Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/142283
Badoit has been the sparkling water of choice on the tables of great French restaurants since the mid-18th century. Tim Hollingsworth with Eric O'Toole, President and General Manager of Danone Waters of America. feel overwhelmed or too full as you're drinking it. What's really nice about it is the fine bubbles cleanse your palate." Chef Hollingsworth, formerly chef de cuisine at Napa Valley's French Laundry, has found use for Badoit in the kitchen: as one element in a nage, a cooking liquid used to poach delicate foods, most commonly fish but also vegetables. "It helps cook the vegetables faster because of the mineral content," he says, adding that it takes less time and "makes it a brighter ingredient." Hollingsworth incorporated it in the sauce (which he calls a Badoit-citrus vierge) to help prepare his confit of Atlantic halibut. "It's a natural product," says Hollingsworth. "I want to showcase a product that has a strong brand name, something I can stand behind and believe in." Badoit has been the sparkling water of choice on the tables of great French restaurants since the mid-18th century. Why is Danone introducing the water more widely now? "We had built a big business with evian from roughly 1978. We wanted to see that brand mature and develop and become a big player in the market, and it did," says O'Toole "In the middle of the 2000s we decided it was time to launch a sparkling equivalent. Now that we're ready to introduce Badoit to consumers, we're going to have a national launch this summer. An ambassador like Chef Hollingsworth truly gives this brand a chance to become big and meaningful in the sparkling water market." Badoit will debut newly designed branding and will be available in 330 ml. and 750 ml. glass bottles and 330 ml. in both glass and plastic. O'Toole cites two reasons that restaurateurs would profit from carrying Badoit. "Number one, your diners will enjoy their dining experience more because the water is the perfect complement to food. Two, because the bubbles are more delicate their consumption of water is probably going to be higher than if they were drinking a more conventional sparkling water. If you sell one bottle today you might sell two bottles tomorrow." www.badoit.com; wholesale inquiries: 800-443-3553. july 2013 / the tasting panel / 7 TP0713_001-33.indd 7 6/24/13 5:33 PM