Roland Trettl meets Thierry Marx

Bruce Willis at the cooker

He could easily pass for the brother of the cool US actor but has instead made a name for himself celebrating Avant-garde cuisine at the heart of the Médoc region: the skilled pastry chef Thierry Marx.

The day finally came when even this committed UN soldier had had enough. After being shot for a second time during a peace-keeping mission, Thierry Marx decided it was time for a change of job. The risk of sustaining a life-threatening injury was significantly lower as a pastry chef – this alone was reason enough for the then 20 year old to change career. However, standing before the current chef of the ‘Château Cordeillan-Bages’ in Pauillac, it is much easier to see the elite soldier than the discreet culinary artist. The stocky chef is pure muscle mass – his 3 hours of sport each day keep him in good shape. He runs marathons, completes parachute jumps and has a black belt in martial arts. Thierry has that inner peace and composure about him of someone who is confident in their own abilities. So what now for this 2 Michelin star chef who taught himself to cook based on his training as a pastry chef? A glance at one of his menus reveals that Marx is certainly heading in the direction of molecular gastronomy with dishes such as ‘apple, black pudding and anaesthetising pepper’, ‘turbot, low temperatures, vegetables and algae butter’, ‘spaghetti with sweetbreads, mushrooms and truffles’ or ‘lemon tart, re-designed’. In fact, Thierry Marx is currently a leading light in this field in France. However, the well-travelled Frenchman is also a fan of Japanese cuisine. He spent 4 years living and cooking in Tokyo and he always eats his food in Paulliac with chopsticks even today, as well as working with them in the kitchens.

Both his molecular and Japanese cuisine captivate his guests, especially when combined. The Cordeillan-Bages is the culinary business card of the Grand-Cru Lynch-Bages vineyard. The 90 hectare vineyard is one of the big traditional names in Bordeaux – making it all the more surprising how ‘un-French’ the cooking is here. Unlike the general perception of Haute Cuisine, an enormous amount of effort goes into the food at the Château: there are 20 chefs for a maximum of 50 guests including five pastry chefs. The results are evident.
The dishes include plated breast of quail stuffed with Moroccan spiced butter which is formed in a cone-shape, poached and tossed in dried spinach powder and finally served with broad beans, peas and vegetable water jelly. The latter is covered with a quail consommé upon serving. And not forgetting the fried quail skin for a crispy texture – ingenious. The same goes for the lobster with fennel served in lobster sauce with lemon grass and accompanied by a navette purée and lemon confit garnish. And in-between there is a small intermezzo like the risotto, which in fact contains no rice at all on closer inspection. Instead there are soya germs the length of rice grains, dressed with mascarpone and parmesan and finished off with a white wine sauce and oyster water – sensational!

Thierry Marx comes across as a very calm person – but anyone who sees him on his Harley can get an idea of his temperament! Is this the same man who can be found dedicating his attention to celebrating oysters just a short time later? With a mixed mussel and cream foam, sweet beets and a toasted sandwich filled with a chicken and oyster stuffing and topped with caviar? Astonishing. It is often the small things which define Thierry as a grand master. These include his turbot with algae. As great as it was, for me the highlight was something which is often deemed to be a simple gesture, devoid of content. I am referring to the crispy texture - produced with great skill in this case: the skin of the turbot is cooked for a long time, releasing it from the flesh before being dried and fried. A crispiness which makes sense! We are certainly looking forward to encountering the unconventional methods of this Frenchman at Hanger-7. And we can guarantee Thierry that although there is plenty of hard work to be done – there won’t be any shootings in our kitchens!

Recorded by Christoph Schulte • Photos: Marc Muller / Red Bull Photofiles