Issue No. 13

French Caviar a la Carte
Caviar is one of the most expensive foods
in the world. Most think of it as a Russian
delicacy but it’s also been produced in
France for more than a century…
Mike and Wendy McDowell from the UK
have loved France since spending
childhood holidays there and actually met
in the Loire Valley. When the opportunity
rose for them to start a business, working
with one of the finest French caviar
producers – they leapt at the chance.
History of Caviar in France
In the late 1800s, Russian immigrants
who settled in the Gironde area noticed
that local fishermen catching Siberian
sturgeon in the rivers would eat the meat
and discard the roe. This changed when
the Russians showed the French how to
create caviar and it became a popular
delicacy. Following overfishing of wild
sturgeon, the Government banned fishing
for it and set up a partner farm to raise
and protect the fish. There are now five
caviar farms in France. Wendy and Mike
work with Caviar de France, the oldest
working caviar farm, based at Moulin de la
Cassadotte, in the Gironde department.
Entente Cordiale
Thie partnership was formed when Wendy
was made redundant from her job in 2011
with a trainer manufacturer. “We used the
redundancy money to set up Fine French
Caviar in the UK” says Mike as he recalls
the stress of their new venture, just as
their baby was born. “We spent countless
nights lying awake worrying. I remember
Wendy putting on lots of makeup to hide
her baggy eyes so that she looked ready
for meetings with customers! She set up a
website and was taking orders whilst
trying to feed the baby”.
But they knew that they had a great
product and it inspired them to keep
going. They have two types of caviar –
both exclusive in the UK. Diva is a smooth,
creamy caviar for the more amateur palate,
made using the "malossol" method,
meaning that only fish roe and natural salt
is used to make it, without any
preservatives. It has an authentic, light
buttery taste, with a hint of warmth and
hazelnut. Ebène is perfect for the
connoisseur’s palate, tender, subtle and
well-balanced with a hint of oyster, sea
urchin, butter and hazelnut.