It started with a can of sardines. P&C Market's food and wine buyer Brett Freeman described his transformational introduction to the Albert Ménes product line beginning with that fateful can while living in Paris: “They were, to say the least, exceptional.” Recognizing the quality of Albert Ménes products as a gift to the D.C. area, Brett and P&C Market began the long journey of bringing Albert Ménes to the United States.Monsieur Albert Ménes himself was an explorer. As a French Marine in the early 1900s, Albert Ménes traveled the world gathering and archiving tastes and flavors. In 1921, he founded La Maison Albert Ménes with the philosophy that he was creating a high quality conservatory for the unique tastes of places and cultures around the world. Where better to showcase the tastes of the world than in the heart of the nation’s capital?
The Albert Ménes journey to P&C Market lead to treasure in an unsuspecting place. While the sardines were not yet available for import, it was revealed that the true gem of the Albert Ménes product line was the spices. Albert Ménes spices are among the highest quality in the world being carefully selected by methods of growth, curing, drying, location, processing, cooking, and packaging. Just as wine is distinguished by the region and process from which it originates, Albert Ménes spices represent people and cultures of the world. From the Ras de Hanout of North Africa to the rose colored peppercorns of France, these spices are truly a conservatory of quality. Similarly, the honeys--varying from deep earthy suede in color to an almost translucent creamy white--represent the unique conditions from which the bees have drawn their honey such as fields of lavender to forests of pine.
On October 11th, P&C Market debuted the Albert Ménes product line as the sole U.S. importer. P&C Market now carries Albert Ménes spices, honeys, biscuits and more. You can take advantage of these beautifully crafted products with recipes such as Lapin a la Moutarde or Onion and Honey Tart.