This French tradition is back again in Dubai on the 31st May for a second edition of « Apéritif à la française » organised by Sopexa, the French Ministry for Agriculture, and the French food and beverage industry, and under the patronage of His Excellence Patrice Paoli, French Ambassador to the UAE.
After a promising first edition in Dubai on June 2nd 2005, this year’s “Apéritif à la française”, will delight food lovers in the exceptional décor of a Le Rêve apartment (opposite Dubai International Marine Club). Last year’s event proved to be a tremendous success. Set up at Fort Island (Madinat Jumeirah) in a Parisian bistrot setting, the evening hosted over 350 people from the Food & Beverage sector, VIP’s, importers, trend-setters… all of whom were overwhelmed by the mouth-watering delicacies that were on offer.
This year, the festivities will be held in a homely jovial environment. So what could be better a venue then a Le Rêve penthouse apartment with the highest standards of decorative style to hold this year’s “Apéritif à la française” and recreate the ambiance and vibrancy of a true style French aperitif in Dubai.
The aperitif, a moment of pleasure…
The aperitif is all about a festive atmosphere, sharing and pleasure; it’s a casual opportunity to get together, chat and get to know one another. The “Apéritif à la française” is the chance to re-discover and and share French food culture. This party for food and wine lovers, food and beverage professionals and VIP’s will show off the many facets of French agri-foods products. Breads, wines*, cheeses, cold meats, deli products, fruits and vegetables and more will be the guests of honour at this celebration of simplicity and fun! An abundance of high-quality, flavourful products that can be prepared and presented in many different ways - from the simplest to the most refined - adapted to our modern lifestyles.
« Apéritif à la française » will be the opportunity to savour mouth-watering delicacies and to take pleasure in some wine tasting. Amongst the wines on offer, you will be able to enjoy:
Champagne Pommery Maxi: This champagne is produced using predominantly Chardonnay Grapes and traditional products. With an extra dry dosage, Pommery Maxi is slightly sweet, fruity, seductive and well rounded. With its fine mousse, elegant overtones and nutty aftertaste, this champagne is a real treat.
Petit Chablis, La Chablisienne: Hugh Johnson says that La Chablisienne, one of the famous French cooperatives, makes the best of this pleasantly fresh wine made of Chardonnay from the outer villages of Chablis. The fresh fruity aromas offer a good taste of the Chablis steel.
Barton & Guestier Bordeaux: This red Bordeaux wine from Barton & Guestier has been aged in oak barrels to make a rich and complex wine with notes of blueberries and spice and a long-lasting aftertaste. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot which complements steak, cheese and chicken.
Bandol: This small fishing port near Toulon is famous for its fine vineyards in the hillside restanques up above. Pale, intense and herby rose wines like this account for one bottle in three – based on fresh and peppery Grenache & Cinsault.
Kronenbourg 1664: Kronenbourg 1664, is the premium lager of Brasseries Kronenbourg brewers since 1664 and is France’s No.1 selling beer and the UK’s second-biggest selling premium lager. Dating back more than 300 years, Kronenbourg 1664 is made with a unique blend of passion and aromatic hops from Alsace.
At this year’s Aperitif a full range of French products awaits you… with lots of magic and plenty of surprises!
« Apéritif à la française » Sponsors
« Apéritif à la française » is brought to Dubai thanks to the active participation of many French brands, contributing to the promotion of an evening of conviviality «à la française ».
The main partners of the event are:
Perrier:
Perrier is the n° 1 brand worldwide in the bottled carbonated water market and the favourite alternative to carbonated soft drinks. The brand is already largely referenced in the hotel and retail sector in the UAE. The town of Vergèze in the South of France is where all Perrier water originates from since 1863, and it’s where Perrier gets its distinctive natural mineral content. What makes it special is its renowned carbonation, which comes from a naturally occurring source deep beneath the spring. Perrier can be served straight up or with a twist of lemon or lime. Accompanied by shaved ice made from Perrier water, it's the ultimate refreshment & sensorial stimulation for intense pleasure moments.
At the « Apéritif à la française » Perrier will bubble up the party with new 750ml < Haute Couture > bottle!!
African & Eastern:
African & Eastern is the foremost wine supplier in the Gulf and recognised as the market leader in the wine category across the region. Whilst the greatest growth is being driven by New World brands, African & Eastern are pleased to report that France represents the largest share of sales of any Country. Amongst their portfolio of over a thousand wines, African & Eastern are proud to represent some of the finest names in France. African & Eastern are enjoying unprecedented growth due to the current boom in hotel development. As more and more operators join the 5 star market in Dubai, they are constantly challenged to keep pace with the demands metered out by such an innovative & unique market place.
African & Eastern have most recently become the agents in Dubai for Kronenbourg 1664 & Remy Martin, as well as notable houses such as Charles Heidsieck Champagne, Domaine Ott from Provence, Clement Klur from the Alsace & Jean-Luc Colombo of Rhone.
Caprice des Dieux:
For all amateurs who love to give their taste buds a delight, Caprice des Dieux is a divine cheese delicacy with a melting heart which has the pure fresh taste of cream. This famous calisson is loved by young and old and gives as much pleasure as any sweet. Caprice des Dieux, a family cheese par excellence, can be enjoyed at any time of day, right from breakfast time!
Even:
Even UHT whipping cream is a French natural product made from pasteurized cow’s milk using a know how which guarantees a high quality product recognized by professionals.
Even is a new player in the UAE market and is very optimistic about the launch of this top of the line French UHT dairy cream. With its inimitable taste, Even UHT whipping cream meets all the requirements for all your recipes.
Cacao Barry:
The French brand Cacao Barry offers a range of high-quality cocoa products, chocolate coatings, fillings and decorating products. In 1842, starting out with tea and coffee, Charles Barry, a true innovator with a passion for chocolate, decided to go to Africa and seek out a selection of cocoa beans that would enable him to create his very first connoisseur's chocolate. Today, Cacao Barry’s traditional strength still lies in the sourcing of cocoa beans in the origin countries as well as in mastering the processing of cocoa. Innovations such as Pailleté Feuilletine™ biscuit crunch, Pistoles™ and MyCryo® cocoa butter, Cacao Barry help you add a touch of originality to your creations. Chocolatiers, confectioners, master bakers and pastry chefs from all over the world choose the Cacao Barry brand because of its perfect finesse and superior taste and texture. Cacao Barry is a Barry Callebaut brand.
Elle & Vire:
Established in the Normandy in 1947, the Elle & Vire brand is now used in more than 120 countries around the globe, in both the retail and food-service sector, offering a complete range of top quality dairy products. Elle & Vire offers food service professionals a complete range of top quality, high-performance dairy products. The result of ongoing research and innovation, Elle & Vire products meet the needs of the most demanding Chefs. Elle & Vire is a standard-setter, accompanying restaurateurs, hoteliers, Pastry Chefs and other food service professionals throughout their careers.
Elle & Vire is an official supplier to the Bocuse d’Or and an associate member of the Asia Pastry Cup in Singapore. The brand also maintains privileged relationships with the Institut Paul Bocuse, the Ecole du Grand Chocolat Valrhona and the Ecole Lenôtre.
Today, Elle & Vire presents Whip & Create, the new easier and faster dessert base for mousses, frozen parfaits and gratins, and you can now prepare ice cream without an ice cream maker!
Cap’Fruit:
Cap’Fruit constantly tailor their products to the meet the evolving needs of professional chefs as culinary arts continuously change. Through careful monitoring of the fruit supply chain Cap’Fruit has established strong partnerships with many fruit growers from around the world to maintain a competitive advantage and provide quality products for culinary professionals. Cap’Fruit’s mission is to bring the best of fruit in all forms “from the earth to the plate”.
Cap’Fruit has a solid position on the upper level market of frozen fruit and purees and is today a major player in the frozen fruit segment. Cap’Fruit is now introducing FRUITMOUSSE, an easy to use, 100% natural, gelatine-free mousse, that could be ready in minutes.
Maison Boncolac:
Since 1955, Maison Boncolac has developed a wide range of deep frozen products that include ice cream, pastries and salted appetizers. Using their traditional know how Boncolac supplies quality products that answer the demands of both French and foreign customers, including an established market in the Middle East. Maison Boncolac’s easy to use products are available in a wide range of flavours such as apple, tatin, bourdaloue pear, apricot, chocolate and more. Today, in the UAE, Maison Boncolac French pastries are especially present in the food service market offering hotel & restaurant Chefs a selected range of qualitative frozen French pastries made from high end ingredients, and in respect of the high tradition of French pastries making. Maison Boncolac develops new recipes every year in accordance to its innovation policy. This year Maison Boncolac is launching the coconut pineapple tarts; and a new lemon meringue tart.
Furthermore, the following famous French names will also be present during the event:
Air France
AIR FRANCE is one of the subsidiaries of the AIR FRANCE KLM Group, the world's leading airline group in terms of turnover. Since 1996, Air France has increased significantly its offer between UAE and France. Starting from 3 weekly flights, via Kuwait to 13 weekly direct non-stop flights, the seat capacity has been multiplied by 10 in 9 years. Air France carried in 2005, 185 000 passengers compared to 19 325 in 1996.
In a constant effort to satisfy its client needs, Air France launched a new internet booking engine which simplifies the booking and purchasing process. Simple, secure, convenient and fast, the www.airfrance.com/ae and www.airfrance.com/sa websites help passengers to organizing their journey.
Mikasa
Mikasa is one of the leading hotel and catering tabletop suppliers in the region. Mikasa offers a one-stop-shop tabletop collection of glassware, crystal ware, cutlery and crockery for high-end hotel and catering establishments. At the « Apéritif à la française » Mikasa will be presenting a new glass collection made of a special material called Kwarx, a special glass which is clearer than crystal but does not have the lead that one normally finds in the crystal glass. The collection name is “Open-up” and will be launched during the event. The Open-up collection has been designed bearing wine-tasting in mind as it has the ideal shape for the tasting of young wines.
About « Apéritif à la Française »
Sopexa, dedicated to promoting French food and beverages world-wide for the past 40 years and armed with a network of offices providing on the spot help and in depth knowledge of regional consumer patterns and economic factors, is the creator of the apéritif project.
«Apéritif à la française » is a world-wide event that took place for the first time on the 3rd June 2004 in over 13 countries and 17 cities across the world with the support of the French Ministry of Agriculture. In 2005 21 countries, 31 cities took part in its festivities. Due to its huge success in 2004 and in 2005, a third event has been launched this year with 19 countries and 28 cities taking part in the fun: Hong Kong, Moscow, Hanoi, New Delhi, Kyoto, Barcelona, Beijing, Sapporo, Budapest, Bangkok, Munich, Chicago, Shanghai, Warsaw, Singapore, Dubai, Tokyo, Berlin, Montreal, Hamburg, Seoul, Lisbon, New York, Fukuoka, Taipei, Toronto, London and Paris.
