Mediterranean oysters and picpoul-de-pinet, a marriage of very good reasons

Mediterranean oysters and a picpoul-de-pinet: it rhymes and it flatters the palate. Midi Libre – SYLVIE CAMBON

Since 2022, in Sète, the Picpoul-de-Pinet appellation and the Mediterranean Regional Shellfish Committee have naturally come together to promote their production through joint actions. A partnership that will strengthen over the years.

French gastronomic heritage is a favorite land for food and wine pairings. We could very easily create a Game of Seven Families by combining riesling and sauerkraut, mercury and beef bourguignon, marcillac and aligot-sausage, Sauternes and foie gras or even apremont and Savoyard fondue.

The Thau basin offers another, obvious one. And that rhymes, by the way: Mediterranean oysters and picpoul-de-pinet. "It's a taste marriage in the air for 200 years, points out Laurent Thieule, president of the Picpoul-de-Pinet appellation. We looked in the archives. This nascent flirtation dates back to the time of Napoleon III, when our grape variety was served at the table of the Duc de Morny."

This marriage of grapes and reason had yet to materialize. Convinced that unity created strength here, the appellation and the Regional Shellfish Committee (CRCM) took action for good. "It'was in 2022, for Saint-Louis: we had a first tasting of Mediterranean oysters and picpoul, recalls Fabrice Grillon-Gaborit, project manager "sector contract" at the CRCM. Presidents Laurent Thieule and Patrice Lafont came together on the occasion of the launch in Sète, home port of the Picpoul de Pinet. We created a dynamic by telling ourselves that we could no longer enjoy a picpoul without savoring an oyster and vice versa. This began a lasting partnership."

Tastings, medals and couple actions

A partnership that is not only still relevant but which has grown stronger over the years. In 2023, the two products landed in the region's market halls (Sète, Béziers, Narbonne, Carcassonne, Nîmes and Montpellier) during free tastings. Rebelote in 2024 (save the date of May 4 for the Sète halls!) with, in addition, outings in the Toulouse and Millau halls.

Since last year, Mediterranean oysters and picpoul have also been part of the common pool for their medals from the Concours général agricole de Paris. It will be the same on March 14, in Mèze, where the two thieves will together present their winners "in a town in the Picpoul appellation and which is home to the largest shellfish port and the greatest number of Mediterranean shellfish farmers.

"If the terroir of Picpoul is the sea, the merroir of Mediterranean oysters is the land"

And so there is the operation this Sunday, in Paris, at the Agricultural Show (read elsewhere). A first. "These two products have an intimate link that we cultivate, insists Fabrice Grillon Gaborit. For certain winegrowers , shellfish farming was a diversification activity. If the terroir of Picpoul is the sea, the merroir of Mediterranean oysters is the land."

On the flavor side, the complementarity of the organoleptic qualities of picpoul, its freshness, its lightness, its edge of acidity, with the marine molluscs from here, whether they are flat or hollow, no longer needs to be demonstrated. But this land-sea marriage is not without economic foundation either.

Local anchor objective

Le picpoul is 11 million bottles in 2023, two-thirds of which are exported. And Mediterranean oysters, 8,000 tonnes. "If we take advantage of the dynamism in exports, particularly in England, we have initiated a policy of reconquering the export market. local public opinion. Picpoul is more easily found in a restaurant in London than in Montpellier. We want to return to our roots and the local market", explains Laurent Thieule.

An aspiration that has always driven the CRCM. This marriage has good reasons not to stop at leather weddings…

Together at the Agricultural Show

So this is the first time together, & Paris, that the AOP Picpoul-de-Pinet and Mediterranean oysters will be found at the Salon de l'agriculture. The two unions will jointly promote their products at Porte de Versailles. They are organizing a tasting there this Sunday, February 25, from 3 p.m. to 3 p.m. 5 p.m., on the stand of the H'Hérault Departmental Council (Hall 7.1). The CRCM has also programmed other specific meetings, including that of Tuesday 27, 3:30 p.m., on the Occitanie Region stand (Hall 7.1), where for phase 2 of the sector contract.

I subscribe to read more