With a bit more time on my hands, and in between creating online wine courses, I finally cracked the recipe for slow-cooked belly pork, using a recipe for Char Siu Pork. It was melt in the mouth delicious! What to drink with Char Siu was the next challenge… The ingredients included honey, brown sugar, hoi […]
Learn about wine: Grü Ve
Some years ago, at a WSET wine course, I opened a mature bottle of Laurenz V’s ‘Charming’ Grüner Veltliner. The class fell silent in its appreciation. Since then, I’ve been trying to age a few bottles from good vintages (like 2015 and 2013 – ’memorable’ age-worthy vintages) for future enjoyment.When young, Grüner Veltliner is appreciated […]
Single Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Tuscany
Imagine a steak without salt. Enjoyable, but missing something…. Drinking a top notch Italian wine without food falls into the same state of limbo. This was brought home to me yet again, at a Masterclass on Single Estate Extra Virgin Olive oil in Jamie Oliver’s restaurant in Dundrum, presented by David Gleave, MW, of Liberty […]
Albariňo, anyone?
One of my favourite summer whites is Albariňo, thanks to its light body and fresh taste. Its flavours are subtle and elegant – grapefruit, pear and peach are accented by a certain saltiness, reminiscent of a whiff of seashore. It’s crisp rather than overtly acidic. Occasionally a feint spritz of carbon dioxide is left in […]
Outdoor eating & wine
Wines for Christmas Day
If you are part of a large gathering on Christmas Day, choose wines which will appeal to everyone, rather than anything too esoteric. Save your prized bottles for a quieter time, when you can appreciate them better, and not have to worry about excited children knocking over glasses! If you are having a fish starter, […]
Wine & Duck
In Ireland we seem to shop from a very limited range of ingredients, with limited seasonal variation. Duck has made a welcome debut to our stores, and is now widely available. Much of it comes from Silver Hill, a family business based in Monaghan. They employ over 150 people and process 60,000 ducks per week! […]
Pork & Wine
Irish wine drinkers disappointed…
Lulie Halstead, Chief Executive of a leading international research company, Wine Intelligence, reports that Irish wine drinkers are disappointed when drinking wine in bars and restaurants. Furthermore, it was revealed that Irish people drink wine in pubs and bars less often than their counterparts abroad, and are generally less willing to experiment with new wines. […]
Lamb & Wine
Terms such as Appellation Contrôlée are well-recognised for wines, but did you know that the EU gives special status to high quality foods which are deemed to be specific to certain regions? Lamb producers in Connemara proudly boast that the flavour is unique – a result of the hilly terrain, grasses, heathers and herbs, all […]