Flavours for the heart and soul

Universally acknowledged as the “Picasso of pastry”, Pierre Herme is best known for creating macarons with unusual flavours. An astute businessman, he’s taken note of the increasingly sophisticated Thai palate and is all set to bring his gourmet bites to Bangkok this summer. 

The Pierre Herme Paris boutique is currently slated to open in April at the new EmQuartier mall on Sukhumvit and is the brand’s 50th store joining similar shops in Tokyo, Seoul and Paris. Operated by PH Macaron (Thailand) Co, an affiliate of Chalermchai and Ausana Mahagitsiri’s PM Group, it will offer an exclusive selection of sweet sensations including Herme’s famed Infiniment Rose (rose and rose petal), Infiniment Chocolat Paineiras (pure origin Brazilian Paineiras dark chocolate) and Mogador (milk chocolate and passion fruit) as well as hand-crafted chocolates and fruit jams.

“Practice and patience are essential to making a good macaron,” Herme tells The Sunday Nation by email. 

“Every single step of the macaron process is important and affects the ultimate result – the most important things in pastry-making are precision and using only the very best ingredients.

“A lot of my inspiration comes from the ingredients themselves. We work with only the finest ingredients, whether it is my latest chocolate discovery from the Paineiras Plantation in Brazil, the plants and herbs used in the 2015 Les Jardins collection or even the almonds used to make the macaron biscuit – the choice of ingredients is incredibly important for me.”

As part of the advance promotion for the new shop and to celebrate the Valentine’s Day, Herme is offering macarons and chocolates directly from Paris in form of artful and exclusive gift sets perfectly suited to the day of love season. They are available for advance reservation from now until Wednesday. 

The limited edition gift sets include Bonbons Chocolat-Coeurs – an assortment of chocolate bonbons; Boite Syrine – a beautiful set of 24 macarons; and Boite J’aime – 12 macarons in a gift box designed for the occasion. 

“There are no rules and no limits when it comes to creativity but the most important is always taste. The chocolates we have in Bangkok especially for Valentine’s Day are based on the boutique’s signature flavours – Ispahan and Mogador as well as Infiniment Vanille and Ampa, which is a pure origin chocolate from the Millot Plantation in Madagascar,” Herme says.

Contained in a 120-gram gift box, Bonbons Chocolat-Coeurs (Bt1,150) presents four different bonbons delicately decorated with a small chocolate heart. Bonbon Chocolat Ampa offers the exotic flavours of pure origin Madagascar, bitter chocolate ganache, enrobed in dark chocolate while Bonbon Chocolat Mogador combines the acidity and perfume of passion fruit with the sweetness of milk chocolate. Bonbon Chocolat Ispahan brings together the harmonious flavours of rose and litchi fruit paste with raspberry ganache and chocolate while Bonbon Chocolat Infiniment Vanille uses three different origins of vanilla – Tahiti for an intense base note, Mexico for a floral note and Madagascar for the a woody note. 

Using top-quality premium paper especially imported from Italy, Herme oversees the design and production of the 24-macaron Boite Syrine (Bt3,900), which is beautifully hand crafted and comes with a rose pattern.

The 12-macaron gift box Boite J’aime (Bt1,700), on the other hand, boasts a playful touch with quirky and lively doodles by famous French illustrator Soledad Bravi who has collaborated with Pierre Herme Paris on a number of different projects.

Heir to four generations of bakery and pastry-making tradition in Alsace, France, Herme began his career at 14 as an apprentice to celebrated patissier Gaston Lenotre, whom he says has been his greatest influence. 

His creativity, originality, and unique taste in desserts saw him promoted to head chef patissier at the renowned fashion tearoom Fauchon at age 24, where he remained for 11 years. After a brief consultancy period at Laduree during the expansion of the brand, he and Charles Znaty set up their own company in 1997 and the first Pierre Herme Paris boutique opened at the Hotel New Otani in Tokyo the following year. In 2001, Pierre Herme Paris was finally established in France, located in the fashion district of Saint-Germain-des- Pres in Paris and currently has boutiques in 11 countries around the world. 

“I always envisage what I call the architecture of taste – the sequence as you bite into the macaron, cake or chocolate... what happens first, what happens second, what might provide a surprise in the middle. Sometimes a new creation can take a couple of weeks or sometimes I will work on a new flavour or combination for years. I sketch my ideas down first, in diagram form and write the recipe underneath. I then pass onto to my team of Research and Development pastry chefs – they run tests and we taste together before making any adjustments necessary and sharing the new recipes with all the Pierre Herme Paris pastry chefs.

“I never set out to use unusual ingredients. The only challenge that interests me is making something exceptional. I strive to create a global sensory experience that touches upon all five senses and brings pleasure everyone who lives it,” he says.

So, what is his personal favourite flavour?

“Quite simply, the next one! My favourite flavour is always the next one, the one that has yet to be created.”

Asked whether he will be creating one-of-a-kind macarons for sale at his Bangkok boutique, Herme is categorical. “We do not adapt our flavours for the different markets we open in, to local taste, culture or habits, and this is probably the greatest challenge we have had to face since starting the company. 

“Tastes and preferences may vary, but our aim is to introduce new flavour associations and experiences and provide people with something different. My priority will always be taste. Of course, that doesn’t mean I can’t be inspired by Thai ingredients. I look forward to visiting – there are a lot of products that interest me!”

 

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The limited edition Valentine’s gift sets are available for advance reservation from now until Wednesday by calling (089) 365 8888 and (02) 250 7621 extension 233. 

Visit “PierreHermeTHA” on Facebook for details.