button mushroom

Tastes and colors are not alike… And yet, sometimes, a taste calls for a color and vice versa. We called on Didier Michel, plastic chromatician, who proposes to sift through his sense of smell and his taste of a gastronomic product. This specialist in color harmony is thus able to draw up a chromatic map to show, feel and understand the world of aromas and taste. The color of taste.

Text: Myriam Darmoni

Faced with global competition, the button mushroom is resisting. There are still passionate producers in Île-de-France. Every day, they perpetuate the tradition to highlight this wonderful white head, straight out of their cellars. Appeared in Versailles under Louis XIV, the Paris mushroom saw its production explode in the Parisian quarries of the 15th arrondissement. Ideal temperature, humidity and horse manure allow it to thrive. Parisian mushroom farms reached their peak in the 18th century, when there were hundreds of them. The catacombs are their kingdom, but the construction of the metro will dislodge them. Direction Saumur and Anjou. All? And no, thanks to a handful of enthusiastic producers, you can still find mushrooms in Île-de-France. Pampered, they are produced “in the old way”: in cellars on composted manure. The result ? A crunchy mushroom, very white, with an incomparable flavor: that of the Parisian terroir!

CHROMATO-SENSORIAL ANALYTICAL TASTING

Methodology: perceive and discriminate between the different scents of the sensory analysis of button mushrooms, in their order of appearance over a period of approximately 60 minutes. For each scent, I color match using the Pantone color chart. Thus, the first rather fresh nose (at 16°C) orients me towards notes of environmental atmosphere, 15 minutes later the heart of the mushroom is expressed (at 20°C) with all its characteristics and finally 30 minutes later , warmer (to 22°C), it is the more woody and mineral terroir, vital sources, which in turn expresses itself. The purpose of the proportional synthesis is to visually restore (surfaces adjusted in proportion, according to the aromatic importance) the overall aromatic and gustatory impact, thus imprinting a subjective feeling in the memory.

THE CHROMATIC MAP OF ORGANIC WHITE PARIS MUSHROOMS

Text: Didier Michel

ON THE NOSE: On the first nose, expression of cellar humidity enveloping lactic and fermentative notes evoking hazelnut humus.
On the second nose, a slightly spicy acidity, evoking mineral notes of limestone and silica, supported by a peppery note.
On the third nose, confirmation of the mushroom body expressed by unctuous, supple, matte notes that are tactilely close to the delicately peaty skin.

IN THE MOUTH: Resistant to a gentle bite, button mushroom deposits, in the back of the palate, a taste of smoky wood, earthy mineral, with a very melting sensual linearity

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