Ceviche and Pisco Soho

Last week was particularly good for off-the-wall pairings but I'm going to nominate this delicious cocktail as my match of the week.It was at the new Peruvian restaurant and bar, Ceviche and was a wonderfully refreshing mixture of limo aji chilli-infused pisco (limo aji chilli is a native Peruvian pepper) with elderflower liqueur, cucumber, lime, egg white and cracked black pepper.

Unfortunately I’d ordered a straight Pisco sour (still good but not in quite the same league) so I only got a sip but can vouch that it went perfectly with the two ceviches we ordered, a tiradito of salmon and a tiradito of seabass in aji amarillo tiger’s milk and cancha corn (pictured right).

If you go there, I'd eat in the bar which is lighter and more spacious than the restaurant

Ceviche is at 17 Frith Street, London W1D 4RD

I ate at Ceviche as a guest of the restaurant

Chocolate brownie and Churchill Late Bottled Vintage Port

I was invited to host a food and wine evening by the Bristol Uni Wine Circle last week which I have to say, despite the vast quantities of food and drink consumed, they took impressively seriously.

We kicked off with champagne (Pol Roger 2000), moved on to manzanilla (La Gitana) and tapas, then prawn and monkfish brochettes with leek puree with Avery’s Clare Valley riesling followed by duck pie and mushroom risotto which were paired with a 2006 Chambolle Musigny Aux Echanges from Nicolas Potel and a 2010 Luis Felipe Edwards Reserva Pinot Noir from Chile (the Chambolle went best).

Then - deep breath - apple flan and Sauternes (Bastor Lamontagne 2006) followed by Roquefort, LBV port, Maury and chocolate brownies. All I can say is that I hope the Wine Circle members land themselves a well-paid job. They’ll need it to keep up that lifestyle.

All the pairings went pretty well I thought. I particularly liked the prawns and riesling but the standout combination was the Churchill 2003 LBV port and rich dark chocolate brownie. I’d expected the Maury to be the better match but as it was an very old vintage (1974) the fruit was a bit dried out. The Churchill however was in its prime - beautifully smooth and velvety with a lovely flavour of wild blackberries. It went well with the cheese too. A great way to end a meal - or, rather, marathon blowout.

Most of the wines came from Avery's, I think, except the Churchill LBV which I ironically wrote about last week on the Guardian website in a blog about wine clubs. It's quite widely available though, as I pointed out, prices fluctuate considerably - from £11.80 at slurp.co.uk to £15.50 at Oddbins who also recommend pairing it with dark chocolate - and Fats Waller (part of their new pairing wine and music schtik!)

Braised short ribs and Monastrell (aka Mourvèdre)

One of the tricky decisions to make when you’re serving a rich, winey stew is whether to go for a wine of equal weight or a lighter medium-bodied wine as a refreshing contrast.

We tried both options last night with a dish of short ribs I’d cooked overnight in the best part of a bottle of a Marquesa de la Cruz GSM (Garnacha Syrah Mazuelo) from Campo de Borja 2010 (6.99 Sainsbury’s) an ultraripe, lush, almost porty red that clocked in at 14.5%. Great for the ribs, not so great with them (too soft and sweet for what had become deep savoury flavours)

The final dish also defeated a Chianti Classico - much too light - but found its soulmate in another Spanish red, a Casa Castillo Monastrell 2009 Jumilla 14% imported by C & D wines, which turns out to retail at only 5.33 from Vinissimus though they have moved on to the 2010 vintage. It too was full-bodied (14%) but had a spiciness and structure that the GSM lacked. A terrific match.

Pork chops and perry

Sometimes you forget the most obvious food matches like the pairing of pork and perry we enjoyed over the weekend.

I cooked some pork chops with a dish of roast onions, apple, fennel and potatoes and served it with black pudding and cabbage. A quickly flung together family dinner but none the worse for that.

I would normally have used - and drunk - cider but what I had to hand was a bottle of 2009 Priggles Herefordshire perry from Dragon Orchard made from Blakeney Red pears. It was medium dry which I think worked better with pork than a totally dry perry would have done - and 7% which obviously helped to carry the other flavours on the plate. Simple, homely and delicious.

Good to know that Herefordshire now has a PGI (protected geographical indication) for its perry.