Corks flew at Wimbledon 2019. The correct way to open a bottle of champagne (chilled to 6-10˚C) is to hold the cork and twist the bottle.
Easter lamb & wine
Char Siu & Zinfandel
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! […]
