Artichokes and Trebbiano

Artichokes are a notoriously tricky match with wine but don’t have to be an insuperable one as last week’s artichoke dinner at Bocca di Lupo proved.

Chef Jacob Kenedy created an amazing menu in which artichokes appeared in all kinds of guises including an American sweet artichoke pie with which he matched a moscato. (If you can’t imagine that it was surprisingly like a pumpkin pie)

The two courses that were paired with trebbiano were a fantastic salad of shaved artichokes with parmesan, anchovy and lemon (the latter ingredients definitely contributing to the match with the 2020 Trebbiano ‘Bio’ from Cantine Tolio and a creamy artichoke risotto with lemon, parsley and parmesan with a 2015 Trebbiano d’Abruzzo from Valentini, both from the Abruzzo. Again the lemon and parmesan were key elements in the success of the pairing, rather bearing out the conclusions I came to in this earlier post.

Pairing wine and artichokes

There was also an initial wine, a crisp 2020 Capolemole Bianco from Marco Carpineti made from a grape variety called Bellone which went brilliantly with the fried artichokes and sweetbreads (an artichokey riff on fritto misto) and grilled spiedini (skewers) of artichokes and langoustines. The only dish that caused it any problems were the fried artichoke alla Giudia (fried artichokes Roman style) which made the wine taste a touch sweet - the usual problem with artichokes which Jacob miraculously avoided with everything else. But not by any means a clash.

Bocca di Lupo is at 12 Archer Street, Soho, London W1D 7BB. I ate there as a guest of the restaurant

Smoked salmon and Deanston Virgin Oak single malt whisky

There were a number of great matches with Deanston’s Virgin Oak whisky up in Scotland last week but unusually I’m going for the most conventional - a starter of (very good) smoked salmon with gravadlax and a tomato and cucumber dressing at Gleneagles hotel - on the grounds that it’s the most useful.

I don’t pair malt whisky frequently enough with smoked salmon and it really is delicious.

The whisky is a bit unusual though. It’s a 46.3% blend of younger whiskies aged, like bourbon, in new American oak casks which give it a rather delicious note of light soft brown sugar and vanilla fudge and it’s master distiller Brendan McCarron’s favourite whisky of the range

It was also used in the very delicious ice-cream that went with the final course of the dinner - a rich Valrhona chocolate dessert with banana toffee, clootie dumpling croutons (yes, really!) although that dish was paired with the more complex Deanston 18 year old which could handle the richness of the chocolate.

The wild card in terms of pairing was the macaroni cheese and chips I ordered in the distillery café at lunchtime. I asked if I could try the Virgin Oak with it and it turned out to be a cracking match. If that’s a step too far for you I reckon it would also go very well with cheddar cheese.

What foods pair best with whisky?

You can buy the Virgin Oak single malt from The Whisky Exchange for £35.25 and the 18 year old, which was voted The Whisky Exchange’s Whisky of the Year), for £63.95 currently.

I visited the distillery as a guest of Deanston and The Whisky Exchange

Smoked eel and potato soup with dry Moscatel

I could have picked any number of pairings from the really inspiring wine dinner hosted by Bodegas Bentomiz at Gambas tapas bar in Bristol last week but this marginally inched it.

It was a dish called Gazpachuelo which comes from Malaga - the same region as the wine - and is a traditional fisherman’s soup made with mayonnaise. (You can see it being made here)

This version was served at room temperature with smoked eel potato and scallop roe and was unctuously creamy, and slightly smokey from the eel.

With it the restaurant paired a dry, almost sherry like 2019 moscatel called Ariyanas or Ariyanas Seco Sobre Lias Finos to give it its full name that handled all the flavours perfectly. The glass was topped by a tortita di camarones, a crisp wafer with tiny shrimps which again is one of the specialities of the region - and of the restaurant.

Another terrific pairing was a final course of avocado sorbet, yoghurt and olive oil with the bodega’s best known wine, Ariyanas Naturalmente Dulce, a sweet moscatel that tasted of gloriously ripe apricots with the almost savoury dessert.

You don’t often come across such carefully thought out and imaginative pairings which included dishes that are not normally on offer at the restaurant but it really pays dividends, presenting a satisfying challenge for the kitchen and a new experience for restaurant regulars as well as showing off the wines to best effect.

Gambas is at Unit 12 in Cargo 2, Wapping Wharf, Bristol. You can buy the wines from them direct if you live in Bristol or via Indigo Wines if you're in the UK wine trade. The Ariyanas Seco is £31.90 and the Naturalmente Dulce £5.90 a glass.

I attended the dinner as a guest of Gambas and Bodegas Bentomiz

Chateau d’Yquem with Gorgonzola and a pressed apple terrine

OK, I don’t expect you to have a bottle of Chateau d’Yquem to hand, let alone a 1999 or 1989 vintage but this would work with any mature or not-so-mature Sauternes or similar sweet Bordeaux

It was served at a lunch at Portland restaurant in London to launch the 2019 vintage of Yquem, which is absolutely delicious by the way. (No I don’t do this every day!)

The restaurant chose to pair it with a Gorgonzola naturale, pressed apple terrine, thyme honey and hazelnuts. They could have served it with the Gorgonzola on its own of course but the terrine just added an element that linked to the wine. (By this stage the 89 tasted more like vintage Oxford marmalade than the luscious lemon and honey flavours of the 2019.)

It’s a lovely way of serving Gorgonzola anyway. I’m a great fan of showcasing a single cheese rather than serving a huge selection, one of which is bound to clash with the wine.

The 2019 doesn’t seem to be available in store yet but you can buy a half bottle of the 2018 for £146 from Berry Bros and Rudd should you feel like splashing out.

See also The Best Food Pairings for Sauternes

I ate at Portland as a guest of Chateau d’Yquem.