Wednesday, November 17, 2004

And what a meal it was!

Monday night was our first winemaker dinner. A cozy group of 15 started out with a tasting examining a few of the wines that we'll be showing on Sunday at the 2nd Independent Merchants Fair at Vinopolis. I threw in an exotic and managed to stump all the stars. It was a Le Petit Chambord 2000 Cour Cheverny which is made with the romorantin grape. There are only 42 hectares of the grape grown in the world so no one had ever had it before. It's not for everyone but I was pleased that the general concensus was that the wine was delicious.

Then on to dinner. Sonia Blech outdid herself with a marvelous meal. We started with a seafood risotto that was brimming with all manner of shellfish. The New Zealand Gravitas Sauvignon Blanc that accompanied it was a great match. Then on to the truly fabulous main course - wild boar with porcini mushrooms. This was just about the highlight for me. Lots of rich flavours and a perfect blend with the Produttori 1999 Barbaresco.

As usual Sonia's cheese course was a stunner. She had 7 or 8 different cheeses, some of each type - goat, sheep, cowsmilk, soft, hard, blue. It was a real cheesehead's delight. The il Sciorio Barbera d'Asti that was served with it was good with everything but particularly beautiful with the aged parmesan. Yummy!

Then Sonia AGAIN outdid herself with a terrific dessert combining two of my favourite foods - hazelnuts and chocolate. The Late Harvest Viognier from Rosenblum that went with it was also a hit. Got lots of orders for that.

Coffee, petits fours and a great Malaga Pedro Ximenez finished the meal. We all waddled out very, very happy.

Monday, November 08, 2004

Get hungry! Yummy food at dinner.

The winemaker dinner on 15 November will have a really delicious menu created by Sonia Blech. Here's the food and wine line-up to whet your appetite -

Seafood risotto with pine kernels and saffron
St. Arnaud “Gravitas” Sauvignon Blanc 2003 – Marlborough, New Zealand


Roast fillet of wild boar with a porcini sauce and pommes lyonnaises
Barbaresco 1996 – Produttori del Barbaresco – Piemonte, Italy


Selection of Cheeses
Barbera d’Asti “Il Sciorio” 2000 – Gozzelino – Piemonte, Italy


"Argentin" (Hazelnut and almond chocolate gâteau)
Rosenblum Cellars Ripkin Ranch Late Harvest Viognier 2001 – California, USA


Coffee & petits fours
Lopez Hermanos NV Reserva de la Familia Pedro Ximenez – Malaga, Spain

Now, doesn't that sound good??

Winemaker Dinner, 15 November 2004

It's been a long time since I've posted and I feel really guilty about it. Now I have something to promote, here I am again.

On Monday, 15 November, The Ultimate Wine Company be hosting a winemaker dinner with Aldo Vacca, managing director of Produttori del Barbaresco. The dinner will be held at 57 Pelham Street, London SW7 2NJ, and will be prepared by the award-winning chef, Sonia Blech. Tickets are £80 per person and include a pre-dinner tasting, a 4-course dinner, coffee and petits fours, with wines for each course. Space for dinner is strictly limited so reserve your place today! Contact paula@ultimatewines.co.uk to book a place.

If you join the Bacchus & Comus Experience (a members club run by Neville and Sonia Blech), you will receive a £15 discount on the dinner price plus lots of other benefits. Single membership is £26 per year (a bargain that you almost fully recover just with the discount on this dinner), so join today! Go to www.bacchusandcomus.co.uk/members.php to join. You can also join by sending your cheque for £26 to Bacchus & Comus Ltd, 57 Pelham Street, London SW7 2NJ.