"The movement of the moon is very important for us," says Planty. "It's also one of the oldest harvest celebration festivals in the world."
Back in 2010, Planty had noticed an influx of young Chinese women in and around Bordeaux, many having been hired by local wine merchants. Naturally, they grew homesick during the Mid-Autumn Festival, so he decided to organize a dinner, inviting them to celebrate the festival and the moon over good food and wine.
During a dinner celebration, the guests observed the moon through a telescope, and one year, he even held a competition for local French pastry chefs to see who could make the best mooncakes.
Last year, 200 people joined the dinner, and for the first time, he invited Chinese chefs to concoct Chinese dishes to pair with the wine from Chateau Guiraud.
"This year was the perfect time to move the event to Beijing, and to such an historical place," explains Planty. "I was fascinated by the Chinese taste."
The pairing of the wines with Chinese dishes was done by Feng Wei, who does cultural promotion in China and France, and who has previously spent six years living in Bordeaux.
Beijing native Feng co-authored a guidebook to pairing Chinese food with French wines in 2016.
"Pairing food and wine is like marriage," she observes, adding that "the two have to elevate each other".
"To find the perfect match for the food, you can't just look at the label of the wine bottle," Feng says. "Also, the same brand of wine tastes differently with every year's bottling-like a man who is growing."
Feng chose Peking duck as the main dish for the dinner, as she thinks the fat of the duck skin goes well with the wine from Chateau Guiraud. "The smoky flavor of the duck combines with the aromas of the wine, which is rich in your mouth," she explains.
Feng thinks Peking duck is the most popular Chinese dish among French people, as it has a rich flavor and can be eaten in many ways.
"When my French friends visit Beijing, they would order a whole Peking duck each because they love it so much," Feng says.
Feng spent four months preparing the dinner from the design of the menu to the decoration of the dining room. She even arranged a lute performance during the dinner, which included a rendition of A Moonlit Flowery Night on the Spring River to celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival.
