What's Pressoir Eating

Daniel Johnnes

July 19, 2022

Lobster, Plain and Simple

I love to cook. In fact, I thought I wanted to be a chef before I fell in love with wine, the culture and history of wine and the winemakers. I spent several years apprenticing in NY and France before realizing my true calling was the grape.

The one dish that has always scared me was lobster. Not only because it entails killing the beast just before cooking it or killing it while cooking it but I have consistently had poor results.

My favorite way of eating it has been simply steamed or boiled, dipped in drawn butter and splashed with fresh lemon.

Somehow, I find a way to cook it too long or too short and ruin it almost every time. Last year, I asked one of Daniel’s chefs to guide me. His technique was a short boil followed by a few minutes on the grill for a smoky element. The final result was like eating a shoe recovered from a fire.

This year on Fire Island, I decided to try again by steaming three 1.5lb lobsters for about 8 minutes, draining them and cracking them open for all to join in the wrestling act. A dip of butter, a splash of lemon and a sip of Domaine Roulot, Meursault Le Porusot 2009. Et voila, a perfect, messy meal only to be topped off with a glorious sunset.