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Agiant spoon in the middle
of a lake o�ers a clue as to
what's happening in Moët
� Chandon's Orangery,
which is opening to the
public for the rst time
this summer. For such an auspicious
occasion you'd expect something
big - and this most famous of
Champagne houses delivers.
While we wait for the great reveal,
breaking o� pieces of chicken skin,
slurping oysters in a concentrated
cucumber extract and sipping Moët
Brut Impérial poured from magnums,
we are joined by tennis superstar and Moët � Chandon
ambassador Roger Federer. This is something big. We're outside,
desperate for a glimpse inside the Orangery, but rst our palates
are in for a rather unlikely treat: salt and Champagne.
This is the beginning of LE �, a collaboration between Moët cellar
master Benoît Gouez and three Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alléno.
Their shared passion for exploration and
creation has taken them on a two-year
journey to put together tonight's menu,
which sees art and science intertwine
in each mouthful to bring out di�erent
nuances of Moët's Champagnes.
Magnums of Brut Impérial are rst
up at the 7 Salt Bar. Pairing Champagne
with various salts may sound weird,
but there is method in the madness. As
Gouez points out, Champagne contains
four of the ve primary sensations
that make up taste - it has acidity,
sweetness, bitter elements and umami.
It's missing the fth element: salt.
(Umami, by the way, comes from maturation on the yeasty lees.)
Worth its salt...
But don't expect a three Michelin-starred chef and the maker of one
of the most popular Champagnes in the world simply to add a few
extra sprinkles of the white stu�. No, salt here comes in the form of
CHAMPAGNE SPECIAL
TONIGHT'S MENU SEES ART AND
SCIENCE INTERTWINE IN EACH
MOUTHFUL TO BRING OUT DIFFERENT
NUANCES OF MOËT'S CHAMPAGNES
thefifthelement
Glitz, glamour and Gallic �air - Moët � Chandon pulls out all the stops for a gastronomic
mystery tour of its exclusive Orangery in Epernay WORDS LUCY BRITNER
Clockwise from top left: the spoon in
the lake outside Moët � Chandon's
Orangery; salt sculptures; gold magnums