Prestige cuvée Rare and gourmet at Michelin* Restaurant De Rozario
Chef Jermain de Rozario: “great cooking comes from the heart and soul”
A love affair with taste
Coming from Amsterdam, Helmond in the south of The Netherlands may look far, but it is here Traveljus journeyed. On a grey, drizzly afternoon, Dominique Climasander (International Brand Ambassador of Piper-Heidsieck) proudly launched the long-awaited Rare Millésime 2013 during a champagne tasting lunch. It turned out to be a memorable lunch. If you get the real thing, it takes no effort at all to appreciate the champagnes from Piper-Heidsieck paired with the modern, noteworthy dishes of Michelin star chef Jermain de Rozario. De Rozario makes contemporary dishes with an Asian twist. Taste and flavour intensity are essential to Jermain. “Great cooking comes from the heart and soul”. They occasionally do things a little more unconventionally than usual in other top restaurants. And, with flamboyant sommelier Edgaras Razminas (named sommelier of the year 2021 by Michelin) anything is possible during service.
The story behind cuvée Rare
French champagne house Piper-Heidsieck has produced extraordinary champagnes since 1785. Piper-Heidsieck is renowned for its unique blends made of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes. In the summer of 1976, France was hit by an unprecedented heat wave, one the Champagne region had never experienced before. The year started with a cold winter and spring, followed by an extremely hot, dry summer with thunderstorms and a windy, cold autumn. The harvest took place late, in October. Piper-Heidsieck’s winemaking team wondered whether it would be possible to create a Millésime cuvée under these remarkable circumstances. Millésime indicates the vintage or harvest year of the grapes. Following the assembly of the different base wines and after bottling, the team was so proud of the end product that they called it Piper-Heidsieck Rare. In 2019, the name became simply Rare. According to Émilien Boutillat, Chefs de Caves of Piper-Heidsieck Rare Champagne, the aim is to make the best possible wine in limited quantities and only in exceptional vintages.
Restaurant De Rozario
Chef Jermain de Rozario of restaurant De Rozario believes in the power of flavour. His dishes show a lot of respect and love for the country of birth of his Javanese grandmother: Indonesia. What surprises me is that it brings back a memory of the Indonesian smells and flavours of my youth. While talking about Asia and Asian food, Jermain indicates that he would also like to travel to gain inspiration. “I don’t know yet everything. There is still so much to learn”. Jermain already came a long way. He was a garbage collector before his love for food and hospitality took over and he eventually earned his first Michelin star. Jermain wants to make his own flavour combinations, his own choices, even if they do not fit what people expect in a Michelin star restaurant. Also unexpected, yet it still fits in when you get to know the chef and his team a bit, is the sometimes bright graffiti art on the walls. It makes it clear what the essence of restaurant De Rozario is. Beautiful dishes in which the chef’s personality is not only unmistakably present but also his memories and emotions. And he does that surprisingly well.
Menu De Rozario
Appetizers: The various appetizers Pecel bonbon / Topinambumbu / Shellfish / Mama’s chicken/satay/bao, combined well with the dry style of the Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Extra Brut.
Steak tartare: A beautiful dish of piccalilli ice cream/oyster leaf/sesame ‘kletskop’ / vinaigrette of roasted peppers in paired with the excellent Champagne Rare Millésime 2008.
Turbot: A classic dish with softer flavours and a citrus twist, made from pumpkin/orange / beurre blanc vadouvan. The turbot and the Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Blancs de Blancs paired well together.
Rendang: The rendang, made from coconut and sereh / mango ice cream/enoki/pandan oil, is a course I would definitely come back for. It paired surprisingly well with Piper-Heidsieck French Riviera.
Wagyu / Oyster: A delicious dish of Wagyu beef, with a rich, buttery and umami-like undertone, further enhanced by the miso eggplant/mushroom / perkedel / gravy from Pedro Ximénez and BBQ. Excellent combi with the long-matured Piper-Heidsieck Vintage 2014.
I want to extend my thanks to the Dutch importer Maxxium, Dominique Climasander, the International Brand Ambassador of Piper-Heidsieck, restaurant De Rozario, and Pitch PR for the organization.