WASHINGTON (Reuters) – From Maine lobster to California wines, President Joe Biden will showcase the flavors of America at a state dinner on Thursday for French President Emmanuel Macron.
Biden and his wife, Jill, and Macron and his wife, Brigitte, are to gather with their guests in a pavilion set up on the South Lawn of the White House for the centerpiece event of the first state visit hosted by Biden since he took office in early 2021.
The menu will feature some American specialties, butter poached lobster from Maine, American Osetra caviar, and beef and potatoes followed by cheeses from Oregon, California and Wisconsin.
All this will be washed down by wines from California – Newton “Unfiltered” Chardonnay and Anakota “Knights Valley” Cabernet Sauvignon, along with a California sparkling wine with French roots, Roederer Estate Brut Rose.
The dessert will include Orange chiffon cake and roasted pears with citrus sauce along with “creme fraiche ice cream.”
Serving American-made wine to official French visitors is not original to Biden.
Donald Trump served Macron a “Domaine Serene” Chardonnay from Oregon, grown from plants from Dijon, France, and an Oregon Pinot Noir from the “Domaine Drouhin” winery that traces its roots to Burgundy in the 1880s.
Barack Obama served French President François Hollande a Chardonnay from a Virginia’s Thibaut-Janisson Winery, founded by two French natives.
(Reporting By Steve Holland and Heather Timmons; Editing by Sandra Maler)
