Fleur Sauvage Tea Time Experience at Fleur Sauvage Chocolates
370 Windsor River Rd, Windsor, CA
Tea reservation info: Fleur Sauvage: page down for tea reservation info
Review Date: May 18, 2023
Note: we went before the summer schedule changed; info on website is current. Our tea is now called “Wine Country Tea Time”
Via foodie media, we discovered that Fleur Sauvage Chocolate shop does a tea by reservation-only. Call for reservations; there is no waitlist. Fleur Sauvage is located in downtown Windsor, on the west side of Hwy 101, at the corner of Windsor River Road and Bell Street.
The shop is sparkling clean, with some tables inside. There is also a backyard garden seating area. Display cases hold chocolates on the RH side and pastries on the LH side. Robert Nieto, a former pastry chef from Madrona Manor and Bouchon, was listed as one of the “Top 10 Pastry Chefs in America” in 2016 by Dessert Professional Magazine. He launched Fleur Sauvage Chocolates (“Wild Flower” in French) in 2018. Fleur Sauvage also makes custom chocolates for a number of local wineries.
In December 2021, Robert, aka “Chef Buttercup”, and his wife, Tara, moved Fleur Sauvage Chocolates into a permanent storefront in Windsor. The small shop carries a rotating selection of chocolates, as well as a modest selection of classic pastries perfect for accompanying a cup of coffee or espresso.
The “Wine Country Tea Time” is not a traditional English-style “full” tea. Instead, the Nietos decided to use the savory course to highlight some small local producers they have become friends with, from the Sonoma farmers markets and catering events. Visitors should take note this is a much lighter meal than the English afternoon (aka cream) tea – it’s more like a spread of cocktail nibbles, with a sweet course added. The Nietos aren’t tea drinkers; their tea for the event was Bigelow teabags, which is an average brand quality. We like English Breakfast and were fine with it.
(not pictured) Rosemary & Olive Oil Sourdough Flatbread crackers: Rustic Bakery/Petaluma.
Above: Savories
Tarragon Dijon Mustard: Edward Fallot, France/Oliver’s Stony Point. A beautiful herbal green color, the gentle licorice flavor goes well with the sharp taste of Dijon mustard. Tara Nieto said this is the one item they have been unable to find any equivalent from a California vendor.
Blackberry Jam and Crostini by Chef Buttercup. Actually a jelly, as there were no seeds. It was made from blackberries so ripe and sweet, the texture was barely more solid than a syrup would be; yummy with the scone and even one of the cheeses.
Above, from Geyserville Gourmet – Healdsburg/Santa Rosa/Windsor Farmers Markets:
Dulmas – Stuffed Grape Leaves (rice, onion, parsley, olive oil, lemon), top plate: Very good. The dulmas had properly soft, moist rice, and the light lemon flavor was perfect.
Stuffed Sweet Peppers, bottom plate: The little sweet peppers – so much better than our grassy American bell peppers – were deseeded, parcooked, and stuffed with a feta-parsley filling. Would be a great addition to a charcuterie platter, too.
*Above: starting at the top of the plate and going clockwise:*
St. Jorge Cheese – Portuguese Style: Joe Matos Cheese/Oliver’s Market. Garnished with a marigold petal, Jorge is a mild semi-hard cheese with good melting quality and a grass-fed tang. Drier texture than the Estero; its tanginess went well with a dab of the jam. I think this is a cheese I would prefer melted.
Chef Buttercup’s Mini Buttermilk Chive Biscuit. Superb, and should not be missed! Easily the second best biscuit we’ve found in the SFBA; no small praise from us. Only chef Banks White’s biscuits (The Rambler/SF) are better than these. Chef Nieto’s biscuit had the proper multiple thin layers, easily separating at the slightest tug.
Zesty Lemon Hummus: Hummus Guys/Oliver’s Market, with tart pastry by Chef Buttercup. Nieto made a very fine short pastry crust for the hummus. His thin crust was excellent quality, both butter and flour.
Estero Gold Cheese – Montasio style: Valley Ford Cheese & Creamy/Healdsburg Farmers Market. An Asiago-style young cheese, aged 6 months. Mild, creamy and buttery. Went well with the paté.
Breton style Pate – Pork & Red Wine: Maison Porchella Charcuterie/Windsor. We had not tried this country-style paté. I thought this was very good, the best of the ones we’ve tried from this new vendor.
**Sweets, all from Chef Buttercup.** *Clockwise, starting at pearl-topped skewered gel:*
Strawberry Pate de Fruit AKA Turkish Delight. Fruit gel with the taste of fresh strawberries.
Strawberry Rhubarb & Vanilla Mousse Tart. A lovely creation, with a layer of cooked fruit preserve on the bottom and a delicate, light-as-air mousse on top. The colorful rose petal atop was a striking garnish.
Bonbons – Customer choice of two. Sadly, we forgot to note which bonbon flavors we chose. I know I picked this one, a 72% chocolate, but the other three are unknown. Fleur Sauvage uses a dark sweet chocolate, not bittersweet, as its coating. On previous visits we have tried most of the flavors. The fillings have some of the most intense fruit flavors we’ve encountered. The raspberry and the passionfruit, in particular, are exceptional, although not always available (flavor varieties rotate regularly).
Blackberry Almond Bar. Dense-textured bar cookie, yet moist; not overly sweetened.
Second bon-bon, flavor ?
Chocolate Financier (Almond Cake) with candied orange peel. I love financiers. Chef Nieto made these in mini-muffin cups, rather than the traditional rectangular “ingot” shape. The chocolate gave it a slightly heavier texture than usual, and was probably melted chocolate, not cocoa. The candied orange peel was a nice touch.
Meyer Lemon Scone. Chef Nieto showed his baking chops again with this delightful cream mini-scone. It was so good we didn’t even regret the absence of butter. Marvelous with the blackberry jam!
Summary:
As noted, this is a light meal, not a full meal as a classic afternoon or high tea would be. We did the 2p time and then stopped by Oliver’s market for take-out stuff to dine later in our hotel room. One could plan on going out for a quick, small plates meal later in the evening.
We got a large mocha to go. The quality is extremely high and the espresso is properly made. Fleur Sauvage’s espresso drinks are superior to many of the cafes and coffeehouses we’ve visited.
Two Tea Experiences, one large mocha to go: With tax but without tip, $126
