Sweetbreads, morels and madeira

Lots of good food and wine combinations this week but I’m picking out the one with the most unusual wine: Barbeito's Rainwater 5 year old reserva medium-dry madeira which I had at Bell’s Diner in Bristol on Friday night

It has much the same sort of nutty character as a dry amontillado but is less oxidised and a little fruitier.

We drank it with a range of small plates including salt cod croquetas but the outstanding match was a dish of sweetbreads, morels and broad beans with a rich sauce that I’m guessing had also seen a splash of madeira or sherry. Just wonderful.

Why the name Rainwater? Well there's a couple of interesting hypotheses on the Fareham Wine Cellars blog. They stock the Barbeito for £11.99 a 50cl bottle. You can also buy it from The Solent Cellar for £12.99.

Barbeito is apparently one of the more traditional producers on the island and doesn’t de-acidify or add caramel to their madeiras.

Lambs sweetbreads with girolles and Louis Roederer Rich Champagne

It’s a bit of a long story. A customer of my friends Stephen and Judy Markwick who own the Bristol restaurant Culinaria wanted to track down some Louis Roederer Rich and I helped him find it. He wanted me to share a bottle with him as a reward which was totally unnecessary but a gesture it seemed churlish to refuse. (Or that's my excuse anyway!)

I wasn’t sure what to choose from the menu because it’s off-dry - though not as sweet as a demi-sec - and the most likely starter struck me as the one I wanted to order anyway which was lambs sweetbreads on toast with girolles which is served with a rich creamy sauce laced with Madeira. And it worked brilliantly - the lushness of the wine picking up on the sweetness in the Madeira and the fizz preserving the delicacy of the sweetbreads.

Admittedly the combination is a bit of an acquired taste. On another, less lavish, occasion I’d probably go for a red burgundy or other Pinot Noir or, with the wine, some mildly spiced Thai dishes (I think it’s at its very best with spicy food). Though I'm not sure whether they're currently producing it. I can't find it listed among the wines on their website though Berry Bros & Rudd still seem to have a limited quantity if you're a fan.

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