Caviar
Balducci's Selection of Caviar:
Luxurious Eating From Now Through The Year To Come
We've compiled a list of the most luscious treats to tempt your palate throughout the holiday season. Browse our catalog to put together your own epicurean shopping list.
Wild Caspian Caviar
Azerbaijan Caviar -Tightly controlled and in very limited supply.
The very best caviar in the world is Russian Caviar (now Azerbaijan, since the breakup). With the fish population in the Caspian on the decline, it is getting increasingly harder to find quality caviar. Our Azerbaijan Caviar is one of the few types of wild sturgeon caviar left for the connoisseur to enjoy.
Royal Osetra (Acipenser Gueldenstaedti)
Color: brown
Grain: medium
Taste: Wonderfully nutty with a rich aftertaste that leaves your palate yearning for more.
Serving suggestion: lovely by itself or with hors d'oeuvres.
Sevruga (Acipenser Stellatus)
Color: light grey to dark grey
Grain: small pearls
Taste: buttery
Serving Suggestion: Can be served by itself or with hors d-oeuvres (holds up in heat); great with chilled Russian vodka.
Caviar Astara- South Caspian Sea
Harvested from the Acipenser Persicus sturgeon found only in the south Caspian Sea, this black nosed sturgeon (also called Asetra sturgeon) is not considered endangered due to the Iranian commitment to restocking.
Astara Imperial Reserve caviar is a selection of only the largest and most delicate pearls, known for their delicate pop, firm texture and rich, creamy flavor with a smooth finish. This large grain caviar is similar to Beluga in size, exhibiting perfect texture, flavor and slate grey color.
Farmed International Caviar
Due to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) restrictions, the importation of wild Caspian Sea caviar is banned for the species Beluga and tightly regulated for the Osetra and Sevruga species. Our focus will be on the top-quality farmed caviars- especially the Italian Calvisius caviar.
Calvisius Transmontanus- Italy
Calvisius is our recommendation for Royal Osetra quality. Produced from farmed Acipenser Transmontanus, or White Sturgeon, Calvisius is the world leader in the field of aquaculture. The eggs are of the appropriate size, with an attractive pearly black color and, above all, they taste like caviar- rich, nutty and creamy.
Sturia- France (Acipenser Baerii)
East of Bordeaux in the Aquitaine region of France comes a caviar of exceptionable quality. Siberian Sturgeon is successfully cultured in the clean air of the countryside yielding a roe with medium sized grains. Its flavor has a distinct sweet earthiness with a hint of hazelnuts.
Tsar Nicoulai Select - California
In the Sacramento Valley the California White Sturgeon thrives. Cultured in fresh pure water from artesian wells, the caviar is clean and crisp with a sweet briny finish. Tsar Nicoulai Select features crisper eggs with a firmer texture than their more common "Estate Selections."
DeSietra- Germany
We are excited to offer the first true Russian Sturgeon (Acipenser Goeldenstaedti) to be successfully cultivated in Germany for the production of genuine Osetra caviar. Light grey in color with a traditionally nutty flavor and a wonderfully subtle "pop" in the mouth, this is wild caviar quality that is ecologically aware.
Guelden Baerii Bulgaria
This Siberian Osetra (Acipenser Guldenstatti- Baerii) caviar farmed in Bulgaria truly "wowed" us in blind tastings. Light grey in color and perfectly shaped for Osetra caviar, the depth of flavor attained by these Bulgarian aqua-farmers is outstanding. Subtle and complex with a lasting finish, this was the nuttiest, creamiest, and richest of the farmed eggs we tasted.
Domestic Caviar
Salmon Caviar
Our Alaskan salmon caviar has a firm texture and is very low in salt.
Spoonbill (Paddlefish) Roe
The Spoonbill is a peculiar prehistoric fish that thrives in the waters of the Mississippi and Tennessee rivers where it surface feeds using its paddled shaped nose to collect nutrient-rich food. The resulting caviar is quite delectable; small silvery pearls with a rich, robust, and creamy taste.
Accompaniments
Russian Blinis
Lightly toasted, these little bulgur wheat pancakes are traditional accompaniments to caviar with creme fraiche; they're great with smoked salmon too!
Luxurious Eating From Now Through The Year To Come
We've compiled a list of the most luscious treats to tempt your palate throughout the holiday season. Browse our catalog to put together your own epicurean shopping list.
Wild Caspian Caviar
Azerbaijan Caviar -Tightly controlled and in very limited supply.
The very best caviar in the world is Russian Caviar (now Azerbaijan, since the breakup). With the fish population in the Caspian on the decline, it is getting increasingly harder to find quality caviar. Our Azerbaijan Caviar is one of the few types of wild sturgeon caviar left for the connoisseur to enjoy.
Royal Osetra (Acipenser Gueldenstaedti)
Color: brown
Grain: medium
Taste: Wonderfully nutty with a rich aftertaste that leaves your palate yearning for more.
Serving suggestion: lovely by itself or with hors d'oeuvres.
Sevruga (Acipenser Stellatus)
Color: light grey to dark grey
Grain: small pearls
Taste: buttery
Serving Suggestion: Can be served by itself or with hors d-oeuvres (holds up in heat); great with chilled Russian vodka.
Caviar Astara- South Caspian Sea
Harvested from the Acipenser Persicus sturgeon found only in the south Caspian Sea, this black nosed sturgeon (also called Asetra sturgeon) is not considered endangered due to the Iranian commitment to restocking.
Astara Imperial Reserve caviar is a selection of only the largest and most delicate pearls, known for their delicate pop, firm texture and rich, creamy flavor with a smooth finish. This large grain caviar is similar to Beluga in size, exhibiting perfect texture, flavor and slate grey color.
Farmed International Caviar
Due to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) restrictions, the importation of wild Caspian Sea caviar is banned for the species Beluga and tightly regulated for the Osetra and Sevruga species. Our focus will be on the top-quality farmed caviars- especially the Italian Calvisius caviar.
Calvisius Transmontanus- Italy
Calvisius is our recommendation for Royal Osetra quality. Produced from farmed Acipenser Transmontanus, or White Sturgeon, Calvisius is the world leader in the field of aquaculture. The eggs are of the appropriate size, with an attractive pearly black color and, above all, they taste like caviar- rich, nutty and creamy.
Sturia- France (Acipenser Baerii)
East of Bordeaux in the Aquitaine region of France comes a caviar of exceptionable quality. Siberian Sturgeon is successfully cultured in the clean air of the countryside yielding a roe with medium sized grains. Its flavor has a distinct sweet earthiness with a hint of hazelnuts.
Tsar Nicoulai Select - California
In the Sacramento Valley the California White Sturgeon thrives. Cultured in fresh pure water from artesian wells, the caviar is clean and crisp with a sweet briny finish. Tsar Nicoulai Select features crisper eggs with a firmer texture than their more common "Estate Selections."
DeSietra- Germany
We are excited to offer the first true Russian Sturgeon (Acipenser Goeldenstaedti) to be successfully cultivated in Germany for the production of genuine Osetra caviar. Light grey in color with a traditionally nutty flavor and a wonderfully subtle "pop" in the mouth, this is wild caviar quality that is ecologically aware.
Guelden Baerii Bulgaria
This Siberian Osetra (Acipenser Guldenstatti- Baerii) caviar farmed in Bulgaria truly "wowed" us in blind tastings. Light grey in color and perfectly shaped for Osetra caviar, the depth of flavor attained by these Bulgarian aqua-farmers is outstanding. Subtle and complex with a lasting finish, this was the nuttiest, creamiest, and richest of the farmed eggs we tasted.
Domestic Caviar
Salmon Caviar
Our Alaskan salmon caviar has a firm texture and is very low in salt.
Spoonbill (Paddlefish) Roe
The Spoonbill is a peculiar prehistoric fish that thrives in the waters of the Mississippi and Tennessee rivers where it surface feeds using its paddled shaped nose to collect nutrient-rich food. The resulting caviar is quite delectable; small silvery pearls with a rich, robust, and creamy taste.
Accompaniments
Russian Blinis
Lightly toasted, these little bulgur wheat pancakes are traditional accompaniments to caviar with creme fraiche; they're great with smoked salmon too!