Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Fall 2013 - (Page 132)

Starting to feel my blood turn to cocoa, i take a breath and Soldier on. T HE CHAMPION From top: The contenders are presented, and the winner is declared, the secret revealed: layers of chocolate, bitter caramel and orange ganache, and three varieties of chocolate. In the open chef’s kitchen at the Entyse Bistro, Zinngrebe, who has spent three decades as a chef and executive around the world, gathers his tasters, all key figures in the company, attired in suits and ties, pearls and pumps, or chef whites. Zinngrebe thanks Barasse, telling the circle, “He has a cake in competition too, but he promised he didn’t screw up the other ones.” After outlining ground rules for the cakes — for one, they must be able to travel and stay impeccably fresh for eight days — he passes out ballots. As we descend upon a long buffet of beautifully plated slices, he lets out a rallying cry: “Let them eat cake!” The tasters go quiet and, armed with forks and pencils, begin circling, considering, jotting. As I’m deep into my third slice, knitting my brow over 132 w w w. r i t z c a r lt o n . c o m an uncannily ethereal hazelnut pound cake that manages to incorporate the chocolate and liqueur, Zinngrebe interrupts our intense silence with a word of further guidance: “The biggest criteria: yummy. Let’s not be too analytic.” With that, we all kick back a bit, and begin to taste in the spirit of pleasure, of indulgence, rather than as assessors in a laboratory. Zinngrebe, beside me, bites into a mousse cake and eliminates it from group consideration immediately. “That’s not gonna happen — it won’t travel,” he scowls. Kate Gruell, the vice president of luxury operations, in a chic black dress, puts down her fork to exclaim, “but that was my highest performer so far!” Despite its sudden noncompetition status, and the dozen-odd cakes still to go, I taste it anyway. It’s more cream than cake — so I see his point. But man, it’s outrageously delicious. Barasse takes a bite of the next cake. “A very strong tradition,” he says with solemn emphasis. “You can really taste the orange, and it’s so chocolaty!” Zinngrebe replies. I dig in. It’s a layered Sacher, but a very different animal than Barasse’s. This baby is an indulgently moist sponge layered with dense fudge, cut by a sophisticated orange aroma — and perhaps that’s some caramel I taste? More than any other on the buffet, this is the one that begs a second piece. Starting to feel my blood turn to cocoa, I take a breath and soldier through the final few. Then Zinngrebe collects ballots, and we gather on banquettes, sipping coffee, awaiting the verdict. By a strong margin, the sophisticated fudgy entrant takes the prize. The winner is revealed as chef Yusuke Aoki from Toronto. I can’t help myself: I go back for more (you know, for research), reflecting on each morsel now that it has been elevated beyond the decadent crowd. Its sponge is a mix of Valrhona, Manjari Jivara chocolates, layered with two stripes of bitter caramel (I thought so!) and two of orange ganache, made from candied fruit and Grand Marnier. It’s a showstopper. (Then again, the runner-up, that hazelnut pound cake, which turns out to be from the Abama Golf & Spa Resort in the Canary Islands, nearly sent me into a similar tizzy.) A friend is meeting me in the lobby; I drag him in for a slice — it’s that kind of cake, a cake to wax evangelical about, a cake to have a second slice of, even after tasting a year’s worth of dessert in under an hour. “It’s a ‘grand’ gateau, is it not?” I ask him. He just grins, his mouth too full of bliss to answer. http://WWW.RITZCARLTON.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Fall 2013

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Fall 2013
Contents
Contributors
Editor’s Letter
President’s Letter
Falling in Love With ... Barcelona
Design
Shopping
Beauty
Gifts
Jewelry
Watches
Behind the Scenes
Family
Local Knowledge
Outdoors
As It Was
Culinary
Let Us Stay With You
Heritage

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Fall 2013