Lamb mechoui and 2007 Chateau Musar

This, I think, was the standout pairing from our Honey & Co wine club on Sunday and a great illustration of the difference a dish can make to the way a wine tastes.

The wine was the 2007 vintage of the legendary Chateau Musar from the Lebanon, a wine which was showing its age when we tasted it on its own but was utterly transformed by the spicy, slightly gamey meat which revived the lovely sweet mellow fruit in the wine and made it taste velvety and delicious. The dish also included pulses in the form of a broad bean & mint mashawsha or hummus - another factor in the success of the match. Pulses can be as flattering to wine as meat.

We have one more Honey & Co event on May 8th which will focus on Southern Italian and Sicilian food and wine* then break until the autumn but I hope to be doing another couple of events at other restaurants over the summer. if you’d like to be on my events mailing list email events@matchingfoodandwine.com

*currently a sell-out but do call Honey & Co and ask to be put on the waiting list in the event of any cancellations

Chicken with pomegranate molasses and orange iced tea

One of the areas of food and drink pairing I’m always trying to crack is soft drinks - so it’s good to find an inspired match that really hits the spot - not too sweet as most soft drinks are for me.

It was at a restaurant called Honey & Co I’ve been meaning to go to for a while - a tiny cafe in Warren Street that serves the most delicious middle-eastern inspired food. (The owners both used to work at Ottolenghi.)

This was my main course - a gorgeous colourful dish of chicken marinated in pomegranate molasses with cracked wheat, pistachios and pomegranate seeds.

The iced tea had been spiked, I suspect from the colour, with fresh pomegranate juice and was served with a slice of blood orange and a (slightly over-generous) dash of orange flower water. Rein that back just a touch and you’d have the perfect drink.

It was also great with my starter of shaved fennel, blood orange and feta seasoned with Turkish chilli flakes (I would guess) and a pinch of zatar (a mix of thyme, oregano, sesame seeds and sumac).

I really don’t think wine or beer would have been better.