Confessions of a Wino

Where better to try a Bordeaux Grand Cru than in its home town?  Problem is pecuniary.  Although restaurants around Bordeaux ask reasonable mark-ups, this still involves voluntary surgery.  To keep my arms and legs intact, my cunning plan was to buy the wine from a local shop and take it to the restaurant which, for convenience, was Le Savoie, bang in the centre of Margaux.

As it happens the plan was only partly successful because, including €12 corkage, despite the drinking pleasure, my bank manager still had to find €111 (a “Nelson” in cricketing terms) to replenish my bank account.

Peppery, spicy, earthy and full of fruit, yet very feminine and flowery. But that’s enough about the waitress, let’s talk about the wine.  Actually, let’s not. It would be rude.  Enough to say that words like ethereal, magic, and wheelbarrow are simply not appropriate.  One thing that is true of fine wines is that they evolve over time in the glass, and this went through a lifecycle more akin to a swan or butterfly, although in youth it already started from a position of covetous pulchritude.  Moving from Eartha Kitt to Juicy Lucy is some feat and it opened up its fruity legs to show its floral class, lavender undertones and minty tannins.  At 12.5% ABV it turned into a light sabre, but with The Jedi in control. The force was with me – good job I wasn’t allowed to drive home.

The meal was forgettable, with a flopped mushroom mousse accompanying my snails, and massively overcooked, out of season veg that was so tired I assume it had been watching an omnibus edition of Eastenders. Everything tried just a little too hard, from the amuse-bouche to the weird shaped crockery.

By all means call in for a lunch on your way through Médoc but for a posh evening meal pretending to the Michelin étoile you will find much better places in Pauillac or Bordeaux.  In fairness the service was Michelin class, it was only the food that disappointed.  You may have more luck, especially if you are French, judging by the magic mushroom mousse that has just arrived at the next table to M. et Mme. Mangetout.

The bill was another thing that tried too hard although, in fairness, it succeeded in being the most expensive of the holiday, at €90 for two (excluding wine of course).

Le Savoie
1, place Trémoille
33460 Margaux
Bordeaux
France
T: +33 (0)5 57 88 31 76
W:  www.lesavioe.net

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 24th, 2010 at 10:00 pm and is filed under bordeaux, food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.