Pierre Hermé :: Métissé Macaron
By Paris Pâtisseries in Pastry Reviews, Pierre Herme
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Everyone knows Pierre Hermé makes the greatest macarons in Paris. It’s pretty much pointless to visit any other shop . . . ever. Just thinking of a Ladurée, Pouchkine or Pain de Sucre mac makes me want to vomit physically – and then emotionally, by just screaming uninterrupted for no less than 30 minutes. Or maybe not.
The reality is that Pierre Hermé macarons are just some of the many wonderful macarons in the city. Benefitting from being the first in the current wave of French brand name patissiers to market himself well since Gaston Lenôtre did the same back in the late 70’s, and from a creative approach to flavors, Monsieur Hermé’s parlayed his excellent pastry skills into worldwide acclaim. And speaking of creative flavors, I thought the best way to kick of a review of his macs was with one of his most curious, the Métissé.
What’s in a Métissé that makes it so different than other macs? Well . . . carrots. It’s a carrot, orange and cinnamon macaron. If you’re thinking, “That sounds disgusting!” you’d be wrong, because the reality is that you cannot even taste the carrots. Nor can you taste the cinnamon. What you do get is an extra sweet candy-like orange flavor – albeit slightly subdued in force.
I’d usually provide a nice hyperbolic description of the piece, as I do with other pastries, but I honestly felt like Monsier Hermé was “phoning it in” here. Or maybe it’s not so much about how I “feel” that this lacked any real effort as much as it simply did. When you can’t taste 2 of the 3 listed ingredients, it’s all a bit underwhelming. Not to say that the Métissé was in any way unpleasant. My notes say “quite nice”. The texture of the shell was a delight – not too dry or chewy. The filling was smooth and ample – probably a bit overdone in volume, but enjoyable. And the hidden chunk of carrot in the middle was cute, if a bit totally gimmicky.
So, yes, should you find yourself buying an assortment of Pierre Hermé macs anyway, consider including a Métissé in the mix. It’s an interesting spin on oranges, which I’m not seeing pop up in many other boutiques’ macaron bins this year. But, as I’d always recommend at Hermé, don’t overlook the pastries either; a few of them are the actual highlight of the shop.
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