Butter doesn’t get the widespread veneration it deserves. For many, this ancient churned condiment is just another everyday component of Sunday brunches and grocery store sandwiches, a simple building block for cakes, pastries and biscuits. Essential, yes, but no more worthy of veneration than the bricks we use to build our houses.
But the fact remains that all outstanding chefs require outstanding ingredients, and that applies as much to invisible essentials like butter as it does to meats, vegetables and other more conspicuous features of a meal. And if you ask the most prestigious chefs and restauranteurs what their preferred butter is, a majority will say Échiré.
This handmade golden ambrosia is made in one small corner of western France, in a tiny village called Échiré. For over a hundred years, a tiny co-operative dairy there has been harnessing milk from 66 farms in a concentrated region, using cows raised on the same fresh grass and flowers. Churning this local milk in oakwood barrels yields a butter brimming with uniquely tangy, nutty and exquisite flavors you just don’t find in most American butters (which tend to use mixed milk from different cows on different diets). Beurre d’Échiré also has a minimum of 84 percent butterfat, giving it a creamier, silkier texture than most American butters.
It’s this triple combo of age-old manufacturing techniques, concentrated harvesting of milk imbued with the unique flavors of the local terroirs, and the generous harnessing of butterfat, that makes Beurre d’Échiré the queen of butters. Because the local land is so integral to the butter’s superior taste and texture, Échiré has even received its own AOC status, putting it on the same high pedestal as Champagne.
Fortunately, you don’t have to fly to France to bring Échiré’s creamy consistency and tangy-sweet depth of flavor into your kitchen. Nor do you need to travel to any of the limited US stores that stock this butter. Instead, we can ship it direct to your door at the click of a button, so you can lather it on your bread or incorporate into your favorite recipes (see recipes below for ideas).
At Gourmet Food Store, we sell Échiré in either salted or unsalted varieties, each presented in bar or basket. The salted variety, "Demi-sel," is ideal for spreading on bread and croissants but can also be used in cooking recipes. Some recipes will instead call for unsalted, “Doux” butter, since the chef can more easily control the recipe’s salt levels independent of the butter. Most of our customers buy Échiré in a bar, but the basket offers a more quaint and traditional presentation, making it ideal for gifts.
Buy Echire Butter in a Bar, Salted online.
Buy Echire Butter in a Bar, Unsalted online.
Buy Echire Butter In A Basket, Salted online.
Buy Echire Butter In A Basket, Unsalted online.
Recipes
Try using Echire in the following recipes and soon enough it will become your best friend in the kitchen:
