UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT: CHARLES LEMARIE, OUR LOCAL ASPARAGUS PRODUCER

The season of asparagus is already ending but it has been a pleasure to propose in our fine grocery store La Petite Epicerie de la Tour and in our two restaurants, the Rotisserie d’Argent and Tour d’Argent, the asparagus cultivated in Seine-et-Marne by Charles Lemarie.

The season started at the beginning of April and lasted until the 10th of June. The harvest was quite good this year, especially thanks to the heat pics of the early spring. The farm of Coubert registered a production of around three tons.

Charles is supported by a team of thirteen pickers who get the vegetables out by hand daily, with the help of a gouge.

The culture of asparagus is peculiar because sustainable, it regenerates every year for seven-year, before a necessary rest of forty years consecutive.

Everything starts with the seedling of a rhizome. In the first year, there is no harvest, the roots grow and develop; and in the second year, only a quarter will be picked to preserve the roots.

After the harvest, the asparagus are washed with cold water to stop their growth, then cut, selected, and assembled by twelve or so.

The family exploitation expands to twelve hectares near the commune of Coubert. It is certified HEV (High Environmental Value), and without any phytosanitary residues.

The attachment of Charles Lemarie for the work of the soil comes from his father, a farmer himself. Nonetheless, what moves him and makes him proud is being able to offer in direct sales the fruit of his effort. That makes up half of the distribution, the other half is shared between farming markets and local stores.

Our tips

To cook your asparagus, peel them and then throw them in boiling water, perfumed with the stock of your choice, for fifteen minutes. Serve them with a drizzle of virgin matured olive oil and a pinch of our Mazarine salt.

These authentic vegetables are unctuous and offer greedy buttery aromas in the mouth.

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