After an early breakfast at the hotel, Wladimir picked us up
to go to Halles Paul Bocuse. Having just been to his restaurant the night
before, we could readily see how this famous chef had exerted his influences in
the gastronomic development of the city.
A bit of history. In 1859 Lyon created its first covered
market to facilitate the traders and customers. A century later the city
decided to innovate with a project to construct a space to showcase their
gourmet ambitions in the neighbourhood of Part Dieu.
On 1 Jan 1971 the Halles de Lyon was opened, and throughout
the years becoming an anchor for this gastronomic capital of France. In 2004,
the city decided to renovate and restructure the Halles. Two years later, it
re-opened with Paul Bocuse agreeing to give his name to this phenomenal market.
Coming early to avoid the crowd from the cruises, unfortunately
many of the shops were just opening and there was not much activity yet.
However we could walk around leisurely to get a look at the 50 premium stalls, selling
fresh meat, seafood, fruit and vegetable, cheese, pastry and so on.
Everything we saw was really appealing. For anyone who like
to cook this market was certainly a heaven. I always believed the reputation of
the French cuisine had a lot to do with these fresh and high quality
ingredients. Every single shop had a specialty, and most were also reasonably priced.
Taking a short break we sat down at a small café to enjoy a
cup of coffee, while Wladimir shared with us his frustration on the high
business tax in France, as well as the privileges the train workers still enjoying
nowadays, but not necessarily translating into better customer services to
public.
We then headed back to the car and continued our journey,
driving for about one hour to the Rhone Valley. Leaving Lyon behind, we quickly
found ourselves in green landscape and seeing the Rhone River, while on the two
sides were the steep slopes, many planted with vines.
Passing through Cote-Rotie we went to the other side of the
river and entered Saint Joseph, then continue to drive uphill to Malleval
before arriving at Domaine Pierre Gaillard. We were greeted by Pierre’s
secretary, who also managed visits to the estate, and she took us inside.
Pierre had always been fascinated by vines, studying viticulture
and oenology in Beaune and Montpellier, and buying his first property Clos de
Cuminaille in Malleval in 1981. He moved to the heights of the village in 1987
to be close to his vineyards.
Now Pierre owned more than 77 hectares of vines, expanding
from Malleval to cover other parts of Rhone Valley and also having vineyards in
Madeloc and Cottebrune. The flagship was Domaine Pierre Gaillard, totalling 25
hectares in Northern Rhone, from Cote-Rotie to Cornas.
Walking through the spacious and well-organized cellar, we
were impressed with how neat and clean it was. Pierre had spent a lot of effort
in upkeeping the facilities and hygiene. All plots were manually harvested and
individually vinified. Cold maceration was done for both red and white.
Going back to the tasting room we were shown the different
types of soil. Particularly interesting was the Cote-Rotie Brune and Cote-Rotie
Blonde. The former had a darker colour coming from the iron-rich clay substrate,
while the latter had more siliceous soils of lighter colour.
We then sampled the wines, which I lost count but believed
to be around ten. There were some simple ones like Saint Peray and Saint Joseph
Blanc, to the more complex Condrieu for the white. I liked the floral and fruity
notes of the 2017 Condrieu and bought one (€31).
Before the red I also tasted the richer Condrieu ‘L’Octroi’ which
was also good. Proceeding then we tasted Saint Joseph (€16) and Cornas (€31)
which were both nice and suitable for earlier drinking, followed by the more complex
lieu-dit like Saint Joseph ‘Clos de Cuminaille’ and ‘Les Pierres’.
Then we tasted the Cote Rotie ‘Esprit de blonde’ (
€60)
and ‘Rose Pourpre’ (
€80), made from vines from the two different types of soil.
Readily identifying the difference, it was a wonderful side-by-side comparison
to highlight the effect of terroir on the same appellation. I liked both.
I then asked to try the special sweet wine they made from
Viognier, Condrieu ‘Fleur d’Automne’ (
€35 - 500ml). Highly fragrant and quite
unique on the aromas, I decided to purchase it as well. In total I bought six
bottles but fortunately the estate could help me ship those back to Hong Kong.
Saying goodbye we then drove downhill and passed through the
village of Malleval again. Having some time before lunch we took a walk around.
It was a very quiet village, and interestingly there were many villagers painted
on big cobblestones and using them to decorate their home.
Leaving Malleval Wladimir took us to a nice hotel on the
Rhone river side, Le Beau Rivage, for lunch. The restaurant was managed by chef
Ludovic Mounier, with the interior environment elegant and comfortable, and the
large windows looking out to the river giving a nice scene for the diners.
Decided to go for the ‘Hermitage Menu’ (
€39.9)
with a glass of Saint Joseph Blanc (
€14), the first course Carpaccio de
Poulpe, the octopus carpaccio with calamondin and basil vinegar. Beautifully
rendered, the octopus was fresh and tender, with the sauce adding an extra
dimension to the dish.
After a sorbet to cleanse the palate, the second course was
Makis de Thon Juste Cuits, lightly seared tuna maki with crisp tropical salad,
cream of green peas and kaffir lime. Using the Japanese technique to wrap a
piece of toasted seaweed on the tuna, it was truly wonderful in flavour, with
the overall dish having a fusion style surprisingly complementary with the wine
and environment.
For the dessert I opted for Carpaccio de Fruits Frais et
Sorbet, carpaccio of fresh fruit and sorbet. Just by looking at it was already
a feast of colour and enjoyment. The fruit was also very fresh, sweet and tasty.
A great finish to the meal. With the final bill of €101 including a bottle of
water, this meal was really great value and I strongly recommend this
restaurant if you came to Condrieu.
Next we went to another wine estate, Domaine de Bonserine in
Cote-Rotie, which got 12 hectares in the appellation and another 1 hectare in
Condrieu. They used composted manure and tilled the land with horse to encourage
the vines to go deep into the soils, with only 4-6 clusters per vine to control
yield by green harvesting.
The grapes were destemmed before vinified plot by plot with
indigenous yeast in thermo-regulated tanks. Malolactic fermentation was carried
out in barrels afterwards, before the wines were aged in barrel for 22 to 36
months before bottling.
We sampled four wines produced by the estate, starting with
Condrieu. With 2004 being the first vintage, the vines were grown on granitic
soil, giving a rich and full-bodied wine of great fragrance. Then we had Cote-Rotie
La Garde, produced only in the best vintages from their oldest vines, and Cote-Rotie
La Vialliere, from a mica-schist terroir giving unique finesse and elegance.
Last we sampled the Cote-Rotie La Sarrasine, from
mica-schist and gneiss soil and contained a small percentage of Viognier to give
a floral notes. Among the wines tasted, I personally liked La Garde the most and
purchased a bottle of 2014 (
€62) to bring back home.
Before returning to Lyon, Wladimir drove us to Musee
Gallo-Romain, an archaeological site devoted to Gallo-Roman civilization in Vienna.
The 7-hectare remains was a Roman colony located at the edge of Rhone,
prosperous in the period of 50AD. While there were numerous excavations in the
area throughout the years, it was until 1967 the remains of the real city was
discovered.
The entry fee of the museum was €6, and there were an indoor
and outdoor section. You could lend an audio device to listen to detailed
introductions to the different exhibits along the way. Some particularly
interesting ones included the House of the Ocean Gods, built in 160AD and
covering more than 3000 sq. metre, with reception rooms and gardens, animated
by ponds and jets of water.
The central carpet of the mosaic represented the four heads
of the Ocean God, surrounded by marine life including fish and shells. The restoration
of the mosaic allowed us a good glimpse of how gorgeous the decoration had
been, as well as how amazingly rich the Romans were to build them.
Apart from the mosaic, there were many sculptures which were
also fascinating. Another great exhibit was the reconstructed boat that were
used to move goods between the Mediterranean and northern provinces of Gaul,
along the Rhone and Saone River. The amphorae used to hold the most traded
commodities (olive oil, fish-based condiment and wine) were also shown.
Because the weather was very hot we decided not to go to the
outdoor section to look at the excavation sites, and after re-joining with
Wladimir opted to go back to Lyon to take a rest. Arriving back in the hotel we
found the ceiling of the bathroom was dripping water and popping out. Luckily
there was still another vacant room available, so we could switch without too
much hassle.
This evening we booked a Michelin 1-star for dinner. Located
in the 5-star hotel Villa Florentine, overlooking the city of Lyon on top of
the Fourviere hill, Les Terrasses de Lyon, managed by Chef David Delsart, offered
diners a culinary treat by using the regional produce to create true
gastronomic wonders.
Seated at the terrace with a breathtaking view of the city’s
rooftops, I ordered a glass of Amour de Deutz champagne (
€26)
to start. Even though the weather was a bit hot, with the slight breeze it was
in fact quite comfortable. We decided to go for the Discovery Menu, with me
having 4 plates (
€115) while Ivy having 3 plates (
€105). I also had the wine
pairings too (
€85).
After serving us a nice amuse-bouche, the starter was a cucumber
gazpacho with a slice of toasted cracker on top, supplemented with some cheese
and an edible flower. Very fresh and appetizing, the delicate flavors of the
cucumber was enriched by the cheese and the cracker adding the crunchy texture
too.
The first plate was Arctic Char in Gravlax, Broccoli and Quinoa
Tabbouleh, Victoria Pineapple Emulsion. Gravlax was a Nordic style of cured fish
which was able to keep the flesh moist and tender unlike smoked. The Arctic
char was beautiful, and the pineapple emulsion added a sweetness and lightness
to the full-bodied fish. The tabbouleh was a finely chopped salad which was
flavourful. A great dish. Paired with Domaine Courbet Cotes du Jura Chardonnay
2015.
The second plate was Pan Fried Duck Liver with Shrimps, Crispy
Vegetable Salad. Interestingly when served a consommé was poured in with the
duck liver, reducing the fatty sensation but further enhancing the flavours of
the dish. The vegetable salad again provided a contrasting texture to the soft
duck liver making the overall experience surreal. Paired with Bernard Zito Cote
de Brouilly La Cote 2014.
The third plate was Roasted John Dory Aiguillette with Saffron
Butter, Zucchini Fideuà. Taking the inspiration from Spain for sure, the fish
was simply gorgeous, with a crispy skin, moist and juicy flesh, seasoned
perfectly. The saffron butter was delicious and did not mask the taste of the
fish, while the fideuà was a Valencia-style paella. Really wonderful. Paired
with Domaine Benoit Ente Puligny Montrachet 2015.
The fourth plate was Pigeon Fillet from Anjou Smoked with Vine
Shoot, Local Garden Peas and Strawberries in Pistachio Mustard. The pigeon was
cooked right to medium rare, while seared greatly on the skin, with a smoky
fragrance from the vine shoot. The appealing red and green creamy mousse was
great not just on sight but also on taste. Paired with Domaine Jamet Syrah
Collines Rhodaniennes IGP 2016, a chic wine from Northern Rhone which was
famous in France.
Finishing the main courses, we were served some sorbet and
fruit to cleanse our palate. So far up to now the portions and everything were
so perfectly done it was truly a treat to dine in this restaurant.
Wrapping up on dessert was Apricots Cooked with Honey and Wild
Thyme, Dulcey Mousse. Nicely presented, the apricots got an amazing aroma from
the wild thyme. Along with some nice fruit and a home-made apricot ice-cream,
it was a wonderful conclusion to the meal. Paired with Chateau Tour des Gendres
Le Saussignac 2014. An interesting sweet wine from Bergerac with an unique
bottle shape.
With a cup of coffee to pair with the Petits Fours, we
really enjoyed the meal and had a good time here. The food was great,
interesting choice of wines for pairing and good match with the food,
impeccable service with nice and friendly staff coming to explain all dishes
and chatting with us throughout the dinner. The bill was
€343
and worth every penny. Highly recommended if you were visiting Lyon.
The day was in fact my birthday but we did not do any big
celebration. However, walking back to the hotel after the wonderful dinner in
the nice breeze was every bit magical. It was our last night in Lyon and we
were also eager and look forward to our next stop – Avignon.
Ingredients (for 4):
