February Events at the Boutique

We had such a good time at the last few events that we've decided to do it again.... and more often.
Starting February 4th, every Thursday from 5-9 pm at Spring is now known as 'Little Saturday':

Come out and taste new arrivals, talk with winemakers, meet your friends, and make new ones.
5€ covers the dégustation and the snacks. We'll be on hand to make sure everyone drinks good wine and enjoys themselves. This week we'll open up various versions of Syrah and see what makes them tick.

Hope to see you Thursday... we mean on 'Little Saturday.'

There's also a bonus event on an actual Saturday-- Feb 6th from 11h30 - 20h, we'll have Voyage en Saveurs here with a line-up of organic jams and chutneys from Toulouse. We'll be matching the spreads with our favorite cheeses and we'll have a special Roast Chicken and Chutney sandwich. This tasting is free.

Finding Wine in France

by Joshua B. Adler

In the past three months since I moved to Paris, I feel like I have to start all over again in terms of how I think about wine. In San Francisco, I knew which wines I liked and I knew great importers and winemakers who could sell them to us at good prices. In Paris, I still know which wines I like, but I have to do a lot more listening and talking to find out what kinds of wines Parisians find interesting and what they are looking for.

The wine business is a lot different in Paris than in San Francisco. In the states, everything is set up in a fairly organized fashion. There are importers, distributors, and retailers. Thanks to the famous three-tier system, you can be one or two of the above, but not all three. In Paris it is, as they say, the bazaar. Anyone can sell anything to anyone at any time. Often several agents in Paris will represent the same winery, and you can just as easily call up the winery and order direct. Or you can buy the wine from one of the larger wine stores who have set up distribution arms.

With such an abondance of choice (which often feels more like a barrage of salesmen), what is the best way to go about finding wines for the restaurant, the bar, and the store? This is exactly the question I'm trying to answer. Let's start with the first and most important question-- what am I looking for?

I'm looking for wines that reflect a place and a person. Our job is to give people something to drink that they will enjoy, but also to connect them to the place where the wine comes from and the person who makes it. The list should be diverse in styles, regions, prices, and years. All the wines have to go well with the food at Spring. They should also be good values-- this does not mean cheap, rather it means that the wine is priced fairly for its quality. I'm hoping to create a community around wine and food where we help introduce Spring guests to new wines, and work closely with the winemakers to present their wines in an honest in engaging manner.

I think the only way to do this is to work directly with winemakers. So in the next few months I'm going to travel around to wine regions, visit some of my favorite vignerons, and try to find others that are a good fit for Spring. First trip is set for the last weekend of January-- there are three large wine fairs near Angers: The Renaissance des Appellations (biodynamic producers from around the world), the Dive Bouteille (natural wines from all over France), and the more mainstream Salon des Vins de Loire. Give a shout if you know of producers I should check out-- I'll read the comments.

Barolo Tasting with Aldo Vajra of Domaine Vajra

by Joshua Adler

Barolo Tasting with Aldo Vajra

 Thursday 21 Janvier 18h - 21h

 Spring Boutique, 52 Rue de l'Arbre Sec 75001 M Louvre Rivoli

 5€ for the tasting and antipasti

On Thursday night, Aldo Vajra is coming all the way from the commune of Barolo, Piemonte to pour his wines at the boutique. Aldo Vajra is the kind of winemaker who is both very traditional and willing to innovate. He produces classic Barolo, and an exceptional red wine from the local Freisa grape which is nearly forgotton. Super traditional. In the early 1990s, Aldo was the first winemaker in Piemonte to plant Riesling. Innovative. I asked him why he planted Riesling and he said that he always liked drinking it and wanted to try his hand. Turns out Riesling does well in Piemonte-- other wineries have followed and it's kind of a trend. Personally, I love it, and I'm excited that we'll be pouring it tonight, along with the Barolo, Dolcetto, and Moscato. We will prepare some traditional Italian antipasti to go with the wine and will procure some real Italians to tell us how we did it wrong. 

In an effort to learn how to sell some wine, we're going to try a sale. All Vajra wines will be 15% off on Thursday night. 

Introducing Joshua B. Adler

by Joshua B. Adler
This post introduces a new character into the Spring story. Some of you may have already met me at Spring Cave Epicerie or at Table 28. In September 2009 I moved from San Francisco to Paris to work with Daniel and Marie as the wine director for Spring. I have never worked in a restaurant or lived in Paris. I’m here to learn about the world of winemakers, drinkers, shop owners, agents, expats, locals, and more… and I’m planning to share what I learn here.

Before coming to Paris, I worked as the wine buyer at a small family-run specialty foods store in San Francisco called Bi-Rite Market . Two days into the job, I managed shut down the computer network that powers the cash register for half a day. Somehow, I didn’t get fired, and a few months later I got my picture in the SF Chronicle for choosing the best value wine of the year.

I spent the next three years tasting hundreds of wines per month, organizing classes, tastings, and events, hosting winemaker dinners, and helping people find great wines that they would love at all styles and prices. Together with Sam Mogannam, the owner of Bi-Rite, and our friend Joyce, I helped start 18 Reasons , a non-profit community food center where I hosted weekly food and wine events. Building community has always been something I've had a passion for. 

How did I get into wine? It all happened because I like to ride bikes. After graduating from college, I decided it would be fun to lead bike tours in France. I applied to every bike tour company that exists, and Andy Levine of Duvine Adventures offered me a job leading groups of tourists on wine- and food-themed bike tours around France. For some unknown reason, all the bike tour guides in Europe live in Beaune, a fortified medieval town that has been the center of the Burgundy wine trade since the time of Charlemagne. Going to parties in Beaune, I quickly got used to people saying things like “This is good, but not as good as the ’83 Corton”, and “Might as well go down to the cellar and see how the Pommard is coming along in the barrel."

 

I also got to bring small groups of bikers around the wine regions of France, stopping along the way to taste with winemakers and eat at great restaurants. I spent a lot of time in the Loire, Burgundy, and Provence, and realize as I write this that these are still my favorite wine regions.

A while back while I was on a trip to Paris, my friend Todd (see post from May 2007) told me I should stop by Spring and meet Daniel. I told him I was thinking about moving to Paris and he told me I should come work with him at Spring. It took about a year and a half, but here I am, looking forward to the adventure.

Flashback! Spring on the Road (past and future)

Spring is closed. We transformed the old space into a new restaurant idea (new for us, in anycase) that is really a very simple neighborhood rotisserie.  Table 28 has taken off.

Meanwhile, the Boutique is settling into the new neighborhood in the 1st.

Construction on the restaurant is advancing and it is starting to look like something other than a big pile of anxiety producing debris.  There are walls, and floors and even a staircase!  I'm happy with the progress and the team is great. Architects, builders, plumbers... I've been blessed with the company of the craziest bunch of coyotes that a kid building a restaurant in Paris could ask for.   Let's hope the good work continues.  I'd say we're just under halfway there.  No opening date yet.  Coming soon.

Archives:
A week or so before Marie Aude and I began working together I took her on a trip to Brugges.  I wanted  to get to know her and take some time off before we got stuck in the grind of the SPRING thing.  Late summer 2007.

We ate at a three star michelin thingy in Brugges that you should definitely SKIP the next time you are there.  A "Turbot en vessie" should be a memorable moment, but it was really quite deflated.

We stayed the night at a restaurant just outside of Brugges and had a great time.  The chef and his family were warm and wonderful.  We spoiled ourselves at dinner and then went back to our separate rooms...










We spent the day in Brugges wandering in circles and taking pictures of people eating french fries.  Just seemed like the thing to do.

When we got back to Paris it was raining.  We walked from the Gare du Nord back to SPRING where Marie washed her feet like you feel you have to do when you schlep around Paris in warm summer rain and flip flops.









I was thinking about our trip because we are about to take another one next week (although this time we're sleeping in the same room!).

I'm going back to Japan and this time Marie is coming with me.

We were recently introduced to Japanese whisky and we are going to learn a little bit more.   Sounds a little strange (especially when Scotland is a lot closer), but I am as much interested in the whisky as the steps it takes to make it.  Exploring how japanese craftsmanship expresses itself in something as foreign as whisky might help me understand what i'm up to here in France.  I'm interested in the process of appropriating something from another culture and the balance between making it uniquely one's own and at the same time adhering to a long tradition.  As an American cooking in Paris, there is something in that dynamic that i'd like to crack.   Intellectually stimulating... Sure, but the stuff is really delicious.  Some Japanese whisky (from Suntory, for example) was designed to be consumed along with a meal and is diluted in a special way to suit the task. It is a new way of engaging food and a great departure from the French wine centered experience.  It is good to shake things up a bit.  It is a bit like our experience at Table 28.  Change the rules a little...

The last time I came back from Japan everyone asked if I would start cooking some sort of fusion.  The only thing I brought back from Japan the last time (apart from a whole mess of experiences shared with new friends) was a bad ass craving for tako yaki, okonomiyaki, BOSS coffee in a can (hot!) and japanese breakfast.  I can't wait to get there again. I'm hungry.