Kind of Bleu

Jeff Taylor, Sommelier

The poulet de Bresse is the French gastronomic mascot, its colors mimicking the country's flag. Aside from the bird's white feathers and red cockscomb, the poulet de Bresse is defined by its distinctive, striking steel-blue feet. If you visit any three-star Michelin restaurant in France, there will invariably be a chicken dish featuring the coveted poulet de Bresse. The breed is so highly sought after that it fetches around 15 euros a kilo ( just over $10 a pound) in markets, and it is illegal to export any part of the bird--dressed, live, or even an egg--outside of France.

The city of Bourg-en-Bresse is in eastern France and is just 43 miles northeast of the country's gastronomical capital, Lyon. Its residents have raised their prince among poultry since early Roman times. However, the first recorded mention of the bird was triumphantly scribed in 1591, when citizens of Bourg-en-Bresse awarded the Marquis of Treffort with two dozen birds for his bravery, which included driving off an army of marauding Savoyard soldiers. As if that proved too small a gesture to solidify its status in the gastronomic elite, the poulet de Bresse's reputation was assured by 1825, when the 19th-century epicure and gastronome, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, described the bird as "the queen of chickens and the chicken of kings."

In 1936, the chicken breeders of Bresse waged a bitter court battle in order to protect their product from fraudulent farmers elsewhere in France. Court experts determined that the region's distinctive clay-rich soil, the temperate climate, the breed's proven purity, and specific poultry-rearing methods indeed combined to produce a unique, inimitable bird. The French thought so highly of their first-class fowl, they treated it like their prized wines from exclusive terroirs, granting it AOC status in 1957.

American chefs tasted this delectable bird abroad and sought a way to offer a similar specimen to the American dining public. Thanks to the efforts of Peter Thiessen, a Canadian poultry breeder, and Bob Shipley, manager of a California farm cooperative, they were able to do just that. In 2004, after years of experimentation, Thiessen produced a bird that wowed Vancouver's French chefs and eventually reached Central Valley Farms, one of Shipley's co-ops, where it's now bred exclusively and distributed by D'Artagnan. Thus, the California Poulet Bleu--or California Blue Foot, as it's commonly called--made its way onto menus from coast to coast. The American gold standard had finally arrived.

These chickens are treated like royalty, raised with plenty of room to roam, natural lighting, and an all-vegetable, antibiotic-free, whole-grain diet. They are fed milk with their water, allowed to age many weeks longer than other poultry, and air-chilled after slaughter. All of these factors result in the classic supple texture and rich gamey flavor of this prized poultry. As an ode to their French counterparts, American chefs commonly present the cooked bird tableside, with the head and feet intact--thus showcasing the chicken's dramatic colors in the dining room.
As chefs on both sides of the Atlantic adoringly prepare their prized poultry, it is obvious these birds stand at the top of the pecking order. And because they need little embellishment in their preparation--the bird has already done most of the work--diners constantly give them what might one day be construed as the highest praise: "They really taste like . . . chicken."