Wagner Choucroute: raw fermented sauerkraut from Alsace

Who's behind it

Choucrouterie Meyer Wagner sits in Krautergersheim, the village in Alsace known as the heart of French sauerkraut production. Roughly a quarter of all choucroute in France comes from this region. The company as it now exists came about in 2007, from the merger of two old houses: the Fabrique de choucroute F. Meyer from 1900 and the Choucrouterie Wagner from 1947. At the helm is Jean-Luc Meyer, great-grandson of one of the founders. Together the workshops produce around 6,000 tons of fermented cabbage per year, from conventional to organic and with the IGP label.

How it's made

Since 2018 there's the IGP Choucroute d'Alsace, which sets out the method. The cabbage is grown and harvested in the region, thinly sliced (0.6 to 1 mm), salted at roughly 2 percent and then fermented in closed vats. Depending on temperature that takes 2 weeks to 2 months. Fermentation runs entirely on lactic acid bacteria, and salt is the only preservative. Crue is raw and keeps a light bite. Wagner's cuite is already cooked with Riesling, lard, onion, juniper and pepper. The first gives you control, the second saves time.

In your kitchen

With the raw crue you set the acidity, salt and cooking time. Rinse briefly, taste, and cook it your way: slowly braised with white wine for a classic choucroute garnie, or briefly and crisp as a fresh garnish against something fatty or smoked. Under pan-fried salmon or cod a gently cooked sauerkraut works well, and drained and briefly seared it picks up smokiness that rubs against the acidity. Keep the cuite on hand for speed on busy services. On the menu, call it raw fermented, from Krautergersheim.