Johannes King: Sylt-style Mussels

Sunshine, a touch of that holiday feeling, a gentle sea breeze and an elegant rosé

Actually, the question of what goes best with an elegant rosé from Provence is easy to answer: sunshine, a touch of that holiday feeling, a gentle sea breeze and good friends who top up your glass every now and then. The French would probably add, ‘anything – as long as it’s taken slowly and accompanied by a good meal’.

Which brings us to the culinary rule of thumb for rosé: rosés from Provence go well with anything that tastes of summer, the sea and olive oil. For an aperitif, try goat’s cheese crostini, baguette with olive tapenade or any kind of air-dried ham. For a starter, try a salade niçoise, grilled Mediterranean vegetables, fritto misto di mare, or simply a few good tomatoes with fresh goat’s cheese. And then, of course, a good rosé whets the appetite for all kinds of grilled fish or scampi, as well as spaghetti or risottos with seafood. Salty, briny notes bring out the fruitiness of a rosé perfectly.

Johannes King, Michelin-starred chef, culinary visionary and passionate gardener, herb and flower collector, offers a very special tip in his wonderful book *Johannes King Cooks* that underlines our rule of thumb: his closing sentence on his Sylt mussel stew recipe: “I’d simply eat a lovely baguette with it and drink a bottle of my favourite rosé, Domaine des Féraud.” Thank you, Johannes!