in cold water that barely covers them for at least 30 minutes.
Don’t pour out the soaking water, though – a flavour carrier would be lost! However, because there will be a lot of sand at the bottom of the bowl of soaking water, it is a good idea to pass the water through a coffee filter or pour it carefully into another bowl. Wash the softened mushrooms. Season the rabbit, and sear it in olive oil or clarified butter. Add the onions and garlic, and sauté briefly. Weigh out the rest of the ingredients, and mix them together in a separate bowl. Deglaze the rabbit with the mixture. Add the black chanterelles and the soaking water. Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes. Remove the rabbit pieces from the sauce, keep them warm, and reduce the sauce to the desired thickness. Put the meat back in the sauce, bring it to a boil, and serve.
Tip: Serve with couscous, polenta, mashed potatoes or spätzle.
www.european-food-journal.com
Paul Spuhler’s Diced Rabbit
Chüngel-G‘schnätzlets Serves 2
Method:
2 saddle of rabbit fillets or 260 to 280 g 50 g clarified butter 50 g fresh butter 50 g white wine 100 g broth/bouillon 50 g cream 25 g chopped shallots, sautéed separately 1 tbsp flour Salt Freshly ground pepper
Cut the saddle of rabbit fillets into slices 5-8 mm thick. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Dust with the flour. Put the meat into a smoking hot sauté pan along with the clarified butter. Sauté briefly while stirring constantly. Don’t let the meat get too dark. Dump the meat into a sieve with a bowl under it. Pour the broth over the meat. Add the shallots to the sauté pan, deglaze immediately with the white wine, and boil it down completely. Add to it the liquid collected in the bowl and reduce by half. Add the cream, and mount the butter into the sauce. Add the meat. Bring it to a boil, and arrange it on warmed plates. Serve the traditional way with ribbon noodles or a crispy rösti cooked from raw potatoes.
Variations: My mentor also added chopped parsley. Fresh tarragon or chives would be another option. But – in all honesty – I wouldn’t add a thing!
www.european-food-journal.com
Watchmaker’s delight Switzerland is renowned for prime cheeses with authentic taste evoking alpine pastures and first-class watches incorporating the country’s unrivalled attention to detail. Val d’Arve SA has managed to combine both of these unique qualities. Located in the heart of the Swiss watchmaking region, the cheese maker offers Le Délice de l’Horloger – Watchmaker’s Delight – an award-winning gourmet cheese with intense, refined taste that pays tribute to Switzerland’s long-established tradition in fine timepieces. Val d’Arve is a Swiss cheese maker specialized in the production of soft cheeses. It is a member of Laiteries Réunies de Genève, a cooperative society consisting of eight firms with activities in the areas of dairy and meat products, trading, and logistics. Val d’Arve is part of the dairies division, together with another company: Nutrifrais. “We are focused on soft cheese whereas Nutrifrais produces yoghurts and desserts,” Managing Director Pierre Charvet describes the division of labour within the cooperative. Mr. Charvet has been with Val d’Arve for 39 years and last year took over the management of the entire dairy products unit of Laiteries Réunies de Genève. The cooperative society has a total of 400 employees and
generates annual revenues of 280 million CHF. It has 700 members, including 200 milk producers supplying the dairy firms in the cooperative with 53 million liters of milk annually. Val d’Arve is rich in tradition, with the company’s origins dating back to the year 1911. Today, combining tradition and innovation, the Swiss soft cheese specialist employs 47 people and turns over 18.5 million CHF. Every day, Val d’Arve processes 70,000 l of fresh Geneva countryside milk into a wide variety of high-quality gourmet cheeses. Depending on the product, the company processes raw milk and ultra-heat treated and pasteurized milk. The product range splits into two brands: Val d’Arve and Jean-Louis. In the Val d’Arve range, two cheeses stand apart: www.european-food-journal.com
Le Tonneau d’Alpage (Barrel of the Alps), a mild soft cheese in barrel form with authentic taste that evokes Swiss alpine pastures, and Le Délice de l’Horloger (Watchmaker’s Delight), a gourmet cheese with an intense, refined taste. Both cheeses won prestigious prizes at last year’s World Cheese Awards in Birmingham, the world’s largest cheese competition, which
www.european-food-journal.com
displayed as many as 2,781 cheeses from all continents in 2012. “Le Délice de l’Horloger was honoured with a Super Gold medal, and Le Tonneau d’Alpage received a Bronze medal,” states Mr. Charvet. Another outstanding Val d’Arve product is La Tomme de Genève, a soft cheese made 100% from milk from the region of Geneva. “We
www.european-food-journal.com
Pierre Charvet,
managing director of Val d’Arve SA
use carefully selected milk from local suppliers to manufacture natural, authentic cheeses that are healthy, rich in taste and easy to digest,” Mr. Charvet explains the product philosophy of Val d’Arve. This philosophy is not only highly admired in Switzerland, where the company has two main customers: the supermarket chains Coop and Migros. It is also appreciated by cheese lovers in many other countries all over the world, despite high cheese prices and unfavourable exchange rates with a strong Swiss franc. “We make up for these disadvantages through constant, first-rate quality and excellent customer service,” explains Mr. Charvet. The main export markets of Val d’Arve are France, Germany
and Belgium, followed by Canada, Hong Kong, Australia, the UK, Finland and Lebanon. In the domestic market, Coop and Migros account for 80% of the total sales of Val d’Arve. The remaining 20% fall to smaller food retailing businesses and delicatessens. In the Swiss market, Val d’Arve is the second-largest supplier. “There is only one larger producer,” says Mr. Charvet. To further grow its market position, Val d’Arve is continuously developing new, innovative cheese products that meet individual customer (and consumer) demands. “We have just developed a new type of cheese in heart form, which is made from 100% organic milk, for Coop,” states Mr. Charvet.
Val d’Arve SA Chemin des Aulx 6 1228 Plan-les-Ouates Switzerland +41 22 8848150 +41 22 8848151 info-valdarve@lrgg.ch www.lrgg.ch www.european-food-journal.com
Ralf Zacherl,
German TV chef
www.european-food-journal.com
© VOX Guido Lange
“The regional food classics are as popular as ever!”
About Ralf Zacherl Ralf Zacherl’s career as a celebrity chef is a culinary journey in itself – especially through Germany. Among the first stops on his career path were the restaurants 3 Stuben in Meersburg and the Traube Tonbach in Baiersbronn. And who can claim to have been the youngest star chef in Germany? Ralf Zacherl, of course. At the age of just 26, Ralf Zacherl earned a Michelin star as the head chef of Egbert Engelhardt’s restaurant Graues Haus. That was in 1997. After that the head chef landed in Djerba (Tunisia) at Athenee Palace. Even though he soon made his way back to Germany, his wanderlust stuck with him, and Zacherl loves Mediterranean cuisine. The Wertheim native also passes on a lot of his culinary knowledge as a TV chef. The list of series with which he has cooperated is long. At the top, there is the series ‘Die Küchenchefs’ for the channel VOX, in which Zacherl, along with his fellow TV chefs Martin Baudrexel and Mario Kotaska, helps restaurants in Germany that are doing poorly to get back on their feet. What a contribution to raising the culinary level in his home country! 1997
Youngest star chef in Germany (1 Michelin star)
2003
Beginning of career as TV chef
2004
Expansion of independent work as celebrity chef
2009
Professional chef on the VOX television show ‘Die Küchenchefs’ (‘The Head Chefs’)
© VOX Guido Lange
1971
Born in Wertheim
In response to the question whether there is a German equivalent to the French saying ‘eat like a god in France,’ German TV chef Ralf Zacherl is at a loss. He thinks that too many Germans do their shopping according to the principle that ‘greed is good’. However, there is no shortage of culinary highlights in his home country. Authentic national dishes such as Nuremberg bratwurst cooked over a fire of beech woodchips are still as popular as ever in the regions. EFJ: Mr. Zacherl, let us accompany you on a personal culinary journey of discovery around Europe. Which European countries, cities and regions do you think serve the best food and drink? Ralf Zacherl: In the last few years, I have taken a growing number of holidays in Europe and have tried to get hold of the typical, local dishes in each country I have visited. From Italy to France and Spain, every country has its own quirks and specialties so that it is difficult to pick just one. On the whole, I have found that countries that grow wine generally have good
food. From a personal point of view, I was particularly excited by Portuguese cuisine and the percebes. You can find lovely little restaurants right on the Atlantic coast and in Porto or Lisbon. A nice glass of port to go with the meal or wine from the Douro Valley – there is certainly something to be said for that. EFJ: Where can the best traditional markets be found? Ralf Zacherl: Again I have to say that every country has its own wonderful local markets, and I love wandering through them all. In Gerwww.european-food-journal.com
many, I particularly like the Christmas market in Rüdesheim with delicious white mulled wine, the weekly markets in Freiburg and the Paul-Linke Ufer in Berlin – Kreuzberg lifestyle included. But you should never limit yourself by constantly looking for a personal favourite. The most important thing is that everything is fresh.
not be worth the paper it was written on. When you are skiing in South Tyrol, you can’t beat their bacon or egg-based delicacies. In Seville at the height of summer, there is nothing better than Andalusian gazpacho, and let’s not forget the first Wiener schnitzel with asparagus at the start of April.
EFJ: In the European Union, we tend to speak of Europe as uniting the regions. Do you see Europe in terms of culinary regions?
EFJ: Slow food or fast food – which trend will dominate in Europe in the future?
EFJ: Which European country has the best food specialties, and what are they?
Ralf Zacherl: I think that neither have real staying power. Instead I would prefer it if people would simply pay more attention to what they eat rather than how it is cooked. Whether it is a quickly prepared but balanced snack for in between or a relaxed dinner cooked slowly is immaterial.
Ralf Zacherl: I don’t think you can rank different foods because food, luckily, is not subject to regulatory norms and everything is a matter of personal taste. That is why a top ten list would
EFJ: As a celebrity chef from Germany, you have a special relationship with German cuisine. Can you tell us about some of your favourite recipes from
Ralf Zacherl: Of course there are, and the best thing about it is that culinary specialties frequently cross national borders.
www.european-food-journal.com
your home country for our culinary journey? Ralf Zacherl: Granny Zacherl’s onion tart with a glass of Federweisser in the autumn. No question! EFJ: How important is food culture in Germany? What trends and traditions can you discern here? Ralf Zacherl: Fortunately, eating ‘sensibly’ is a subject that more and more people are taking an interest in. Particularly now, as modern technology speeds up the pace of life, preventing people from switching off and increasing the rate of stress-related problems such as burnout, many people are making a conscious effort to improve their nutrition. This trend has been going for a few years now, and I see it as very positive, even if I would like to see the whole thing move a bit faster. EFJ: Is there a German restaurant that you can recommend? Ralf Zacherl: I would need much more time to answer this question than you could possibly give me. I have many colleagues who do fan-
tastic work every day and play their part in creating an outstanding dining culture here. EFJ: What about culinary clichés? Is sausage and sauerkraut still the German national dish, or has the nation’s favourite dish undergone a modern ‘update’? Ralf Zacherl: I wasn’t aware that Germans were still being labeled krauts or sausage eaters. But, seriously, you may have to look for national dishes, but every region has its own absolute classic such as fresh Nuremberg bratwurst cooked over a fire of beech woodchips or curly kale in East Frisia; they are out there and as popular as ever! EFJ: In some countries there is a general saying about the dining culture in that country, for example ‘eat like a god in France’. Can you think of a German equivalent that summarizes the advantages of German cuisine? Ralf Zacherl: That’s a hard one; the French really are ahead of us with food sayings. Unfortunately, the only saying that counts for a lot of Germans doing their food shopping is ‘greed is good’. But we are working on that.
www.european-food-journal.com
Delicious
Gourmet Recipes
Granny Zacherl’s onion tart with federweisser wine and wild leaf salad
350 g flour 120 g quark (curd cheese) 1 orange (unwaxed) 6 tbsp milk 6 tbsp vegetable oil salt, a little baking powder
For the topping: 800 g onions 100 g streaky bacon, smoked 1 bunch spring onions 300 g sour cream 3 eggs 2 sprigs thyme salt, pepper, sugar, caraway seeds (Source: Kochen mit den Küchenchefs)
© VOX Guido Lange
Ingredients: for 6 people For the base:
Method: 1. For the base, grate the orange zest and mix with the rest of the base ingredients to form a dough. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. 2. Peel the onions, wash the spring onions and slice both finely. Fry the chopped bacon in a pan until the fat runs. Add the sliced onions and spring onions, and season well with salt, sugar, caraway seeds and pepper. Sweat for another 3 to 4 minutes and then remove from the heat. 3. Heat the oven to 180°C (fan). Mix the eggs with the sour cream and the orange zest. Season to taste. Roll the dough into a rectangle (roughly 35 cm by 40 cm) on a piece of baking paper. Place on a baking sheet and with your fingers push the dough up around the edges to form a lip. Prick all over with a fork. Mix the onions with the sour cream mixture and spread over the dough. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
© Klaus Arras
Tip: If you can’t be bothered making the dough yourself, you can use puff pastry instead. Roll out the pastry and bake blind (prick the pastry, line with paper and weigh it down with baking beans so the pastry doesn’t rise) before putting in the filling and baking.
www.european-food-journal.com
®Justyna Krzyzanowska
Attila Hildmann: “Vegan makes you younger and happier”
SLIMMER, HEALTHIER AND MEASURABLY YOUNGER You have tried different types of diets but none of them have really worked? Your doctor keeps telling you to eat more healthily in order to stop your cholesterol levels from rising and to avoid getting diabetes? You would also like to live more healthily in general, have beautiful skin and feel energetic all day? Attila Hildmann promises he has the answer to all your problems. His ‘Vegan for Youth’ concept is a 60-day challenge uniting a well-balanced vegan diet with meditation and exercise. We spoke to the author of the new vegan testimonial about the dangers of obesity and high cholesterol and his recipe for rejuvenating your body and increasing your life expectancy. EFJ: Mr. Hildmann, what was your motivation for your latest book ‘Vegan for Youth’? Attila Hildmann: After our ‘Vegan for Fit’ challenge in my second book, many people told me they felt younger and fitter. In fact, they looked better and younger than before. The same was true for me when I started living vegan. According to scientific measuring, I am 26 years old and not 33 as stated in my passport. My aim was to give these results scientific backing. I
believe that it is our responsibility to save people from aging early or becoming ill due to bad eating habits. There are many elderly people who prove that a balanced lifestyle and diet influence your life expectancy positively and keep your body younger. I visited vegan monks in Kyoto who are old as stone and energetic ‘Mammas’ in the Italian village of the centenarians. I also talked to top-class scientists and carried out many test series. They all verified my hypothesis that food which is high in antiwww.european-food-journal.com
Attila Hildmann: From my previous books, people learned that I do not make empty promises. Many people are in danger due to obesity, high cholesterol or the beginning of diabetes. They need a concept that works. ‘Vegan for Youth’ describes a diet that is based on the latest scientific results. The positive results have been verified by several scientists. I am happy for everyone who learns to live a healthier and happier life with my concept. EFJ: In a nutshell – what does ‘Vegan for Youth’ mean?
oxidants, mediation, stretching and exercise regenerate your body.
Attila Hildmann: The concept makes you healthier and younger. The results have been verified on the basis of the development of telomeres. The shorter our telomeres are, the more our body ages. Once they are too short, our chromosome strands open like shoelaces without caps – and we die. The ‘Vegan for Youth’ challenge slows down the shortening process. Thus, your skin and organs stay young for a longer period of time. EFJ: Who is your target group?
EFJ: What makes your book different from other vegan cookbooks? Attila Hildmann: The book was written to make people healthier. In particular, I would like to address obese people. ‘Vegan for Youth’ abstains from all types of chemical additives and cholesterol. Instead, my dishes contain great volumes of antioxidants and important secondary phytochemicals, so-called superfoods, which stimulate our immune system. At the same time, the body is relieved as it does not have to process fat or industrial sugar anymore. As a result, suffering from cravings is prevented, and your blood glucose levels normalize. Your blood fat levels decrease, and your vitamin levels are restored. You lose weight without being hungry. No wonder that all the participants in the challenge are enthusiastic about their new quality of life. EFJ: What do you think: What makes the book so successful?
www.european-food-journal.com
Attila Hildmann: Everyone who would like to live a healthier life and who does not feel comfortable due to being overweight or having dermal problems, diabetes or high cholesterol. EFJ: Where do you find inspiration for new recipes and dishes?
reputation with certain people but because it is something I want for myself. I believe that following a 100% ethical approach makes you blind to what is really important. It should be our mission to change the bad eating habits of our society. Therefore I do not tell people what to do or not to do. I just offer an attractive alternative. Furthermore, it is a great way to combine health and animal protection. Today, speeding is prosecuted more consistently than commercial cruelty to animals. EFJ: What are your upcoming new plans or projects?
Attila Hildmann: I just keep trying out lots of things. My trips inspire me, too. For example, I integrated several ideas from my trips to Japan and Italy into my new recipes. EFJ: First and foremost, you are a chef. However, quite often the media seems to put your personality into the focus of attention. How do you feel about this? Attila Hildmann: Well, I do not meet the typical cliché of a vegan wearing Birkenstock sandals. For sure, I am not going to change in order to fit into any category. Of course, it is not always nice to provoke people, but if it helps to establish a vegan lifestyle among a wider audience, that is fine with me. Sometimes, the end justifies the means. EFJ: Provocation as a marketing tool? Attila Hildmann: I do things my way, and I don’t mince matters. Sometimes I provoke people without even noticing. This is not a strategy. EFJ: What does vegan mean for you? Attila Hildmann: Generally speaking I live 99% vegan. Regarding my diet, I am even 100% vegan. Yet, I do not do this in order to get a good
Attila Hildmann: In December I will present my new book ‘Vegan to Go’ with dishes that are quick and easy to prepare and super-tasty at the same time. I cannot wait to publish it. At present, I am touring the USA. The market there is even tougher than the German market. Still, it is fun. I am doing many interviews and TV shows, and I have several projects in the pipeline. EFJ: Mr. Hildmann, do you have any words of wisdom for us from your experience as an entrepreneur? Attila Hildmann: Sometimes you have to reach for the stars. You have to remain true to yourself and always give 100%. This attitude made me what I am today.
Attila Hildmann: Spicy bruschetta, zucchini rolls with pumpkin filling and pesto topping, cashew ice cream with brittle and warm cinnamonapple chutney. Together with freshly squeezed fruit juices and interesting guests, this could be a great format for a cooking show. EFJ: Mr. Hildmann, thank you very much for your time.
Hungry for more? Check out the recipes for a vegan Christmas meal at www.european-business-journal.com/news/ articles/a_merry_vegan_christmas/ www.european-food-journal.com
Tasty? Trendy? Tea! Square, ecological and a bit bland? Whoever thinks that tea is only for old grannies or long-haired greenies has clearly missed the latest developments. Mount Everest Tea Company GmbH, based in the north German town of Elmshorn not far from Hamburg, knows exactly how to use its tradition and expertise in tea import and refinery to please today’s taste buds and provide its customers with a large variety of teas for everyone’s liking. But the highlight is the launch of its new brand. With my-tbar, the company has managed to turn tea into a tasty and trendy experience.
Mama Mango, Crispy Dream and Milky Moon – these melodious names are only a few examples of Mount Everest’s high quality innovative my-tbar tea blends, evoking ideas of hot summer days, cold winter afternoons and comfortable, warm evenings. “Our Mama Mango creation is very versatile as it can be drunk either hot or cold. Crispy Dream for example is perfect for Christmas time with its almond and cinnamon aroma,” explains Stephanie von Riegen. Responsible for product management and public relations, the wife
of company owner Jens von Riegen is part of the ninth generation running the family-owned business and was also involved in the development of the company’s own brand. “Up to now, we have only served the wholesale and specialized trade. With my-tbar, which we launched in September 2013, we also address the end customers directly, and it is going really well,” she reports. “Wherever we present our brand, our new creations, people are very positive, and we get many compliments.” But it is not only the tantalizing smells of mixtures such as mango, pineapple and strawberry; lemongrass and orange; or almond, cinnamon and popcorn that attract customers. Besides the variety of delicious blends, it is also the approach to tea that makes my-tbar so special: Instead of traditional tea categories such as black, green, white, herbal or fruit tea, my-tbar uses the playful flavour categories Gentle, Creamy, Fruity, Fresh, Spicy and Classic. “These help our customers to identify with our products,” explains Ms. von Riegen. “They say: ‘This is www.european-food-journal.com
me. This is the kind of flavour I like,’ and will find a variety of blends of that type to try out.” Once the perfect blend is found, customers need not worry about remembering ‘their’ tea’s name – all blends are numbered, and to find the favourite again, all that is necessary is its number. This is also printed on the carefully designed packaging, which clearly underlines that Mount Everest’s my-tbar is different from the competition and far from square. “Our brand is a lifestyle product for young, innovative people who might enjoy it in trendy cafés, hotels or lifestyle boutiques,” Ms. von Riegen says. “It is our first brand, the first one that bears our name. We established it to be able to guarantee high quality – something that is only possible through a brand – and to be unique.” Mount Everest achieves this aim by selecting only the finest teas that were approved by sample audiences for its brand. Mount Everest Tea Company is run as a family business in its ninth generation, and its roots reach as far back as 1793. Originally situated in Hamburg, the company moved to Elmshorn in the early 2000s, after Mr. von Riegen had taken over the lead in a generation transfer and restructured the entire business in the 1990s. Since then it has experienced steady growth. Its core competen-
cy is the import, refinery and distribution of high quality black, green and rooibos tea – a total of 550 different types from the largest and most renowned tea plantations in India, Ceylon and China. “With these teas we serve the specialized trade, but we also produce blends for wholesalers,” explains Ms. von Riegen. “Since we established our brand my-tbar in 2013, we also address end customers who can buy our products in specialized shops or online in our webshop.” With my-tbar, Mount Everest is present on social media as well as on national and international trade fairs where it gets a lot of positive feedback for its innovative products. While Mount Everest markets its products worldwide, there is a current focus on the European regions, especially Eastern Europe. “We want to grow, and we do plan to increase our activities in the US market,” says Ms. von Riegen. “I think we have a great brand – I truly love our products and drink the tea myself. Our advantage is that we produce the blends ourselves, and we offer top quality – and only top quality – at fair prices,” she adds. With this enthusiasm and a delicious range of tea blends for all tastes and occasions, Mount Everest is bound to turn my-tbar into the trend beverage it truly deserves to be.
Mount Everest Tea Company GmbH Daimlerstrasse 13 25337 Elmshorn Germany +49 4121 79126 +49 4121 438879 info@mount-everest-tea.de www.mount-everest-tea.de www.my-tbar.com www.european-food-journal.com
AngÉlique AngĂˆlique Schmeinck,
works in and above the clouds. In her hot air balloon restaurant, the Dutch chef takes us on a very special culinary journey.
Up, up and away in my beautiful dining balloon www.european-food-journal.com
About Angélique Schmeinck
1964
Born in Gelderse Huissen
1988 to 2000
Guarded a Michelin star for her gourmet cooking in the restaurant De Kromme Dissel in Heelsum
2003
The tethered balloon restaurant is created – and takes off
2010
©Culiair Sky Dining and Masterchef Angélique Schmeinck
Angélique Schmeinck pushes the boundaries of what is possible in the gastronomy sector: She cooks in a tethered hot air balloon called CuliAir Skydining! This is not just a challenge for her but also for her guests for whom she cooks her gourmet dishes high above the ground. As well as this unique restaurant, Schmeinck’s career as a top chef is peppered with other high points. In 1988, she won a Michelin star for the restaurant De Kromme Dissel in Heelsum and repeated the feat in the following two years. The Dutch native is also a cookbook author with seven titles to her name. “Flavour Friends Vegetables and Flavour Friends Fruit” is her best-known and most successful book in her home country to date and describes the technique of culinary mind mapping. Angélique Schmeinck can also be seen on television, mainly on the 24Kitchen cooking channel.
Develops a career as a television chef with TV channel 24Kitchen
2014
Her new cookbook ‚Impress Your Friends’ is published to accompany the TV series of the same name
When Angélique Schmeinck cooks, the Michelin-starred chef from Holland thinks in meters rather than oven temperatures. That is because she cooks her signature dishes way up above the clouds inside a hot air balloon – probably the biggest oven in the world. It is part of her hot air balloon restaurant CuliAir Skydining, floating high up in the skies above Holland – and sometimes the Alps. Ms. Schmeinck also takes credit for making Dutch cuisine more creative. She invented culinary mind mapping. EFJ: Ms. Schmeinck, you are a Dutch master chef, and you own the hot air balloon restaurant CuliAir Skydining. This is a very special and unique culinary journey high above the Netherlands.
the clouds – and above the clouds, the sun is shining.
Angélique Schmeinck: Yes, and it’s also the adventure and excitement of being in the air. With a hot air balloon, you can go up 3 km high, sometimes even above the clouds. So imagine being in the basket of a balloon with a wonderful glass of champagne, a nice sea bass or lobster on your plate. You are going through
Angélique Schmeinck: Sure. I started with CuliAir Skydining in 2003.
EFJ: That really sounds fantastic. Did you fulfill a personal dream with balloon dining?
EFJ: How did you hit on that idea? Angélique Schmeinck: Well, it’s as simple as it is logical. The art of imagination as well as the www.european-food-journal.com
courage to fantasize are both important in creating things like that. For me as a chef, it was important to realize that the balloon is a very large hot air oven. Since the hot air rises, I had to ask myself what would happen if I hung up all kinds of food inside the balloon. EFJ: What temperature can we expect to find there? Angélique Schmeinck: The average temperature is about 90°C, which is close to that of an ordinary kitchen oven. At this temperature, slow cooking is possible. It actually takes more time until everything is done, but all the juice remains inside the fish or chicken. The protein doesn’t dry out as is the case when food is heated at higher temperatures. EFJ: Tell us a bit about the cooking show during the flight. Angélique Schmeinck: We use the hot air in the balloon for cooking. Therefore, the balloon is equipped with a control system. Iron baskets carrying the dishes like fish, chicken or mussels are pulled up to a height of approximately 45 m, just below the dome of the balloon. The temperature is about 90°C there. When the dishes are done, they come down with the help of the control system and I pick them up. Then I start my live cooking show on a table that projects outside the basket where I add vegetables and sauces to the dishes.
©Culiair Sky Dining and Masterchef Angélique Schmeinck
EFJ: That sounds rather dangerous. Angélique Schmeinck: It’s not. The balloon was built in England to be very safe. It is kitted out with the best possible technical equipment for balloon cooking. EFJ: When do you know the food is cooked? Angélique Schmeinck: We did a lot of experiments to get find the answer to just that question. On board, we also have sensors. They allow us to determine the temperatures at all different heights. Thus, as regards the cooking, I have to think in meters. www.european-food-journal.com
©Culiair Sky Dining and Masterchef Angélique Schmeinck
EFJ: How would you describe the dining experience? Angélique Schmeinck: It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We go ballooning in Holland and sometimes in Austria, too. For example, in winter we go ballooning above the Alps in a 3.5 hour trip on which I serve glühwein and winter dishes. EFJ: When you are ballooning in Holland, what do you see when you look down? Angélique Schmeinck: We often fly over the province of Gelderland, located in the heart Holland. There are windmills, meadows, rivers and beautiful landscapes to see. EFJ: Do you serve Dutch cuisine on board? Angélique Schmeinck: I always use seasonal and regional products from our country such as green or white asparagus, organic chickens
which had a “happy outdoor life” and mushrooms from the woods. Also, we source our seafood from the Dutch coast, where wild sea bass is one of the native species. EFJ: What about the recipes? Angélique Schmeinck: I have my own style of cooking, which means combining regional products with the art of lateral thinking. It’s all about the essence of tastes and flavours. Our guests are having a big adventure; their senses are wide open. Therefore, I serve dishes with a great depth of character, which balance with the taste of adventure. EFJ: Does that mean you wouldn’t serve the Dutch national dish stamppot during the flight just because it would not be adventurous enough? Angélique Schmeinck: That’s true, but there are exceptions. In winter time, I probably would www.european-food-journal.com
cook stamppot, of course a very special one with spices and concentrated flavours so that it would become a really exciting dish. EFJ: How do guests react to the dining experience high in skies? Angélique Schmeinck: They are all flabbergasted. EFJ: Speaking of the food culture in the Netherlands: Is your balloon restaurant part of this culture? Angélique Schmeinck: I would instead say that CuliAir Skydining is part of the creative thinking for which our country is famous. EFJ: Can the balloon restaurant also be understood as a way of escaping the cliché that the Netherlands is a mere cheese country?
©Culiair Sky Dining and Masterchef Angélique Schmeinck
Angélique Schmeinck: This cliché is absurd. We have long been well known for our creativity,
for our high ranking when it comes to Michelin stars. There are many new young chefs who know the art of cooking creatively and healthily. And, yes, it’s true that stamppot can even be served in a restaurant with three Michelin stars as long as it is prepared with the best potatoes, vegetables and cooking techniques. Then it can have a place in your memory as a meaningful dish. As you can see, tourists need to go a little bit further to discover the mentality of Dutch cuisine. EFJ: By the way, what do you see as your own contribution to the culinary landscape of the Netherlands? Angélique Schmeinck: I invented the so-called culinary mind map to help creativity take a giant leap forward in Dutch cuisine. I wrote a book about it called “Flavour Friends”. Just for a short explanation of flavour friends, please name a vegetable from your home country.
www.european-food-journal.com
©Culiair Sky Dining and Masterchef Angélique Schmeinck
potatoes. Sauerkraut with oysters, walnuts and potatoes is also one of my favourites. You have the saltiness of the oyster, the creamy texture of the potatoes, a nice fish flavour and the crunch of the walnuts. EFJ: Is there anything else that would help someone discover his or her own creativity? EFJ: Sauerkraut. Angélique Schmeinck: All right, here we go. What matches best with sauerkraut? As an answer you can perhaps come up with seven ingredients because your short-term memory can only remember seven things. You may say: “I put some cream in it, add different spices or fruits.” EFJ: In comparison, what can be achieved with the culinary mind map?
Angélique Schmeinck: It’s always worth taking your time to find the right answer about what is missing from a dish. So don’t think too hard to find the answer immediately. Just remember what Albert Einstein did: When he couldn’t find the solution to a problem at once, he just lay down on a sofa and trusted his creative mind with the hope that the answer would pop up before his eyes at some stage. And that is usually what happened. Two days or a week later, he found the right answer. What a far more relaxing way to find creative solutions!
Angélique Schmeinck:Just to stay with our example, I put the word sauerkraut at the center of the culinary mind map. All around it, I put down about 175 best food relationships for sauerkraut. Without this mind map, you wouldn’t be able to think of such a great number of best friends for sauerkraut. In my book I developed this kind of culinary mind map for 82 different vegetables. EFJ: What are your own very best friends for sauerkraut? Angélique Schmeinck: I would recommend a
creamy sauerkraut soup with Dutch shrimp and a cream of
www.european-food-journal.com
Creamy temptations from the bar Whether it’s a summer barbecue, a party or just a special moment in your life, a delicious cocktail makes every situation just perfect. There is a wide range of flavours available today suiting every taste. Whether you like it sour, sweet, fruity or creamy, in most bars you are spoilt for choice. Yet, mixing a cocktail is much more than just pouring and mixing different liquids in one glass. Every drink is a challenge depending on the right amount and order of the ingredients. Every bartender will probably agree that mixing a creamy cocktail is the supreme discipline. Usually, alcohol and milk or cream do not go together. The mixtures often flock or even clot. This is where Creamy Creation in Rijkevoort, the Netherlands, comes into the game. As the name says, the company is a specialist in creamy drinks with a strong focus on creamy alcoholic beverages. In this market niche, the subsidiary of FrieslandCampina is the undisputed world market leader. Steven Alexander, managing director of Creamy Creation, is positive that the company will be able to accelerate its growth in the coming years, too.
www.european-food-journal.com
Steven Alexander, managing director of Creamy Creation
“The market for creamy liqueurs and cocktails has been growing constantly over the last few years,” he says. “Experts expect it to continue growing until 2020 at the least, at an annual growth rate of around 3%. Of course, there are regional differences. The European market is quite mature, for example. Here, we even expect a decline of 1 or 2% every year. The United States is a promising market with constant growth rates. At present, Latin America and Asia are growing at a very fast pace. People’s average income keeps rising, and with the growing emancipation of women, they have more spending power, too.” The product portfolio of Creamy Creation is based on two main pillars. These are alcoholic drinks and nutritional beverages. Accounting for around 90% of the business volume, alcoholic drinks are the mainstay of the business. Here, Creamy Creation focuses on creamy liqueurs and cocktails.
Creamy liqueurs and cocktails In the creamy liqueur sector, the company transforms traditional spirits like whisky, rum or cognac into innovative taste sensations. Combining flavours like chocolate, coffee or nut with fresh cream, Creamy Creation creates timeless and luxurious drinks that soothe and delight your senses. Recognizing the signs of the times, all the drinks are available in high and low-fat varieties. The alcohol content ranges between 12 and 20%. If required, the drink expert is able to produce a cream liqueur from its clients’ own distilled alcohol. “Coffee-based liqueurs are always popular,” says Mr. Alexander. “We offer trendy variations such as latte macchiato, double espresso or dulce de leche.” The company’s fruity cream liqueurs are a sweet blend of fresh fruit flavours such as strawberry and banana with cream. “Popular fruit flavours are strawberry and banana, peach and mango,” explains the managing director.
Business Profile
COMPANY NEWS
PRODUCTS
INTERVIEWS
PINBOARD
LinkeD in
Google+
Twitter www.european-food-journal.com
“Yet, there is a wide range of exciting new fruit flavours and combinations available. There are endless possibilities to develop new creations and recipes.” The company’s cocktail selection is as tempting as the liqueur portfolio. There is a wide range of batidas and piña coladas available, sending you on a journey to sunny beaches with all-time favourites like fresh mango colada or fruity strawberry colada. All the drinks are available with or without alcohol.
Innovation: yoghurt-based cocktails At present, yoghurt-based cocktails are in great demand thanks to their light and healthy nature. “Compared to traditional cream, yoghurt is perfect for mixing with wine, soda or juice or even with sparkling wine,” says Mr.
www.european-food-journal.com
Alexander. “Ready-made sparkling cocktails are also an option. Thanks to their low alcoholic content, they are ideal for a low-calorie diet. We developed our own technology, which we had patented. This opens up a whole new world of cocktails. Against the background of the prevailing health and wellness hype, we are recognizing a growing demand for our yoghurt drinks. We expect it to last longer.”
High-quality nutritional drinks In the nutritional sector, Creamy Creation focuses on high-quality drinks such as weight management drinks, high-protein sports drinks and drinks that are specially formulated for inner health and well-being. All drinks are tailored to the individ-
www.european-food-journal.com
ual needs of the clients. Creamy Creation covers the complete value-added chain from concept development and R&D, contract manufacturing and packaging, to consultancy on legal and administrative affairs related to launching a new product. “It was just a small step to move into the market for nutritional drinks as you need the same technology,” explains Mr. Alexander. “Here, our flavour know-how is an important competitive advantage for us.”
A global reach Creamy Creation is a subsidiary of FrieslandCampina, a world-leading dairy cooperative from the Netherlands. When Baileys was introduced in the 1970s, the company started working on alcohol and dairy mixtures. After three years of tests and research, FrieslandCampina was able to commence production. “Next year, we will have been operating as an independently operating company for 35 years,” says Mr. Alexander. “From the very beginning, we have operated on an international basis. The opening of our US business was a major mile-
stone in the development of our company. The approval processes are just so difficult. We started selling to US customers around 2000. In 2006, we established our own supply point in upstate New York. From there we cover the United States as well as Canada. We are a true global player today with customers around the world.”
Technology, creative power and service attitude Over the years, Creamy Creation kept introducing unique technologies and products. The company’s ‘Infinity’ concept once more proved
www.european-food-journal.com
Wim Koolhaas, one of the best-known alcohol flavourists in the world the company’s innovative strength and creative power as well as its customer-oriented approach. Infinity is a technology-based concept of mixables made for acid drinks, for examples with inclusion of juices. Another example is what is internally called the ‘Pure’ concept: Using oils from nuts to stabilize the drinks, the drinks keep the natural flavours intact, delivering an exceptional natural taste profile.
components. These are cream, alcohol and sugar. It is always a challenge to mix those. Also, we lay great emphasis on our flavours. We work with one of the best-known alcohol flavourists in the world – Wim Koolhaas. Everybody in the industry knows him. He helps us to be and to stay best-in-class.” Last but not least, Creamy Creation is not just a supplier of drinks. “We are much more than this. We are a partner developing solutions in cooperation with our clients. We create tailor-made solutions, and every customer gets their own formula-
“We make the most stable drinks in the world,” says the managing director. “Our products do not deteriorate easily and have an extremely long shelf life. Our technologies are unique, and our R&D department keeps working on improvements to our existing products and on new creations. All our creamy drinks are based on three major
www.european-food-journal.com www.european-food-journal.com
www.european-food-journal.com
tion. We identify our customers’ needs and transfer them to concepts. Business intelligence is a keyword for us. We initiate portfolio management, make trend presentations and so on.” The strategy is paying off. Creamy Creation services distillers all over the world and is a sought-after partner among movie stars who aim to launch their own creamy liqueur. Drawing on a dense network of independent bottlers, Creamy Creation is able to support them from A to Z.
“We are good at technology, flavours and taste”
FrieslandCampina Creamy Creation BV Hoogeindsestraat 31 5447 PE Rijkevoort The Netherlands Global Communication Manager: Darleen Peters +1 585 344 3303 darleen.peters@ frieslandcampina.com www.creamy-creation.com/en
In the coming years, international expansion is high on the company’s agenda. “We aim to enhance our market position in the USA and in Asia,” says the managing director. “In the long run, we might even establish a subsidiary in Asia. The global market is large, and we still have to make foot prints in new regions. In addition to our expansion plans, we will continue to invest in quality programs in order to increase the quality and shelf stability our products. Our vision is to consolidate our market-leading position and to continue our growth strategy. We want to be the number-one partner for the whole industry and the best-in-class in cream liqueurs. We are good at technology, flavours and taste. And we do understand the needs of our customers. These are excellent preconditions for further growth.”
www.european-food-journal.com
ď‚˜
+49 5971 921610 Get one of 15 available campaign codes for the March 2015 Foodtec issue! www.european-food-journal.com
Manufacturer and refiner of Bethmale
Cheese from the Pyreness BP 18 - 09201 SAINT-GIRONS CEDEX Phone +33 (0) 5 61 66 01 63 Fax. +33 (0) 5 61 96 09 40 accueil@jeanfaup.com
The cheese way The pioneering spirit has prevailed: When entering the premises of DeJong Cheese BV in the Dutch town of Alphen, the visitor is surprised by the huge volume of goat’s milk that is processed at the company’s facilities day after day, made into wonderful fresh and soft goat’s cheese in many varieties. The dairy specialist has always been a pioneer in the cheese making industry and already concentrated on goat’s cheese at a time when dairy products from goat’s milk were not so common.
www.european-food-journal.com www.european-food-journal.com
“Goat’s cheese is popular in the Netherlands and in the United Kingdom. In addition, we see increasing demand from other European countries like Germany. On the whole, the market perspective for goat’s cheese specialities has experienced a considerable upsurge in the last few years,” points out owner and director Arjan de Jong. It was his father who started goat farming back in 1985. Only ten years later, the de Jong family decided to embark on cheese making itself, producing goat’s cheese from its own milk. When the demand for its cheeses grew, the dairy bought additional quantities of milk from other farmers. Today, some 15 goat farms supply about nine million liters of milk every year. “We stopped our own milk production in 2003 in order to focus exclusively on the production process, processing huger quantities,” says Mr. de Jong. “In 2011, we chose the name DeJong Cheese to better market our products internationally. By now, we already export 70% of our production.” DeJong Cheese is constantly on the lookout for new products and is able to adjust quickly to the demands of its customers. “We deliver to the food processing industry, among them manufacturers of ready-to-eat meals. Just think pizza, pasta and salads. In addition, wholesalers and the retail market are among our customers,” notes Mr. de Jong. The retail segment is still relatively new to DeJong Cheese. Here, the focus is on big supermarket chains rather than on small specialist stores. However, for its specialist clientele, the dairy has introduced a line called Alphenaer, a more artisanal cheese in selected ripening stages. “Only the best cheeses are selected by our specialists,” adds Mr. de Jong. www.european-food-journal.com
The product focus is on fresh and soft goat’s cheese and on specialities like Brie and Camembert. “When our customers told us that soft cheese was hard to cut, we developed fresh goat’s cheese crumbles for salads and pizzas, and we have also designed our own machinery to meet product specifications,” stresses Mr. de Jong. As goat’s milk is harder to come by than cow’s milk, DeJong Cheese has also launched crumbled cheese from cow’s milk. In total, the company has three varieties in this product line: two made with cow’s milk and a third one that is made using goat’s milk. “These three have just been introduced with new packaging,” says Mr. de Jong. “A new brand called Supercheese will also be presented to the market. We will make Supercheese and our crumbled cheese varieties a success. Goat’s cheese is definitely gaining in popularity.”
DeJong Cheese BV Het Sas 14 5131 RC Alphen The Netherlands +31 13 5081316 +31 13 5083301 info@dejongcheese.nl www.dejongcheese.nl
ď‚˜
+49 5971 921610 Get one of 15 available campaign codes for the March 2015 Foodtec issue!
Alain Ducasse,
the three-star chef with French roots, merges haute cuisine with the concept of ‘naturalness’
The revolutionary of haute cuisine
www.european-food-journal.com
About Alain Ducasse In 2005, French chef Alain Ducasse set a so-far unmatched record. He became the first and only chef to hold three Michelin stars simultaneously for three restaurants: Plaza Athénée in Paris, Louis XV in Monte Carlo and Alain Ducasse at the Essex House in New York. His expansive restaurant empire also includes the luxury restaurant Le Jules Verne located in the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The Michelin-starred chef defines luxury as the ability to use natural ingredients that are produced sustainably in small quantities. It is a luxury that he uses to particularly impressive effect in his Plaza Athénée restaurant, which reopened in 2014. The master of gourmet cooking is also the author of the culinary encyclopedia ‘Grand Livre de Cuisine’. Within its pages, Ducasse shows how much the Mediterranean region has inspired and moulded his cooking. 1956
Born in Castel-Sarrazin, in southwestern France
2005
First chef to win three Michelin stars simultaneously for three different restaurants
2007
The standard work ‘Grand Livre de Cuisine’ is published
2008
Ducasse becomes a citizen of Monaco
2014
Reopening of his restaurant Plaza Athénée in Paris
He is the entrepreneur among the world’s great three-star chefs. French-born chef Alain Ducasse presides over a gastronomic empire that encompasses 25 restaurants. He is quoted as having said he wants to elevate the status of the French gastronomy sector to a similar level to that enjoyed by the German car industry. He can only have been talking about its reputation for excellence rather than its industrial efficiency because the vision he is currently pushing ahead with is the most radical and comprehensive form of naturalism the world of haute cuisine has ever seen.
It may have been a twist of fate that Alain Ducasse – after achieving everything possible in the world of Michelin-starred cuisine – should have slipped so easily into the role of a revolutionary. He has already been fostering his idea of ‘natural cuisine’ with great passion for 25 years. It is expressed in the trilogy of ‘fish, vegetables, grains,’” which can currently be experienced in his relaunched restaurant Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée.
Where haute cuisine and nature come together It is akin to gilding the lily and an insult to boot when a natural ingredient is smothered in artificial flavours. That is why Ducasse wants to celebrate the natural flavours of the fish and vegetables he uses in his dishes and bring them to the fore. He is also concerned with issues of sustainability and environmental conservation. www.european-food-journal.com
“Nourishing oneself in a healthier and more natural way is an expectation and a necessity that it is now time to implement in haute cuisine.” Can this vision be compared with saving French cuisine, which for years has been crying out for new ideas and visions. The Cuisine Francaise may have been added to UNESCO’s list of intangible world heritage treasures in 2010, but parts of its gastronomy sector do not really live up to the accolade. Restaurants that have made an unsavoury name for themselves by serving food that has been warmed up in the microwave cast a small but visible shadow over an otherwise exemplary gastronomic landscape. Maybe what is needed is the radical vision and pizzazz of someone like Ducasse to take up the baton and reclaim French cuisine’s position at the avant-garde of international gastronomy. His trilogy of naturalness has been many years in the planning and therefore can be anchored in a highly convincing concept. It is not as if he does not have the time to think everything through to the last detail. It has been a long time since he worked as a chef for many hours a day over a hot stove. Because of a serious accident in the 1980s, Ducasse cut back his cooking activities. But is it really so important that he continue to demonstrate his talent in the kitchen? No, as a visionary and entrepreneur, Ducasse really has nothing more to prove. The actual cooking can be done by others. What is truly important is that he is there to steer the business and share his creativity, expertise and technical skills. That is what he does par excellence and which allows him to continue to do great things. Of course, he needs a team he can trust to support him. That is particularly the case at www.european-food-journal.com
Plaza Athénée, where the exceptional restaurateur Alain Ducasse is supported in his dream of creating ‘natural cuisine’ by his worthy protégé and Executive Chef Romain Meder.
The trilogy lives The menu is proof enough that the trilogy is alive. Dishes such as ‘Quinoa cultivated in Anjou’, ‘Vegetables from the Chateau de Versailles’ and ‘Lobster from Cotenin’ show the way. The names of the dishes are the key to the actual restaurant philosophy; they provide the explanation and logic behind the trilogy. Without a garden, there would be no chefs. There would be no fresh vegetables and luscious fruits growing in the famous Chateau de Versailles to be delivered to the chopping boards of the restaurant kitchens just a few hours after harvesting. Even the fish is ‘hand-picked’. It is sourced from fishermen who still use traditional fishing methods. They want to live their lives in harmony with nature and take a stance against the overfishing of the world’s oceans. The grain that makes up the third element in the trilogy is sourced from a treasure chest of rediscovered ancient grains. Among them is red corn, which is grown by farmers in the Basque region of France. Ducasse is convinced that these simple products with their new flavours can enrich and enhance gourmet dishes. That is why we can have confidence in Ducasse the revolutionary that he will guide French haute cuisine to greener pastures and give it a fresh new look. He can always remind himself of his mission by looking out of one of the rooms in the Plaza Athénée onto the Paris landmark, the Eiffel Tower, and cheering on himself and others to never stop ‘working harder, faster and better.’
Delicious
Gourmet Recipes
Casserole of quinori, crispy vegetables and herb pesto from “Nature, simple, healthy and good” by Alain Ducasse (p. 335)
Serves 4 Prepare the herb pesto
Prepare the vegetables flakes
While the quinori is cooking, wash and pick the leaves of 2 sprigs of chervil, 2 sprigs of coriander, 3 sprigs of parsley and 3 sprigs of basil. Peel and mince 1 garlic clove. Put in the bowl of the blender with 2 tbsp pine nuts, 2 tbsp argan oil and 6 tbsp oat milk. Blend until the mixture is smooth. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper, and pour the pesto into a sauce boat.
Peel and wash 2 young carrots with tops, 4 spring onions, 5 green asparagus spears, 12 radishes and 1 small tender fennel bulb. Cut the asparagus tips into pieces about 8 cm long. Slice all the vegetables into the finest possible flakes with a mandoline slicer or a vegetable peeler and keep cool.
Cook the quinori Preheat the oven to 160°C (gas mark 3). Peel and chop 1 white onion. Rinse 200 g of quinori. Heat a flameproof casserole dish with 2 tbsp olive oil and sweat the onion for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the quinori and mix. Then add twice its volume in water (500 ml) and stir again. Bring to a boil, then cover and put in the oven for 15 minutes. Add 4 tbsp of chopped cooked tomato to the quinori and return the casserole dish to the oven for another 5 minutes.
© Françoise Nicol & Jean del Moral
To finish your dish Combine the vegetable flakes in a large bowl and season with 2 tsp olive oil, a pinch of salt and 3 twists of freshly ground black pepper. Take the casserole dish out of the oven and add the vegetables to the top. Cover immediately and place the casserole dish on the table along with the sauce boat of herb pesto. Lift the lid so that everyone can enjoy all the aromas. Then gently stir the vegetables into the grains and serve. Diners can then help themselves to the herb pesto. AD- Quinori is a mix of red quinoa, long-grain brown rice, chickpeas, white quinoa and sesame. PN – A superb cocktail of vitamins, mineral salts, fiber, complex carbohydrates and vegetable protein, without a trace of gluten. This dish is highly nutritious so there’s no need for meat or fish on the menu, but a little cheese (to complete the protein) and a piece of fruit would be welcome.
www.european-food-journal.com
Diversity and exclusivity The Bordeaux region is known to be the largest winegrowing area in France, producing more than 700 million bottles of Bordeaux wine annually, including table wines and some of the most expensive and prestigious wines in the world. Les Vignobles André Lurton S.A.S. located in Grézillac, France, contributes to this highly productive business sector. The old-established family of winegrowers maintains seven vineyards on an area of 600 ha and produces four million bottles of white, rosé and red wine a year.
www.european-food-journal.com
Pascal Le Faucheur, general director of Les Vignobles André Lurton
The history of Les Vignobles André Lurton dates back to 1897 when Léonce Récapet, grandfather of the present owner André Lurton, purchased the historic estate Château Bonnet in Grézillac, France. The surrounding vineyards of Château Bonnet had already been planted by the De Reynier family in the 16th century and were continuously expanded over the following centuries. Mr. Lurton took over the family estate in 1953 at a time when both Château Bonnet and Bordeaux wines were in bad condition. “At that point in time, the family maintained vineyards of 30 ha,” explains Pascal Le Faucheur, general director of Les Vignobles André Lurton. “Mr. Lurton took the opportunity and expanded the growing area to a total of 300 ha. In 1965, he also purchased another estate on the opposite side of the Garonne river, Château La Louvière, which was built in 1792. By means of long-lasting craftsmanship, the property was restored and turned into a magnificent manor house again. In 1991, Château La Louvière became a historic monument and is today considered one of the region’s most beautiful estates.” Over the past years, several additional purchases and refurbishment regarding both vineyards and estates have taken place. In 1973, for example, Château de Rochemorin was acquired, which was once home of the famous French philosopher and author Charles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu. “At the present time, Les Vignobles André Lurton owns seven estates: Château Bonnet, Château Couhins-Lurton, Château La Louvière, Château de Rochemorin, Château de Cruzeau, Château Grossombre de Saint-Joseph and Château de Barbe Blanche,” states the general director. “The business itself operates as an S.A.S., a private limited share company with André Lurton as president and his three children on the management board. A brother of the present owner also maintains numerous vineyards under the name of
Business Profile
COMPANY NEWS
PRODUCTS
INTERVIEWS
PINBOARD
LinkeD in
Google+
Twitter www.european-food-journal.com
Lurton and has made a name for himself in recent years.” At the moment, Les Vignobles André Lurton employs a team of 200 people at its headquarters in Grézillac and additional locations in Bordeaux. “Our vineyards amount to 600 ha, 470 ha of which are dedicated to red wine,” says Mr. Le Faucheur. “Seven appellations provide a broad portfolio of 27 different white, rosé and red wines.” One of Les Vignobles André Lurton’s most wellknown and prestigious wines is the Château La Louvière, which is available in white and red varieties. “Château La Louvière has long been famous for its white wines,” explains the gen-
www.european-food-journal.com
eral director. “In fact, they were praised by Canadian merchants as early as the 17th century.” The elegant La Louvière ranks among the finest dry white wines of the Pessac-Léognan appellation and is marked by the varietal character of Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Furthermore, the family of winegrowers is particularly proud of its white wine Château Couhins-Lurton Cru Classé de Graves. Its fruity characteristics are determined by 100% Sauvignon Blanc grapes, which provide excellent preconditions for years of maturation. “In terms of volumes, our Château Bonnet wines are most popular on the market,” states Mr. Le Faucheur.
“We sell more than one million bottles of the Château Bonnet white wine a year. Approximately 80% of its rosé variety is exported abroad.” Apart from its broad range of high-class wines, the winegrowing company generates its annual turnover of 25.5 million EUR by means of further services and offers. Some of its estates, for instance Château La Louvière, are open all year long to the general public and are available for tours, events and wine tastings. Events like general meetings, product launches, galas or anniversary celebrations can be hosted in the 150 m² cloister room of Château La Louvière. “At the La Louvière estate, we also have seven guest rooms available,” says the general director. “They are often used by journalists or participants of events.” Concerning its range of white, red and rosé wines, the French company cooperates with several distribution partners on the domestic and foreign markets. “We have more than 5,000 customers from all over the world,” explains
Mr. Le Faucheur. “Only a small share of 10% is sold on the farmer’s market in Bordeaux. About 50% of our production volumes are distributed on the French market, for example to large supermarket chains, small wine cellars, specialist stores, hotels and restaurants.” Les Vignobles André Lurton’s most important export markets are found in the USA, Canada, China, Sweden, Germany, Belgium and Norway. “The Château Bonnet rosé is particularly popular among Swedish consumers,” states the general director. “All in all, our export sales amount to eleven million EUR.” In terms of distribution, Les Vignobles André Lurton places great emphasis on direct customer contact. Clients often visit the vineyards, cellars and estates to get an accurate impression of the winegrower’s products. “Constant communication and public relations are highly important in our business,” says Mr. Le Faucheur. www.european-food-journal.com
“By these means, we have become one of the most renowned and largest winegrowing companies in the Bordeaux region. Les Vignobles André Lurton has played an important part in the positive development of this winegrowing area. With Michel Rolland and Denis Dubourdieu, we also have two extremely capable winemaking consultants who work hard to obtain the very best grapes from our various terroirs – with the greatest respect for the environment.” Speaking of environmental issues, Les Vignobles André Lurton attaches high importance to sustainable measures. Apart from its international ISO 14001 certification for environmental management, the winegrower pays great attention to biodiversity, lighter bottles and packaging material, recycling processes and reduced energy consumption. In the future, this successful strategy will be developed even further. “Wine tourism is an essential economic factor in the Bordeaux rewww.european-food-journal.com
gion,” summarizes the general director. “It is promoted by the government, municipalities and local winegrowers themselves. In the time to come, it will become important to strengthen this position and invite more tourists and wine connoisseurs to our vineyards and estates.”
Les Vignobles André Lurton S.A.S. Château Bonnet 33420 Grézillac France +33 557 255858 +33 557 749859 contact-val@andrelurton.com www.andrelurton.com
Exclusive Interview Greg Greg Koch, Koch CEO & Co-founder of Stone Brewing Co.
www.european-food-journal.com
Š Stone Brewing Co
AMAZING BEER FOR EUROPE
Exclusive Interview
The craft beer revolution has Europe in its grip. One of the companies spearheading this revolution, the cult Californian brewery Stone Brewing, has chosen Berlin as its European headquarters. From the end of 2015, on a site that previously housed a gasworks, craft beers with unusual names such as Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale will be brewed and sold. European Food Journal spoke with the CEO of Stone Brewing, Greg Koch, about his beer philosophy and Europe as a target market.
EFJ: Mr. Koch, you are the CEO of Stone Brewing Co., the first independent American craft beer brewery to be to run in Europe by the end of 2015. How can Europe benefit from craft beer? Greg Koch: Europe already has thousands of amazing craft brewers that are making incredible beers. For example, BrewDog (Scotland) is recognized around the world. The tiny new Vagabund Brauerei (Germany) has become a very popular place for locals in Berlin’s Wedding neighborhood. Baladin (Italy) is 20 years old and considered one of the leaders of Italy’s incredibly vibrant craft brewing landscape. Europeans benefit greatly from having a quality range of choice and diversity. Stone Brewing’s presence will simply add to the diversity of choices for discerning consumers. EFJ: Your European headquarters will be located in Germany – a country which is regarded worldwide as the beer nation and the master of the art of brewing. How will Stone Brewing enrich the German brewery landscape?
Greg Koch, CEO & Co-founder of Stone Brewing Co.
Greg Koch: We brew styles that are completely different from traditional German styles, and very different from modern industrial styles. We approach the brewing of our beer with the passion of an artist. www.european-food-journal.com
© Stone Brewing Co
EFJ: Are we also talking about different flavours and a distinguished attitude? Greg Koch: Yes, yes, yes. And the main difference that you would probably expect is that the flavour profile is bigger. Our beers have big character, with rich flavor and aroma. Our beer is completely different from the industrial beer that the majority of the world drinks. Industrial beer represents the lowest common denominator. There is industrial American beer, industrial Dutch beer, industrial Japanese beer, industrial Mexican beer, and yes, also industrial German beer. Industrial beer has become so common that most people know little else. EFJ: So this is a worldwide trend? Greg Koch: Exactly. For centuries, brewing has been a noble art, designed by and for the people. Tragically, industrialization and pandering to the lowest common denominator have fueled www.european-food-journal.com
brewing’s deterioration into a mere commodity. So much so that most of the world no longer thinks of brewing as an art. Instead, they view it as something with little if any character, to be purchased as inexpensively as possible. EFJ: But what about the famous German purity law? Doesn’t it prevent the beer from losing quality? Greg Koch: The so-called Reinheitsgebot is nothing but a great misunderstanding. It’s nicknamed ‘purity law’ but has nothing to do with purity. It is an antiquated tax law from 1516, that only began being used as a marketing term and relabeled as so-called ‘purity law’ somewhere around the 1950s. Modern industrial brewers around the world are able to make poor quality beer that falls within the technical guidelines of the Reinheitsgebot. This will assist in understanding the Reinheitsgebot: http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/ reinheit.htm
Exclusive Interview
EFJ: Well, the German purity law says that beer should consist of barley, hops, water and yeast. Greg Koch: May we instead simply refer to it as the “Reinheitsgebot” since it’s not, and never was, a “purity law”? At Stone Brewing, 95%+ of our volume falls within the guidelines of the Reinheitsgebot, but the flavors and character of our beer would be considered very strong by most German beer drinkers. We use dramatically more hops and more barley, and our beer is much much more expensive to brew. EFJ: It would be interesting to know about your personal definition of purity. Greg Koch: Purity means that we are not putting anything into our beer that is not of high quality.
EFJ: But industrial German beer is still successful. The masses buy German beer here that is produced by big beer companies such as the Radeberger Group. Greg Koch: Yes, industrial beer is still the leading style beer around the world. If Germans want to take pride that they are drinking the same style of industrial beer as the Chinese and the Mexicans and the Americans, they can relax and continue to enjoy their industrial beer. It is not my job to convince anybody they should drink craft beer. It’s my job to make amazing
© Stone Brewing Co
EFJ: So, have people fallen into the trap of a German cliché?
Greg Koch: Yes. The conversation in Germany as in many parts of the world has been reframed so much with this idea of purity law. Nobody really understands what it means. It’s just rhetoric and is often used as an excuse to sell you cheap beer and make you think that it is still okay. Cheap industrial beer with a “Purity” stamp on it is still cheap industrial beer.
www.european-food-journal.com
beers. It’s simply for somebody else to decide for themselves if they like it or not. EFJ: Don’t you address any target groups? Greg Koch: My target group is people who decide for themselves that they like good beer. People who aren’t satisfied with industrial beer, and want something different. When it comes to other aspects, such as personality or demographics, I don’t know, and that’s not my business. EFJ: But why is Berlin the place to be for your company? Greg Koch: We found a piece of property that we really like: the historic 1901 gasworks buildings in Berlin-Mariendorf. These buildings have a unique and very special character, and they will offer us the ability to grow and to create this special environment for people who would like to come and visit us. EFJ: The German capital is, after all, known for its alternative culture and a huge landscape of organic stores. And the Slow Food movement, which you are also a member of, is strongly represented there. Greg Koch: Honestly, we didn’t pick Berlin because we thought that there will be any particular number of people that want our beer. We know that the fans of our beer are scattered across Europe. That being said, Berlin is a wonderful place and I’m very excited to be able to call it home! EFJ: Why are you so sure that the Germans will enjoy it? Greg Koch: Germans, like all people, really have good taste. That’s part of our basic nature as human beings. Because we are, after all, 99.999% genetically the same – aren’t we?
© Stone Brewing Co
EFJ: I think so. Greg Koch: Well, the difference in taste between craft beer and industrial
www.european-food-journal.com
© Stone Brewing Co
Exclusive Interview
beer is actually not within that 0.001%. It is actually within our nurture…the result of how we’ve been raised and what we’ve been exposed to. So, if people don’t think of themselves as craft beer drinkers, it is mostly because they have not been exposed to it. When we opened in San Diego in 1996, people were not really aware of craft beer. Most people didn’t even like our beer. It was very strange for them. It just takes time for people to get used to the idea that beer can be more than the industrial stuff in the television commercial. EFJ: Do you think that the future belongs to microbreweries like you? Greg Koch: There is more and more of it. I travelled the world early this year during a fourmonth sabbatical. I went to New Zealand, Australia, South-East Asia, Italy, Spain, Eastern Europe and Germany, and found that small brewers are growing like crazy everywhere. As more and more people learn about craft beer, more and more people are gravitating towards it!
EFJ: How do you comment on the fact that people are drinking less beer in Germany? Greg Koch: Well, that is not a new development. Beer consumption has been declining there for many decades. I am fine with people drinking less beer. EFJ: Why? Greg Koch: Our beer is not about mass consumption. We have been growing as a company by greater than 45% each year on average for 18 years. I’ll repeat that: greater than 45% each year for 18 years. I suppose that is an unusual position in any business category anywhere in the world. We have never advertised. And we don’t make things that most people thing they like. The people who do like what we do love what we do – since we do it with passion, integrity and character. EFJ: At the production level, we are talking about different hectoliter numbers. For inwww.european-food-journal.com
stance, the Radeberger Group produced eleven million hl in 2012. What will be the dimension of your production in Berlin?
EFJ: In what proportion will the ingredients be sourced?
Greg Koch: It’s fractional – not even a tiny slice of that. However, there is not much of a relationship. If you look at a great chef restaurant which uses farm-to-table quality ingredients – do they care what McDonald’s does?
Greg Koch: It will be 95% European sourced and ingredients, and probably more than half of it will be German sourced. But I can’t say that for certain. That is an expectation, not a direct quote.
EFJ: Will the ingredients for craft beer come from the surroundings of Berlin?
EFJ: The new Stone Brewing Co. is an integral part of a world of beverage, Slow Food and beer production in Berlin-Mariendorf. What exactly is the idea behind this world?
www.european-food-journal.com
Greg Koch: We will create a destination unlike anything Berliners have seen before. The restaurant and gardens will be expansive and highly unique. Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Berlin will
© Stone Brewing Co
Greg Koch: A lot of the ingredients will be of local origin. We will also be using some American hop varieties that are not available at other places. But there are also new German hop varieties that some German hop growers create to keep up with the demand for the craft beer style.
Exclusive Interview
be an environment that takes you away from the harsh reality of over-commercialization and brings you into our world of artisanship. Our beers are big, bold and dramatically different than traditional German/ European styles. The menu at Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Berlin will highlight local and organic food with eclectic and creative preparations. Our goal is to bring the entire ‘Stone experience’ to Berlin.
fans and bringing down the costs associated with having our beer available in Europe.
EFJ: How many jobs will be created by Stone Brewing in Berlin?
Greg Koch: No, the carbon footprint is too high.
Greg Koch: We will begin with 70 brewery-related jobs. Once Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Berlin is open, that will add nearly 100 full-time and part-time jobs. EFJ: Would a US-EU free-trade agreement have made it easier for you to gain access to the European market?
© StudioSchulz.com
Greg Koch: The biggest barrier for us is transporting our beers that are meant to be consumed fresh. It takes quite a bit of time, effort and money to transport our beers to Europe. By opening Stone Brewing Co. – Berlin, we’ll be able to brew the beers and distribute them across Europe. As a result, we’ll be reducing our carbon footprint, getting fresh beers to our
EFJ: How will you transport your beer across Europe? Greg Koch: We will do it by refrigerated containers – sometimes by train, sometimes by truck. EFJ: And not by plane?
EFJ: What about the price for craft beer products? Good-quality beer justifies a higher price, is that correct? Greg Koch: Most certainly yes. But we do not compete on price. EFJ: By what percentage will the price be higher than the industrial beer prices? Greg Koch: 1.5 to three times more expensive. We make several beer styles that range at different prices. EFJ: People in Europe have the fear that America will flood the European markets with genetically modified products. You are quite the opposite of this. Can we regard your slow food
www.european-food-journal.com
approach as an American statement for genetically unmodified food?
Greg Koch: I once dreamed of being a guitar player.
Greg Koch: I am against genetically modified products, absolutely. But I also would like to point out that America is much much more than Budweiser and McDonald’s.
EFJ: Who were your role models?
EFJ: Do you work together closely with other European companies, and do you still need business partners?
EFJ: Are you sad that you didn’t become a rock star?
EFJ: Are European companies interested in selling your beer? Greg Koch: Yes, we have importers and distributors across Europe waiting to get our beer. EFJ: What are the most important European countries for Stone Brewing? Greg Koch: Germany is surely at the top. Sweden, Denmark, Italy, the UK, France and Belgium are also highly interesting. EFJ: Since you are the personality behind Stone Brewing, let’s talk about you personally. As regards your appearance, you seem like a folk-rock star to me.
www.european-food-journal.com
Greg Koch: No, I am enjoying my life very much, and I feel very rewarded with being able to carry forward the craft beer revolution every day. EFJ: Do you have a song that best describes the craft beer revolution? Greg Koch: The craft beer revolution is nuanced, varied and wide in its character so that it is represented by the music of human existence. For some people it might be Vivaldi; for others it would be Metallica. For me it’s both. EFJ: What is your personal dream as CEO of Stone Brewing? Is it about delivering some kind of American dream to Europe – what do you think? Greg Koch: My personal dream is to free everyone from the chains of oppression of low expectations, to get away from over-commercialization and generic lowest-common-denominator same-sameness and enlighten them to what a world of craft beer can offer.
© StudioSchulz.com
Greg Koch: Since we are a US-based company, we are working with a number of European-based companies – architects, contractors, equipment suppliers – to help bring our vision to life. We have not yet finished selecting all of our business partners.
Greg Koch: Matthias Jabs, the guitar player of the German band The Scorpions was among them.