Martell celebrates its 300th anniversary with a multisensory gastronomic experience
Cognac house Martell celebrates its 300th anniversary with a multisensory gastronomic experience in France modelled on one of Asia’s top restaurants, writes Jacqueline Kot
hen jersey native Jean Martell left the island in 1715 for the Cognac region of France to start a business trading the colourless fruit brandy eau de vie, little did he know his name was destined to become globally synonymous with quality. His venture thrived and this year, under the ownership of spirits giant Pernod Ricard, celebrates its tricentennial.
In honour of the landmark, Martell hosted a dinner at the Palace of Versailles for 300 guests. French chef Paul Pairet was asked to reproduce the “immersive dining experience” that has ranked his avant-garde Shanghai restaurant Ultraviolet among the world’s best. It was a major challenge for Pairet, whose restaurant takes only 10 diners a night seated at a communal table for 22 courses individually paired not only with wine but also imagery, music, lighting and aromas. With support from high-end caterer Potel et Chabot and production company K2, Pairet and his team recreated the concept for Martell, paring the menu to seven courses for the Versailles event, which took place in May.
“Once you factored in all the research into the history of Martell, the dinner took
one year to plan, while food preparation took three days,” Pairet recalled. “It was a challenge because we had to expand the concept to feed 300 people.”
The dinner—which required one waiter for every three guests because of the exacting synchronisation required in the serving of dishes—started on an unassuming note. When guests were ushered into the dining area, they found a large wicker basket at every place setting. At first, the projections lighting up the walls glowed with Martell’s brand imagery, but suddenly they switched to an ethereal starry night, and then to rustic countryside images—at which point the waiters stepped in to lift up the baskets.
Underneath was a picnic-style set-up featuring a bread roll, a tin filled with tender pieces of lobster and a tube of mayonnaise for a do-it-yourself sandwich titled DIY Lobster Roll. Accompanying the course was a miniature flask filled with a fruit-based cocktail named The Independent created especially for the anniversary, and the strains of the classic French tune La Bicyclette by Yves Montand filled the hall. The whimsical take on a picnic symbolised Jean Martell’s birthplace of Jersey, known for its scenic landscape and beaches.
“ONCE YOU FACTORED IN ALL THE RESEARCH INTO THE HISTORY OF MARTELL, THE DINNER TOOK ONE YEAR TO PLAN”
Once the diners finished their lobster rolls, images and the sound of ocean waves filled the room to accompany an exquisite oyster and scallop dish. The raw shellfish were tossed in a dressing that included vanilla cream, lapsang souchong tea and kombu seaweed, matched with a salty lemon sorbet in the shape of a shell. The dish arrived with a champagne flute filled with Perrier-jouët Grand Brut.
“The second course is dedicated to Jean Martell’s journey by boat from Jersey to France in 1715,” Pairet said in explaining his inspiration. “It’s a dish rich in iodine to encapsulate the ocean; the sorbet shell is made from a mixture of a seaweed infusion and lemon to resemble seawater.”
The third course, symbolising the humble early years of Martell’s business, was served against black-and-white scenes of a dark forest. Titled Truffle Burnt Soup Bread, it looked like a piece of bread soaked in soup, but each bite came with a delicious burst of mushroom-infused meunière sauce with a shaving of truffles. The dish was paired with a pour of Martell Cordon Bleu and the pensive piano melody Carnivalse by Canadian musician Chilly Gonzales.
“It looks simple but is the most difficult course to produce for 300 guests,” Pairet said. “The more simple the dish, the higher the chance for failure.”
The next course, pieces of chicken and eggplant skewered on a twig and smoked in a