The delightfully balanced and elegant Brut NV is the signature House Champagne of Laurent-Perrier. Designated non-vintage because it contains grapes from more than one single harvest, this Champagne has been expertly blended from several excellent vintages, each lending unique characteristics. Containing 50% Chardonnay, 35% Pinot Noir, 15% Pinot Meunier and comprising more than 55 individual crus with an average rating of 94% ensures perfect consistency and excellent quality. The result is an embodiment of Laurent-Perrier’s signature House style of freshness, lightness, and elegance.

Offering the fresh crisp acidity of pear, hints of citrus, and backed by a silky yeasty bread note, I think it is the perfect match for delicate foods. For this piece I chose to pair it with shrimp, one of my favorite proteins, marinated and served with an elegant champagne-infused beurre blanc sauce. This is a variant of Joël Robuchon’s beurre blanc recipe, altered to include more champagne of course!

With a total of 28 Michelin stars, Joël Robuchon enjoys the distinction of having more of them than any chef in the world. He is someone I really look up to because his expertise in French cuisine is unmatched. I have had the pleasure of cooking many of the recipes out of his book The Complete Robuchon and this beurre blanc recipe is one of my favorites because it is so versatile and can easily be adapted to suit your tastes.

Marinated Shrimp with a Champagne Beurre Blanc Sauce
Recipe for Beurre Blanc Sauce from Joël Robuchon The Complete Robuchon Cookbook

Ingredients for the Shrimp
24 extra large uncooked shrimp (peeled, deveined with tail intact)
1 cup of Laurent-Perrier Brut Champagne
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely minced shallots
1 tablespoon fresh chives (minced)
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon (minced)
1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley (minced)
freshly cracked black pepper

Ingredients for the Beurre Blanc Sauce
Recipe for Beurre Blanc Sauce from Joël Robuchon’s The Complete Robuchon Cookbook. I adapted the recipe slightly by adding extra 100ml of champagne.
2 sticks of unsalted cold butter (250grams) just out of the refrigerator
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1 cup of Laurent-Perrier Brut Champagne
2 tablespoons of Champagne vinegar
Salt and white pepper to taste

Recipe

Marinate
First, marinate the shrimp. Combine the champagne, olive oil, shallots, and freshly ground pepper in a large freezer bag. Add your shrimp to the bag and shake gently to evenly coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for an hour. While the shrimp are marinating prepare your fresh herbs by mincing them. Gently combine the chopped herbs and set aside.

Beurre Blanc Sauce
While your shrimp finishing marinating prepare your beurre blanc. Cut the cold butter into small cubes and return to the refrigerator. Your butter must be cold to properly make beurre blanc sauce. Put the shallots, champagne and champagne vinegar into a small saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Simmer the mixture for 20-25 minutes (the size of the saucepan will affect the cooking time). The liquid should reduce by about two-thirds. Allow it to cool for 5 minutes in the saucepan off the heat and then briskly beat in the butter one cube at a time. Do not add another cube until the last piece has just blended. The sauce MUST NOT BOIL. If the sauce does boil it may separate and then you will need to start all over, wasting precious Champagne! Add the salt and pepper to taste. If you like you can strain the finished sauce to remove the shallots.

Bringing the dish together
Take the marinated shrimp out of the refrigerator and drain them. Place no more than 5 of the large shrimp in a preheated, oiled skillet. Cook each shrimp 2 minutes per side then remove. You want the shrimp to be pink and opaque, but not overdone. Stand shrimp (3 per plate/person) with tails upright in the center. Spoon the beurre blanc sauce around and in between the shrimp trying to avoid getting it on the shrimp themselves. Sprinkle fresh herbs on top and serve immediately.