Barcelona｜Enigma Full Review｜Two-Michelin-starred molecular cuisine and Wine Pairing experience, very creative, but is it really worth it?

Valencia Orange Tower

The base of tartine is made from Valencia orange, covered with Campari and absinthe jelly, and then covered with raspberry crisp grains and crushed ginger sugar. The overall bitter-sweet intertwining is quite balanced, but the sense of existence of pistachios is also weak. Even if the ingredients are known in advance, it is difficult to identify when eating.

Iranian pistachio sponge cake + orange

A light soft cake with sour cream, thin slices of orange peel and crushed pistachios on top. The texture is soft and the acidity is refreshing. As the end of the citrus segment, it is clean and neat, but it is just an ordinary small cake with no memorable highlights. The three citrus dots are added up to complete the task of "opening the taste", but as individual dishes, they are only well-behaved.

Parmesan Cheese Air Muffin

The waiter specifically reminded "take it by hand and eat it in one bite." The air muffin, which was as thin as a cicada's wing, almost disappeared in the mouth as soon as it was bitten down. A piece of concentrated Parmesan cheese lay horizontally on it, and the umami flavor was slowly released on the tongue. The memory point of this dish lies in the contrast-light in vision and heavy in taste. It is the most enjoyable bite of the entire front section.

Smoked eel frozen pie

The chef smoked the eel and disassembled it, then used nori jelly to bond with the eel jelly layer by layer to reshape it into the shape of an eel, and finally drizzled it with olive oil and sea salt. There is no doubt about the technical content, and the smoky aroma is indeed charming-but the biggest question after eating is: What is the purpose of this dish? Disassembled and reorganized, it was still the taste of eel in the end, and the texture did not get better as a result. It would make sense to ask questions as a philosophy, but as a dish, it did not convince me that this process is necessary. Maybe this is some kind of essence of molecular cuisine, but I haven't figured it out yet.

Anchovy salted foie gras (freshly prepared at the table)

The chef walked to the table with a glass box. The bottom of the box was covered with anchovy salt. After the three pieces of foie gras were put in, they were completely covered with salt. The timing was seven minutes and thirty seconds-during this period, you continue to eat and watch the dish "in progress." When the time is up, the chef takes out the foie gras, brushes off the excess salt and serves it. The texture of foie gras melts in the mouth, is as delicate as silk, and the taste is impeccable. The only regret is that the flavor of anchovy salt did not penetrate as deeply as expected, and it tastes more like pure original foie gras. As a "table theater", this is one of the most successful interactive experiences of the night.

Spanish sweet shrimp Quisquilla (decomposed in three parts)

There is no doubt that it is the highest peak of the night. A Spanish deep-sea sweet shrimp was completely disassembled into three parts and processed separately: the shrimp head was crispy and fried until golden, the shrimp body was filled with concentrated shrimp paste and lightly mixed with olive oil, and the shrimp tail was eaten with blue shrimp eggs. The focus is not on elastic teeth, but "smoothness + pure sweetness"-every part tastes like the essence of the ocean, there is no fishy smell, only the cleanest taste of the shrimp itself. This is the best interpretation of minimalist molecular cuisine: technology serves ingredients, not overrides them.

€350 ｜Vin Jaune 2017 “En Spois” ｜Bénédicte & Stéphane Tissot

🇫🇷 Arbois, Jura

Aroma｜Walnut, hazelnut, curry spice, dried apple, oxidized yeast

Taste｜Highly sour, completely dry, extremely mineral and salty, obviously umami

Process｜ Sous Voile yeast membrane matures for about six years, preventing complete oxidation while imparting flavor transformation

"Liquid version of the stock"-This rice wine is a umami dish in itself, which resonates precisely with the marine minerals of foie gras and sweet shrimp.

€160｜TA/MIRA Miraflores Alta ｜Suertes del Marqués System

Andalucía (near Jerez)

Aroma｜Sea breeze, saltiness, almonds, white flowers, slightly oxidized scent

Taste｜Completely dry, highly salty, light but structured, with a sense of marine minerals

Process｜Matured in barrels that once contained Sherry, non-reinforced, non-Solera system

"The un-enhanced version of the soul of Sherry"-takes on Sherry's salty vocabulary in a lighter form, and the ocean sweetness of sweet shrimp is extremely in tune.

Eggplant jelly + Sobrasada + sea urchin

Visually, it has been predicted that this is a dish about sea urchins. At the bottom is a jelly made of roasted eggplant water, topped with the fat sauce of Mayoka sobrasada sausage, then stacked with a whole piece of fresh sea urchin, and finally garnished with fried pork belly and soy sauce. When the waiter introduced it, it sounded rich in layers, but in the actual entrance, the strong salty freshness of the sea urchin almost ruled the audience, the fineness of the eggplant jelly completely disappeared, and the fat of sobrasada was difficult to identify. The combination of ingredients should be interesting on paper, but in the end there is only "one sea urchin dish" left in the taste. This is another attempt that is more confusing than surprising.

Mozzarella Soufflé (single Ingredient)

This is the most impressive piece of technology in the entire menu: the chef uses only mozzarella cheese moisture to steam a complete soufflé without flour, eggs, or any support structure. It was still trembling slightly when it was served to the table, and the mouth was as light as a cloud, with a faint creamy sweetness. As the "taste buffer" between the salty food segment and the vegetable segment, this dish is completely in place, and the design logic is clear-but when it comes to "delicious", its flavor is essentially a touch of cheese, and the surprise of technology is greater than the satisfaction of taste.

Sweet potato starch noodles + pistachio green sauce + Kombu seaweed

Handmade noodles are made from sweet potato starch, mixed with pistachio green sauce, coated with two kinds of seaweed, Kombu and Qinghai moss, and finally ground with Parmesan cheese. Visually, it is a plate of fresh green Italian noodles with elastic and tough taste, but the overall is lighter. There is not much spark between the umami flavor of seaweed and the richness of cheese, and it lacks the driving force that makes people want to take one more bite.

€160—The first model｜Marsannay“Les Champs Perdrix”2022｜Jérôme Galeyrand

🇫🇷 Marsannay, Burgundy

Aroma｜Lemon peel, green apple, white flower

Taste｜Medium and high acid, light to medium body, clean and neat mineral feeling

The direct style of the northern end of Burgundy is less modified and more refreshing than Côte de Beaune, and has a strong ability to cut fat with acidity.

€160—The second model｜Bourgonne“Les Riaux”｜Domaine Renaud Boyer

🇫🇷 Burgundy

Aroma｜Slight oxidation, yeast, lactic acid fermentation flavor

Taste/Loose texture, natural style, and outstanding personality

This cup "does not exist for good taste", but to show another possibility of Chardonnay-the creamy feeling and oxidizing contour under the vocabulary of naturalism.

€350—The first model｜Phelan Farm Chardonnay 2023｜Phelan Farm

🇺🇸 California Central Coast

Aroma｜Citrus, white peach, micro herbs

Taste｜Medium acidity, open fruity flavor, round structure

The only New World wine in the entire group, but deliberately lowered the fruit ripeness and oak use, providing a clear contrast point between the Burgundy style.

€350—Second model｜Chablis Premier Cru“La Forest”2019｜Domaine Vincent Dauvissat

🇫🇷 Chablis, Burgundy

Aroma｜Lemon, flint, wet stone

Taste｜High acid, sharp lines, strong mineral feeling

Returning to the most classic Chablis style, the multiple interpretations of the entire set of Chardonnay are wrapped up with a flint mineral sense. It is the personal favorite of the four models.

Broad beans + Tucupí South American Fermentation Liquid + scallop

The protagonist is tender broad beans, paired with a tucupí sauce made of tapioca, pumpkin and fermented chili, topped with fried chickpeas and razor clam. The idea of the whole dish spans South America and the Mediterranean Sea. The combination of ingredients makes sense logically, but the actual taste level is vague, and there is no clear main axis for people to remember. After the meal, this dish has almost disappeared from memory.

Maresme mung bean pods Wrapped Sweet beans

The ingredients come from the El Maresme region, a 30-minute drive north of Barcelona, emphasizing a high degree of local and seasonal. After the whole bunch of pods are roasted on hot charcoal, they are finished with a sauce made of beans of the same variety, and decorated with acerera leaves with acetic acid. The burnt aroma brought by charcoal grilling is the only memory point of this dish, but it is essentially "baked beans with soy sauce". The ingredients are indeed fresh, but the concept is a bit single.

€350 ｜Viña Tondonia Reserva 2010｜R. López de Heredia Viña Tondonia

🇪🇸 Rioja

Aroma｜Dried apple, orange peel, beeswax, nuts, caramel

Taste｜Medium and high acid, medium body, stable structure, obvious oxidation level

Craftsmanship ｜The traditional craftsmanship of Rioja matured in American oak barrels for a long time and went on the market after a very long bottle age. It is almost out of print.

This wine "is not about whether it is good or bad, but that it is a living specimen of the old days of Rioja"-today, when the world tends to fruity and ready-to-drink, this is the taste of history being bottled.

€160 ｜Vidonia 2024｜Suertes del Marqués

🇪🇸 Valle de la Orotava, Tenerife

Aroma｜Smoke, volcanic ash, citrus peel, white flowers

Taste｜High sourness, obvious mineral feeling, salty feeling, with a little creamy feeling (lees influence)

Terroir｜Volcanic soil, close to the Atlantic Ocean, using traditional woven vines (cordón trenzado)

If Tondonia stands for "time", Vidonia stands for "terroir"-the smoky mineral feel of the volcanic soil of the Canary Islands is a taste that cannot be replicated in all production areas on the European continent.

Traditional artichoke vs. Oxidized artichoke (dual version pairratio）

A comparative experiment was designed for this dish: on the left is the traditional charcoal-roasted artichokes after boiling in water, and on the right is the Korean Ocoo pressure cooker version that oxidizes for four hours to scorch black. The two are served at the same time. It is recommended to eat traditional first and then oxidize. The traditional version has a bitter fragrance, while the oxidized version is deep, intertwined with sweetness and bitterness, and has a softer texture, similar to the transformation logic of black garlic. As a cooking design of "tasting and thinking", this is the most interesting one in the vegetable section-the difference between the two is real and perceptible, and it really makes people think about the possibility of "oxidation" as a culinary language.

Morel + oxtail sauce + Thai tender coconut fruit

This is the one that surprised me the most in the entire vegetable segment. The thick French ox tail stew sauce was originally a heavy background color of pure Europe, but slices of tender Thai coconut fruit were added-the chef said that the elasticity of the tender coconut fruit allowed it to be cut into thin slices similar to pasta, and the flavor was neutral, with a touch of sweetness, just to soften the fat of the ox tail sauce.sense. This combination of ingredients (French stew + Southeast Asian tropical fruits) sounds strange on paper, but the entrance is unexpectedly harmonious. Champion of memory points for the entire vegetable segment.

€160 ｜Clos Damiana 2015｜Mestres

🇪🇸 Cava, Penedès

Aroma｜Toast, almonds, honey, dried citrus

Taste｜Fine bubbles (has begun to soften), medium and high acidity, with obvious yeast and nut tones

Craftsmanship｜Traditional Method (Traditional Method), long-term wine puree maturation (sur lie), onlyproduced in excellent vintages

This is no longer a "refreshing sparkling wine", but a sparkling wine with a sense of mature liquor. The design of conditional production gives it a sense of rarity.

€350 ｜Mas Via 2009｜Mestres

🇪🇸 Cava, Penedès

Aroma｜Caramel, hazelnut, cocoa, smoky

Taste｜The bubbles are very fine and weakened, the structure is round, oxidized and creamy texture

Craftsmanship｜Ultra-long wine puree maturation (more than 10 years), extra long bottle aging

This wine almost crosses the boundary of the definition of "sparkling wine", and is closer to a mixture of oxidized white wine and sparkling wine-it is an unexpected perfect match with the rich depth of morels and the rich fatness of ox tail sauce.

Bone marrow + true and false caviar double spelling

When serving, two dishes are served first: one is Oscietra real caviar from the Caspian Sea, and the other is "fake caviar" made of lentils and almost the same shape. The waiter explained: Real caviar is used for smoked base sauce, and fake caviar is used to increase the taste level. The main body is the bone marrow stewed until it is as soft and tender as tofu. The fat flavor is extremely rich, and the combination of salt and umami is very solid. The concept of true and false caviar is indeed shocking, but it is a pity that when this dish is served, the sommelier happens to be explaining important wines at the same time, and the two lines go hand in hand, causing a certain degree of experience interference, and I failed to calm down and have a good taste.

Royal Rabbit Meat (Hare Royal) Cake Body+Truffle slices

Rabbit meat and foie gras are pressed together into a tight cake shape, the bottom is padded with cow hoof jelly, and the end is embellished with lamb tendon juice. After cutting, the layers are distinct, and every bite is very rich-the game flavor of rabbit meat, the fat of foie gras, and the gum of beef hooves unfold on the tongue at the same time, which is a very precise reinterpretation of French classical cuisine.

Royal Rabbit meat White Radish Roll + Truffle Slices

The second form of the same ingredients: rabbit meat jelly wrapped in thin slices of white radish, filled with rabbit meat consommé jelly inside, and black truffle slices are eaten together around it. This version is much lighter, the earthy flavor of truffles contrasts with the elegance of rabbit meat, and the taste is closer to the fineness of exquisite dots. The existence of two simultaneous courses makes people clearly feel the chef's intention to "say the same thing in different languages". It is the most comprehensive and convincing paragraph of the night's technical performance.

€350 ｜Chassagne-Montrachet “La Goujonne” VV 2023｜Domaine Hubert Lamy

🇫🇷 Chassagne-Montrachet, Burgundy

Aroma｜Red cherry, raspberry, delicate spices, dried flowers

Taste｜High acid, fine tannins, light to medium body, transparent structure

Lamy-style Pinot Noir with a "sense of line" does not pursue richness, but undertakes the game flavor of rabbit meat and the fat of foie gras with a sense of transparency and precise acidity.

💬 This is my personal favorite red wine for the whole pairing. It is light and deep, so people can't help but want to have another glass alone.

€160 ｜Rosso di Montalcino 2023｜J. G. Benda

🇮🇹 Montalcino, Tuscany

Aromas of red berries, violets, herbs, soil, medium and high acidity in taste, tannins are more obvious than Pinot, the structure is clear but not heavy

The choice of Rosso instead of Brunello shows the moderation of the sommelier-retaining the structural tension of Sangiovese, but not letting the tannins overwhelm the fineness of the rabbit meat.

Duck Macarons (El Bulli Tribute)

With apple macarons as the shell, it is crammed with duck liver, truffles and cocoa powder sauce-this is a version that pays tribute to a classic dish of the el Bulli era. The salty and sweet conflict seemed abrupt at the first bite, but it quickly merged. The slight bitterness of cocoa ended the intensity of duck liver, and the clear acidity of apple just balanced the fat. Eating duck macarons for the first time in life is a wonderful experience.

Duck Neck Crispy Roll (Mugaritz Tribute)

This dish is even more special-the inspiration and utensils come from the famous Basque chef Andoni Mugaritz, and the restaurant even directly uses the original plate sent by Mugaritz to dress it up. The crispy duck neck roll is filled with seasonal herbs and pickled pork, and the presentation with Mugaritz food utensils is full of ceremony. The taste is crispy and juicy, with the shadow of Chinese roast duck, which is the most relaxed and enjoyable part of the entire duck section. This cross-restaurant "dialogue-style tribute" design is impressive.

Duck breast with yogurt and white sauce + Jerusalem artichoke puree

This dish is served with neighboring bread (from the nearby Origo sourdough bakery, four minutes away). It is recommended to eat with bread dipping sauce. The duck breast is presented in two colors, clear soup, black sauce and creamy white sauce, and the jerusalem artichoke puree is delicate, which is a more traditional cooking technique as a whole. The taste is well-behaved, and it is dull compared with the first two surprises. The bread itself is excellent-the outer skin is crispy and the inside is firm and moist. It is the only thing that makes me feel "so full" all night.

€350 ｜Único 2016｜Vega Sicilia

🇪🇸 Ribera del Duero

Aroma｜Blackberry, cedar, tobacco, leather, spices

Taste｜The tannins are extremely delicate, the structure is tight but not heavy, and the aftertaste is extremely long

Craftsmanship ｜ Matured in oak barrels for a very long time (mixed with French + American oak), strictly selected vintages, not brewed for the market

Único's greatness does not come from power, but from control-"the power of convergence". This is the most awe-inspiring cup of pairing in the whole game, and the aftertaste will still linger after you leave the restaurant.

€160 ｜Valbuena 5º 2021｜Vega Sicilia

🇪🇸 Ribera del Duero

Aroma｜Red and black fruit, spices, vanilla, slightly sweet

Taste｜The tannins are more obvious, the structure is clear, and the flavor is more open and direct

Craftsmanship｜Matured in about five years (hence the name), mainly French oak, the main body of Tempranillo

Vega Sicilia's "second language"-younger and easier to read than Único, but with the same philosophical blood flowing in his bones.

Foie gras pudding + duck caramel

Foie gras pudding is covered with caramel crispy shells, and the logic similar to the French crème brûlée extends to the context of salty food. Foie gras itself is rich, and caramel brings a contrast between sweetness and bitterness. As the end of the entire duck segment, it is a reasonable but not surprising end.

€160 ｜Château de Fargues 1998｜Château de Fargues

Sauternes (same family as Yquem)

Aroma honey, dried apricots, orange peel, saffron, caramel taste, high sweetness, high acidity (key balance), viscous structure but not greasy mouth background Botrytis cinerea noble rot bacteria, high sugar concentration, long-term bottle aging

Produced by the same family as Château d’ Yquem, Sauternes' classic skeleton has shown amazing complexity after nearly 30 years of bottle aging. The high acidity balances the sweetness, and the caramelized duck liver pudding is like glue.

€350｜Enigma exclusive Palomino (about 2002) ｜Made by the Albert Adrià team

Andalucía / Cádiz style

The aroma is caramel, nutty, oxidized dried fruit, low sweetness of wood and spices (compared to Sauternes), obvious oxidation style, clean structure but deep background, made from Palomino grapes, long-term barrel aging (about 20 years), non-commercially available wine, only exists in Enigma

This was the biggest surprise of the whole show-not the wine from the winery, but the "exclusive work of the restaurant" created by the Albert Adrià team. Its existence itself is an extension of Enigma's culinary philosophy: a wine that does not aim at the market and exists only for this space.

Orange jelly + pomegranate smoothie (freshly made at the table)

The waiter made it live at the table: pomegranate syrup was diluted with French brandy and poured on orange jelly, vodka pomegranate smoothie was added, and Shanghai salt, Jamaican black pepper and orange peel were sprinkled. Sweet, sour, salty, and spicy are promoted in layers, and the effect of clearing the mouth is significant. The table-side interaction of this dish is reminiscent of the foie gras pickled section, and there is a sense of design that echoes back and forth in form.

Piqillo Chili Dessert Version

Reinterpret the traditional Spanish piqillo chili in a dessert technique, transforming the spicy into sweet, retaining the shape and skin of the chili, but filling it with a sweet filling. The conceptual subversion is very interesting-the chili is seen at a glance, but it is sweet in the mouth. This contrast brings a momentary surprise, but after the surprise, the taste itself is not particularly outstanding.

Umami Orange (dark chocolate sponge cake)

A sponge cake composed of dark chocolate, milk chocolate, almond wine and cappuccino, presented in the shape of an orange, with a roasted charcoal fragrance on the outer layer. The bitterness of chocolate is the last turning point in the Qingkou section. The overall taste is thick, but it is slightly heavier in the context of "Qingkou".

Cold layer-GRANITA

Galliano Herbal Liqueur
Yuzu grapefruit juice
Six-year-old Japanese Roku gin

It has a smoothie texture, with herbal, citrus and slightly bitter contours. The key is the grainy × volatile aroma.

Thermal layer—YUZU FOAM

protein
Yuzu grapefruit juice

The upper layer is covered in the form of warm foam, and the taste is soft and airy. The key is temperature × air × acidity release.

The first paragraph｜The refreshing and bitter sweetness of smoothies, the spicy aroma of Roku gin

Middle section｜The structure of gin and grapefruit unfolds in the mouth

Tail section｜Warm foam brings out soft acidity, forming a "flowing flavor curve"

Blood Orange Jelly / Kiwi Coconut Dumplings / Strawberry + Absinthe

Three small desserts with different styles: blood orange jelly is made with orange peel as a container, bright and sweet and sour; kiwi slices are wrapped in coconut jelly, accompanied by basil and mint, refreshing like a bite of jelly; the strawberry version contrasts the herbal bitterness of absinthe with the sweetness of strawberry powder. Waxy. The three dishes are considered to be above the standard when viewed separately, and the diversity added together also reflects the chef's insistence that "desserts are not just sweet"-sour, bitter, and herbal are all present.

Vanilla milk Bread / Basamik Chocolate

The former is based on milk bread and smeared with vanilla cream. The texture is soft and the sweetness is mild. It is a rare warm "homely" moment all night; the latter penetrates the bitterness of dark chocolate with the sweetness of Basamik aged vinegar, which is the last bite of the whole menu. The two dishes are added together, so that the whole taste journey has a clear landing point-from the high acidity of citrus to the bitter-sweet finish of chocolate and vinegar, a complete circle is drawn.