The Hairy Chevalier

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It's a big day for Hairy LS. Foursheets and I were among a small group who received an invitation to the residence of the Consul General of France in Hong Kong and Macau. Besides the commanding view of the Hong Kong skyline, we were there to witness our friend being bestowed the distinction of Chevalier de l'Ordre du Mérite Agricole.

The ceremony was brief, and after the medal was pinned to the lapel of his jacket, we toasted the moment with some Billecart-Salmon Brut Réserve and nibble on some canapés. We were very happy for our friend to have been bestowed this honor. Now he's a knight... but where was his horse and armor?!

We were still kinda hungry after the ceremony, but had no dinner plans, so a few of us went to - where else? - Caprice Bar for some simple food and drinks.

Royale tarte with duck and foie gras, raspberry and chocolate sauce - it's been too long since I last enjoyed one of these tartes from this kitchen, and although we are in the middle of summer, I still love them! Nope, not heavy at all... not in my book. Of course, the King of Sauce delivers with that combination of fruity acidity from raspberry vinegar and the chocolate richness.

Pata negra croque-monsieur, with four cheeses and black truffle - this is always a good idea.

I didn't take the Australian flap beef, but I did enjoy the French fries that came with the beef... because it was served with Alain Milliat Premium Tomato Ketchup!

Strawberry pavlova, diplomat cream, strawberry vanilla ice cream - I went up to the kitchen to say hello to Astoria and asked what interesting desserts she was putting out. Apparently this just dropped yesterday, and she made sure to give me more fraises des bois. SA-WEET!!!

There was, of course, plenty of drinking to be had. As we were at the bar, I made sure to start with a cocktail from Anyss. There was a round of La Banane being ordered for the three Frenchies next to us, so I decided to join them. I don't normally order drinks with Cognac as the base, but this was really nice.

It's not a celebration without Champagne, and the Hairy Chevalier very kindly brought out a magnum for us.

Charles Dufour Bulles de Comptoir #11, en magnum, dégorgée Mars 2023 - pretty smooth. The color made it look like it has some age on it, but the base vintage was actually 2020. A little metallic on the nose, somewhat like Anjou pears, along with a little flint. Drinking pretty well and rather elegant on the nose.

2018 Jourdan Les Trois Quartiers - the nose was really fragrant, very nice notes of dried herbs, pine needle, potpourri. After more than half an hour there were some light savory notes around the edges.

2006 Peyre Rose Marlène N°3 - drank after about 1 hour in decanter. Nose was very meaty, smoky, grilled meats, with a little leather, along with black fruits. After years of aging this was now pretty smooth on the palate.

As I left, Astoria very kindly sent me home with another vanilla flan. This was still fantastic the next morning, and I loved it!

Congratulations to my friend the Chevalier! Let us know when you find your horse, and looking forward to meeting Mdm Le Pen with you.