Jackie du Monde

My friend Mike owns a champagne importing company in Connecticut, called Transatlantic Bubbles.  I met Mikey on an unforgettable trip to the Russian River Valley many years ago, when I was invited along to celebrate his and a friend’s 30 th birthday. Each year, Mike and his business partner, Jeff, put together a week-long trip to Champagne to visit some of their marquis producers.  They invite some of their best clients and an occasional charming American living in Europe (or three) to partake in some of the festivities. The bottle that started it all... This year, I was able to join the group at the end of their week to visit one of my favorite producers, George Laval.  Mike introduced me to Laval on a beautiful spring night in London, when he brought a bottle to our dinner picnic on Islington Green, a very small park, a patch of grass really, in the north of London, near where I used to live.  It was an unassuming bottle, with a simple label.  M...

A couple of weeks ago (I need to get more timely with this blogging business), we informally inaugurated "Cultural Sundays" with my patchwork quilt of global expats from work.  Our first expedition was to Paris des Chefs , a food event.  My fave highlights: Truffle Flavored Cashews I mean truffled flavored anything is good (except when I make it of course - see Truffle Tales ), but there is something about combining the in-your-face flavor of the truffle with the smooth and crunchy texture of the cashew.  While normally I could consume my weight in cashews, the flavor is so rich and satisfying that it left me satiated after a few nibbles.  Or maybe it's because I got distracted by some of the other goodies to come. Learn more about Esprit Gourmande  (or at the very least be entertained by the translations on their blog.) Thienot Champagne Granted there was only one producer at this event and it's a group, not the delightful small pr...