# beluga caviar ?



## english_gent (Dec 28, 2006)

any members indulged ?


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## Karl89 (Feb 20, 2005)

EG,

Yes of course. But the bang to hype ratio is way out of whack in my opinion. Though its still regarded as the best. A sad day indeed was when Swissair announced in December of 2000 they would no longer be serving caviar in their First and Business Class cabins beginning in 2001. Less than a year later they were bankrupt and a year and a half later they ceased to exist entirely. I will let you draw your own conclusions.

Karl


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## Concordia (Sep 30, 2004)

From time to time. 

Although I'm not a raving tree-hugger, I'd be very reluctant to buy any today even from ostensibly legal sources. The fish are damned near extinct, and there are plausible substitutes for the Iranian/Russian article being raised in France and elsewhere.


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## rip (Jul 13, 2005)

The importation of Caspian Beluga is illegal in the US, and has been for a couple of years now. The Caspian sturgeon is a highly endangered species, so surely your question is aimed at non-Americans. That said, one of the highlights of my recent trip to Russia (St. Petersburg) was having caviar with just about everything.. My grandson-in-law absolutely loves caviar, keeps an ample supply in their apartment and serves it in all sorts of interesting ways. He has some Beluga, which this thread is supposed to be about, but both he and I prefer Sevruga malasol, somthat's what we usually have... caviar on toast, of course, caviar with scrambled eggs or omelets, caviar and sour cream blinis (a type of blintz), caviar and boiled potatoes with sour cream or yoghurt, or just caviar, washed down with either iced vodka or champagne (my preference).


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## english_gent (Dec 28, 2006)

i never had beluga before (or for that matter any caviar) so i thought i'd try it and bought a 50grm tin of 000 grade beluga for £89 .

will be having it with blinis and a few glassses of bubbly .

oh and i bought a mother of pearl caviar spoon and dish too! :icon_smile_big: 

next up caviar and chips .


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## samblau (Apr 2, 2005)

Never had Beluga although caviar lovers claim its the best, caviar simply doesn't do it for me. I am always surprised when the celebrity chefs on television use relatively massive amounts when preparing or finishing dishes. The last time I had (good) caviar (I do not count the salmon eggs etc. I often have at my sushi place) was at my moms 50th b'day at Rain in the Mohegan Sun in CT. I had a green mussel and fennel based bouillabaise served with "golden osetra" (sp?) which I beleive is completely unrelated to Beluga, for a rather hefty price..the serving of caviar was laughable considering what I see on television although probobly comensurate with what a typical restaurant serving was. I derived little to no enjoyment from it....in fact the meal in its entirety was mostly a dissapointment. As a New Yorker.....keep the caviar, I'll stick with plain smoked sturgeon!


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## KenR (Jun 22, 2005)

I have never had the opportunity to try it, having only savored Ossetra on a number of occasions. One of these days maybe.


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## The Gabba Goul (Feb 11, 2005)

Concordia said:


> From time to time.
> 
> Although I'm not a raving tree-hugger, I'd be very reluctant to buy any today even from ostensibly legal sources. The fish are damned near extinct, and there are plausible substitutes for the Iranian/Russian article being raised in France and elsewhere.


I aggree whole heartedly...there are so many other options out there that are almost (if not equally) as good as beluga that dont threaten the extinction of any particular species...I mean anybody who knows me knows that I'm no liberal, and deffinately not a fan of PETA...but I'm not trying to have anything go extinct due to my own affectations...


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## iammatt (Sep 17, 2005)

Beluga has better texture, but Osetra has a better taste.


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## english_gent (Dec 28, 2006)

well , i gobbled down the 50grm tin and was underwhelmed but still felt rarified partaking . :icon_smile_big: 

i'd rather have a decent pork pie and picalilli !


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