Pierre Hermé

With pleasure as his only guide, Pierre Hermé has invented his own universe of tastes, sensations and pleasures. The man that Vogue USA called the “Picasso of Pastry” created the modern concept of Haute Patisserie, now world renowned.  Heir to four generations of Alsatian bakery and pastry-making tradition, Pierre Hermé arrived in Paris at the age of 14 to start his first apprenticeship with Gaston Lenôtre. His thirst for knowledge opened every door in the house to him.  He explored all the secrets of the trade and used his days off to work alongside his elders. He even worked on the company newsletter and gradually rose through the echelons of the great Parisian firm. He continued his career at a number of other famous brands, notably Fauchon where he was Head Pastry Chef for 10 years before creating the Maison Pierre Hermé Paris in 1997 with Charles Znaty.  Inspired creator, Pierre Hermé adopted an original approach that has revolutionised the traditions of the craft: banishing excessive decorations, using sugar like salt - as a seasoning to bring out other subtle flavours, reinventing himself every day, exploring new flavours, introducing new ingredients and revisiting his own recipes.  Ensconced in his Creative Studio, like an artist, Pierre Hermé imagines his tastes and flavour combinations. He actually draws his creations, just like a couturier does. He writes the recipes, sets the proportions. At his side, the pastry chefs carry out trials until they achieve the result he created in his mind.  From small pleasures to encounters, from reading to travelling, fragrances to textures... Pierre Hermé is curious about everything. Everything is a source of inspiration to him. His work and his audacity have made him a pillar in French gastronomy. All around the globe, the pastry chef and chocolatier who was awarded the title of World’s Best Pastry Chef in 2016 by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants and as the 4th most influential French person in the World by Vanity Fair the same year, has put his technical expertise, talent and creativity at the service of every gourmet on earth’s pleasure and even into space! At the beginning of 2017, Pierre Hermé sent the first macaron into the stars, to the astronauts at the International Space Station. Photo taken by:  Stéphane de Bourgies