Appert, Nicolas

Appert, Nicolas (1749–1841) a Frenchman of great importance in the history of food conservation, came to public notice when the well-known gastronomic writer grimod de la Reynière, in the third year of his Almanach des Gourmands (1806), wrote about him admiringly as one who had found a method of bottling a large number of fruits and vegetables. Food treated in this manner had the advantage of keeping for a long time and thus allowed the gourmand to sample dishes which recalled ‘the month of May in the heart of winter’. According to Grimod, ‘the petits pois above all else were as green, as tender and as delicious as those eaten in season’.