<a target="_blank" href="http://www.bofingerparis.com/en/">Bofinger</a> 5-7 Rue de la Bastille 75004 Paris, France 
+33 1 42 72 87 82

The food:

Royal
Bofinger choucroute (sauerkraut and various meats)

Profiteroles with warm Valrhona
chocolate

The wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 2013 Hospices de Colmar Gentil
 </td>
 <td>
 87
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 2007
 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne &nbsp;
 </td>
 <td>
 91
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>

Sometimes
it’s just great to kick back, relax, and immerse oneself in a festive
atmosphere, enjoying solid, well-cooked food surrounded by people having loads
of fun. Brasserie Bofinger, located near the Place des Vosges and Place de la
Bastille, in Paris' 4th arrondissement, provides such an experience.&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1426812624780-bofingerdome.JPG"> The dome at Bofinger<div>Founded in 1864, Bofinger’s Alsatian food is just fine, the wine list acceptable, and the place beautiful enough, though I do love its Belle Époque setting.&nbsp;On this day, I dug into one of Paris’ best&nbsp;choucroute&nbsp;plates (“Royal Bofinger Sauerkraut”) and finished things off with a rich, decadent dessert of profiteroles that I can still taste today. <img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1426813049495-choucroute+1.JPG"> Royal Bofinger choucroute (sauerkraut and various meats) <img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1426812700867-dolce+2.JPG"> Profiteroles with warm Valrhona chocolate</div>Given
the Alsatian food, it seems right to start off with a Gentil as an aperitif;
it’s an easygoing Alsatian white that is a blend of various grapes,&nbsp;including&nbsp;Sylvaner, Riesling, Pinot Blanc and more. The 2013 Hospices de Colmar Gentil is light and lively, though definitely
not the last word in complexity. With plenty of tantalizing acidity, fresh
citrus and orchard fruit aromas and flavors, it makes for a lovely, if simple, start to a meal.&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1426812754397-hospices+colmar+2.JPG"> Things&nbsp;couldn't be any more different than with
the 2007 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne,
a wine of almost brutal power and size that is still basking in a heavy layer
of toasty, buttery oak. Hopefully, the oak will get reined in with age so that the
wine will evolve more beautifully. At this moment, however, the wine is
powerful and lush, making for a wonderful match with the choucroute, and standing
up well to the various meats and sausages accompanying the sauerkraut.&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1426812813185-corton+charlie+2.JPG"> Given the huge number of dining choices, many of them not worthy your time, Paris is not an easy city to negotiate. As far as Parisian brasseries go, one can certainly&nbsp;do worse than Bofinger.--Ian D'Agata

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