Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard

Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard

Eatchicago was kind enough to gift me with a bottle of Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard, the first mustard in over fifty years to be made from seed actually grown in Dijon. According to the June/July Saveur, after WWII, it became more economically desirable to grow seed for Dijon mustard in places like India and Canada. Now, the seed is growing again in Burgundy, and the folks in Dijon are trying to establish an official (and controlled) designation for “Dijon Mustard,” which has recently referred more to a mustard style than the place where the mustard originated.

Anyhow, this is good stuff. It’s got a very powerful, nasal, almost horseradishy punch, much sharper than Grey Poupon, which I consider a benchmark of sorts (because most of us have probably consumed quarts of this stuff over the years). GP has white wine added, which seems to have a mellowing effect, and as you might expect, the Fallot is more in-your-face, complex and interesting to eat.

I had some of the Fallot on a freshly smoked brisket, and it was very complementary with good bite, a powerful partner to the meat. On cheeses, though, the mustard sometimes seems a little too strong, almost overwhelming. It might make sense to mix the mustard with a little mayo to smooth it out when eating it with subtler flavors. For full-flavored meats and other foods, though, this is one fine moutarde.

I'm glad you enjoyed the moutarde, DH. I completely agree with your tasting notes. It's strong in the way that I like my dijon to be strong.

I've only used it with sliced roast turkey and rye bread, where a little goes a long way. When I first tasted it on the sandwich, I had the same reaction as I did when I started putting hot giardiniera on my turkey: "What do I need all this turkey and bread for? They're just getting in the way of my enjoyment of the good stuff."

But, I'm not throwing away my GP just yet. I think this stuff is too overpowering for salad dressing, which I often use GP for. I think my next, and most frequent use of the Fallon will be with my ubiquitous weekend "refrigerator lunches". Cheeses, olives, whatever pickled items i have, jarred peppers, good bread, and now Fallon moutarde.

This bottle of will be another esteemed member of the growing army of mustard jars in my fridge. I think I'll be trying their coarse-seed variety next.

As an aside, I've been giving out a lot of these jars to people lately. If I have seen you recently and you did not receive one, please do not take it as a personal affront. I only had so many and I ran out before I could sufficiently "spread the love".

Best,
Michael / EC

I've got a couple of jars of Fallot mustard in my fridge -- the classic dijon and the coarser variety. Both are excellent.

My replacement for GP is Maille, which I like quite a bit more. Maille is a little less pungent, to me, than Fallot. I also have a tube of very, very excellent hot german mustard. I'll try to dig up the brand when I get home.

My mom can vouch for my mustard addiction.

As a lover of French charcuterie and German and Polish pork products, I'm also a lover of mustard and always have several different varieties on hand. Just yesterday I had a sandwich of smoked and peppered pork loin from one of the Polish delis with a heavy dose of the fairly spicy German Löwensenf which set me off to pondering the virtues of mustard and thinking vaguely of posting on said substance... Nice mix of flavours, the strong smokiness together with a very sharp mustard... Anyway...

I now have an intense desire to get a bottle of Fallot. What stores carry it? Very expensive? TIA.

Antonius

Antonius wrote:As a lover of French charcuterie and German and Polish pork products, I'm also a lover of mustard and always have several different varieties on hand. Just yesterday I had a sandwich of smoked and peppered pork loin from one of the Polish delis with a heavy dose of the fairly spicy German Löwensenf which set me off to pondering the virtues of mustard and thinking vaguely of posting on said substance... Nice mix of flavours, the strong smokiness together with a very sharp mustard... Anyway...

The purveyor mentioned in Saveur was selling it at a ridiculous price ($8 for 7.4 oz). I found it online at Le Village for $2.65 for the same jar, plus shipping of course. I bought plenty of stuff to make the shipping cost worthwhile.

http://www.levillage.com/ (Enter "fallot" in the search box).

Best,
Michael / EC

I've bought mine at Zingerman's in Ann Arbor and at one other place, but I can't remember where. Zingerman's charges the far-too-much $5.50/jar if you order it online. I seem to remember it being more like $4 in the store. Either way, next time I'll find it cheaper or closer online.

Speaking of vast price differences between upscale stores and smaller competitors: many moons ago I bought 500ml of Raineri olive oil, gold label, at fox and obel for the princely sum of $20. A few weeks ago I got the same oil, in a 750ml bottle, at Capri foods in River Forest (on Harlem, near North Ave) for $12. Per ml, fox and obel was 2.5x more expensive than capri. Oh -- I have a vague memory of someone on this board mentioning Capri and Raineri in the same breath. Whoever you are, thank you!

-ed

gleam wrote:Speaking of vast price differences between upscale stores and smaller competitors: many moons ago I bought 500ml of Raineri olive oil, gold label, at fox and obel for the princely sum of $20. A few weeks ago I got the same oil, in a 750ml bottle, at Capri foods in River Forest (on Harlem, near North Ave) for $12. Per ml, fox and obel was 2.5x more expensive than capri...

I've mentioned this once before but the shock lingers and compels me to repeat: a bottle of passata di pomodoro for over $7 at gourmet grocery versus ca. $1.50 at Italian shops...



A

gleam wrote:I've got a couple of jars of Fallot mustard in my fridge -- the classic dijon and the coarser variety.

I must admit, I've never been able to get close to the coarser variety. I simply cannot seem to find anything that it "works" with. On sausage, it doesn't "cling" like the smooth varieties; on cheese, the flavors don't seem to blend.

I've by no means written-off coarse-style mustard -- I just haven't found anything that it seems right to eat upon.

David "Perhaps It's Just My Delicate Sensibilities" Hammond

I think coarser mustards go exceedingly well in salad dressings. I also like them on really crusty bread, either alone or with an intensely-flavored meat, like a spicy soppressata or a peppered salame, or something.

-ed

David Hammond wrote:I've by no means written-off coarse-style mustard -- I just haven't found anything that it seems right to eat upon.

How about a piece of dark rye, maybe some chopped sweet onions, and some gherkins on the side?

We need a smiley face that's drooling.

EC and gleam,

What is somewhat surprising is that both of you are recommending that coarse mustard be eaten alone, not as a condiment but as the main flavor. I'm totally cool with that, and I frequently have (as I may have mentioned) Dijon mustard on pancakes -- I just like the taste of mustard.

Hammond

David Hammond wrote:What is somewhat surprising is that both of you are recommending that coarse mustard be eaten alone, not as a condiment but as the main flavor. I'm totally cool with that, and I frequently have (as I may have mentioned) Dijon mustard on pancakes -- I just like the taste of mustard.

Now that I think about it, you make an interesting point. I often treat coarse mustards as I would pate or caviar, solo on bread or with light garnish. Although I am not opposed to adding a slice of salami or saucisson sec.

Double drool

You need to think of whole-grain mustards as less of a sauce and more of a relish.

We go through tons of Pommery mustard in our house. I use it on everything, though sandwiches and sausages most of all. Sometimes I mix it with mayonnaise or a smooth mustard, just to add crunch.

David Hammond wrote:...and I frequently have (as I may have mentioned) Dijon mustard on pancakes -- I just like the taste of mustard.

Hammond

Wow, pancakes... that's different!... I'll try it...

Every once in a while, I like to make a pan of Italian sausage with thick pieces of potato and some green (anything from broccoli di rape to dandelion to collards to cabbage) with a little garlic... that served with crusty Italian bread, copious amounts of mustard (in this case usually Dijon) and either lots of cold beer or lots of coarse red wine (depending on climatic conditions)... Not haute cuisine but quite satisfying...

Coarse mustard, raw onions, sharp cheese, garlicky semi-dry sausage... (followed eventually by parsley and mouthwash)...

Antonius

I used some today on a white bread and tavern ham sandwich. Very good. I do look forward to using with other breads and meats in the very near future. Since I'm dropping my wife off at O'Hare Thursday afternoon, I'm sure I can find some places to go and stock up on deli meats for the weekend.

Any suggestions in the area? Preferably on streets I can take back towards downtown, while waiting for rush hour to get over.

Bruce wrote:I used some today on a white bread and tavern ham sandwich. Very good. I do look forward to using with other breads and meats in the very near future. Since I'm dropping my wife off at O'Hare Thursday afternoon, I'm sure I can find some places to go and stock up on deli meats for the weekend.

Any suggestions in the area? Preferably on streets I can take back towards downtown, while waiting for rush hour to get over.

Two part reply:

1) The german mustard I mentioned above is Hengstenberg, "extra strong", available for $2/tube here. I like it a lot on polish sausages, among other things.

2) My mom suggests the following route to Bruce: 90 to Harlem, Harlem south to Grand, Grand east to near-downtown. This gets you not only to Riviera, but to Bari and D'Amato's as well. And you can stop in at Pasta Fresh or Caputo's if none of those suffice.

-ed

Parsley is the best mouthwash.

Coarse mustard with country pate.

annieb wrote:Parsley is the best mouthwash.

Coarse mustard with country pate.

Speaking of parsley mouthwash: beth and I were at an Iraqi restaurant in windsor (mostly quite good) on the weekend and the gum we were given with our bill had a very distinct parsley flavor. It was incredibly unexpected. I've tried to find a similar product online, but to no avail -- the only things I find are dog breath fresheners using parsley.

Anyone ever had it?

gleam wrote:

Bruce wrote:I used some today on a white bread and tavern ham sandwich. Very good. I do look forward to using with other breads and meats in the very near future. Since I'm dropping my wife off at O'Hare Thursday afternoon, I'm sure I can find some places to go and stock up on deli meats for the weekend.

Any suggestions in the area? Preferably on streets I can take back towards downtown, while waiting for rush hour to get over.

Two part reply:

1) The german mustard I mentioned above is Hengstenberg, "extra strong", available for $2/tube here. I like it a lot on polish sausages, among other things.

2) My mom suggests the following route to Bruce: 90 to Harlem, Harlem south to Grand, Grand east to near-downtown. This gets you not only to Riviera, but to Bari and D'Amato's as well. And you can stop in at Pasta Fresh or Caputo's if none of those suffice.

-ed

Bruce:

Ed's/Ann's suggested route is very nice but, since this is a thread about mustard, I think it too uniformly 'Italian'. Now, in saying that, I know one could easily add a Polish deli or two (e.g., there's one on Belmont immediately east of Harlem, south side of street, I believe, though I haven't been in there) but I have an alternate route to suggest.

Take the highway to Lawrence, get off and proceed east to Lincoln Square (on Lincoln, short one-way stretch going south from Lawrence just east of Western). Go to Meyer's Delikatessen and buy some good, smokey and porky flesh-products (Black Forest ham and Schweinebauch are two of my favourites), as well as Tilset cheese (esp. the aged one, sliced for sandwich application) and some German hot mustard, maybe a pretzel roll or two, etc. Then drive southward on Western -- just a little south of Lincoln are Joe's sausage shop and the Cheese Stands Alone, both of which may warrant a stop. Continue down Western to the corner of Iowa & Western and visit Rich's Deli, a Polish place that I visit often (I've been putting together notes for a longish post on Rich's) which has lots of good stuff to go with mustard. Then, take Western down to Grand and, as suggested by Ed/Ann, head east to Bari and D'Amato's (Grand near May) OR continue south on Western and stop at Masi's Italian Superior Bakery (corner of Western & Taylor; call ahead and early to order and have them hold some bread for you - 312.733.5092) and then east on Taylor to Conte di Savoia (Taylor by Bishop) for some imported mortadella, salami and prosciutto.

Now that I'm thinking of that trip, maybe I'll do it too. Frisches Kaiserfleisch und scharfer Senf mit Kren!...

Antonius

If Bruce takes Western to Grand, he might want to stop off at Andy's on Division for more fine Polish mustard vehicles, or swing by Papa's Cache sabroso for a steak jibarito, which I think would complement the mustard well. Andrezj Grill and Poldhanka (sp?) are nearby sit-down Polish options, too.

Michael,

I very much enjoyed my Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard on couple of natural casing veal/pork hot dogs from Schmeisser's. The Edmond Fallot brought back memories of Maille Dijon fresh from the pump at the Maille shop in Paris.

Thanks Michael.

Enjoy,
Gary

Schmeisser's Home Made Sausage
7649 N Milwaukee Ave
Niles, IL 60714
847- 967-8995

G Wiv wrote: The Edmond Fallot brought back memories of Maille Dijon fresh from the pump at the Maille shop in Paris.

Maille is my other go-to brand of dijon. Obviously it's much larger production than fallot, but it's still quite good. And generally much easier to find.

It took me a mere 5 and a half years after this thread to try my first Fallon mustard, and I was blown away. My Fallon virginity was broken by a jar of the green peppercorn variety, and I thought the subtle fruitiness and light crunch of the tiny berries worked marvelously with the strong, smooth dijon. I first had it with serrano ham and arugula on good bread, but quickly found myself eschewing the ham and greens in favor of nothing more than bread with mustard. Good and good for you.

I absolutely love the stuff and it's a great coincidence that Kenny moved the thread up today with his post, as I'm down to the bottom of my final jar. Time to re-stock!

=R=

FYI to any Fallot lovers who happen to be going to St Louis any time soon: Straub's (a fox and obel-ish store with a few area locations) has five varieties of Fallot -- original, tarragon, green peppercorn, burgundy, and blackcurrant -- at very low prices: $3.59 for the original and $3.99 for the rest.

Straub's (at least the one in Clayton) also has a truly impressive selection of sodas, with about 18-20 that I've never had before, plus Dutch coke, Dublin Dr. Pepper, Fentiman's victorian lemonade in 4-packs, etc.

gleam wrote: Dutch coke

How was it?

stevez wrote:

gleam wrote: Dutch coke

How was it?

I've had it a few times and it's perfectly fine, although I'm not sure I can discern any difference between it and Mexican coke.

But I'll get to try again when I get home, where I'm going to set up a tasting of the following varieties of Coke:

American corn syrup
American Kosher for Passover
Mexican
Dutch
New Zealand
Italian

I'll post over in the soda thread with the verdict whenever I get around to it.

I buy my Fallot Dijon Mustard at Fresh Farms International on Touhy in Niles, usually for $3.99 a jar of 13.75 oz.
But you better wait for a new shipment to arrive since the few jars left on the shelf have a sell by March 15 2011 date.
In the mean time , if you like strong Dijon Mustard you can buy very fresh extra-strong Beaufor, made by Charbonneaux, an old company from Reims, the capital of the Champagne district. It is pretty decent and costs only $2.19 a 7.05 oz AT Gene Sausage in Lincoln Square. Good deal.

alain40 wrote:I buy my Fallot Dijon Mustard at Fresh Farms International on Touhy in Niles, usually for $3.99 a jar of 13.75 oz.
But you better wait for a new shipment to arrive since the few jars left on the shelf have a sell by March 15 2011 date.
In the mean time , if you like strong Dijon Mustard you can buy very fresh extra-strong Beaufor, made by Charbonneaux, an old company from Reims, the capital of the Champagne district. It is pretty decent and costs only $2.19 a 7.05 oz AT Gene Sausage in Lincoln Square. Good deal.

I thought it wasn't possible for mustard to "go bad"...

boudreaulicious wrote:

alain40 wrote:I buy my Fallot Dijon Mustard at Fresh Farms International on Touhy in Niles, usually for $3.99 a jar of 13.75 oz.
But you better wait for a new shipment to arrive since the few jars left on the shelf have a sell by March 15 2011 date.
In the mean time , if you like strong Dijon Mustard you can buy very fresh extra-strong Beaufor, made by Charbonneaux, an old company from Reims, the capital of the Champagne district. It is pretty decent and costs only $2.19 a 7.05 oz AT Gene Sausage in Lincoln Square. Good deal.

I thought it wasn't possible for mustard to "go bad"...

Mainly, it gets dark and loses its zip but the essential oils in mustard seeds can eventually go rancid, too.

=R=