Chardonnay and charred aubergine with coriander chutney

When I think of coriander I rarely think of chardonnay - more like a sauvignon blanc or a riesling - but the tasting sponsored by Wine Australia at Imbibe the other week before last really surprised me.

The event pitted Master Sommelier Clément Robert against Master of Wine Sam Caporn each of whom chose an Aussie wine to go with one of three dishes prepared by Roger Jones of The Harrow at Little Bedwyn.

Admittedly aubergine is quite a rich, savoury vegetable but it was the pungent Indian style coriander chutney that really made Sam’s match with the 2016 Petaluma Piccadilly Valley chardonnay from the Adelaide Hills sing.

Why did it work so well? I think because of the maturity, quality and luscious creaminess of the chardonnay (the current vintage costs £27.80 from Corking Wines), the fact that the dish was cold and that there was a good dollop of yoghurt on the side. (Dairy often assists a wine match particularly with chardonnay.) The slight nuttiness and smokiness of the aubergine also helped but it wouldn't necessarily be the easiest pairing to pull off at home if you didn't have Roger there to cook it for you.

It is worth trying oaked chardonnay with Indian food if you're in a restaurant though. It goes particularly well with creamy curries such kormas and butter chicken

See also The best food to match with chardonnay

Date and Nutella balls and cold brew coffee

I’m a recent convert to cold brew coffee - I never used to think I liked iced coffee much maybe because it was made with instant coffee back in the day but cold brew coffee made with freshly ground beans is another matter altogether.

Anyway I went along to try the new coffees my pal Amir Gehl has introduced to the very posh Parcafé on the Park Lane side of the Dorchester and after we’d finished tasting asked to try the cold brew which is made from beans from the Dattera farm in Brazil. It’s very smooth and chocolatey, particularly when made as a cold brew and went brilliantly well with the café’s ‘Healthy Bites’ (not *so* sure about 'healthy' though they were fashionably vegan).

They are apparently made with dates, Nutella, oats and oat milk - not my kind of thing normally but really insidiously more-ish. Turns out - although you probably knew this already that date and Nutella balls are A Thing - Google them and you’ll find dozens of recipes. I can also recommend the Hazelnut Dacquoise.

Amir, whose company Difference Coffee supplies a number of 3 Michelin star restaurants has also placed what must be one of the most expensive coffees in London at the Parcafé - from a batch of 2019 Esmeralda Geisha which he sourced before it went on public auction. It costs an eyewatering £15 a cup which is fair enough I guess if you’re talking about one of the world’s best coffees. You’d probably pay that for a fine wine or a rare whisky so why not coffee if you can afford it? And if you stay at the Dorchester you probably can.

I went to Parcafé as a guest of Difference coffee

Foie gras and white Hermitage

Those of you who remember the post I wrote 10 years or so ago about why I wasn’t going to eat foie gras any more might reasonably ask how come it’s appearing in this match of the week?

I can’t really defend it other than to say I I never order it. If I’m asked before a meal if there’s anything I don’t eat I say foie gras but if it turns up on a menu at an event at which I’m being hosted like the Diner 4 Etoiles I attended at Tain l'Ermitage last week I take the rather weak-minded view that it would be rude to send it back. Which is how I’ve discovered what a great match it is with white Hermitage.

It also happened to be in the fabulous form of an artichoke and foie gras terrine, a signature dish from the two-Michelin-starred La Mère Brazier in Lyons. You’d think with the artichokes that might be tricky with wine but not at all. The richness of the Hermitage (I tried a couple with it including the 2013 Les Vins de Vienne La Bachole Blanc) offset it to perfection.

It bears out a theory I’ve held for a while that Sauternes, while a classic match, is not the perfect pairing for foie gras because it’s hard to kick off a meal with a sweet wine. A rich white like Hermitage, especially an older vintage is a better if somewhat more expensive option. The same would apply to a lush white burgundy or white Chateauneuf-du-Pape too.

I attended the dinner as a guest of Inter-Rhône.

Lobster and Condrieu

There were so many outstanding wines at Yapp Brothers 50th anniversary lunch that it’s tough to pick out just one but I’m going to go for this pairing of lobster with Condrieu.

I’ve mentioned that lobster works with viognier before but perhaps not given it enough prominence - or maybe never had it work quite so successfully.

Adam Handling at Frog has an unusual way of cooking lobster admittedly. It was poached (overnight I seem to hazily recall) in Wagyu beef fat which gave it a more deep savoury meaty (obviously) flavour than would normally be the case but if it had been simply grilled it would also have been a sensational match with the headily perfumed Condrieu. Which was a 2017 Coteau du Vernon, the top wine of Condrieu legend Georges Vernay which was served in magnum*: a suitably extravagant wine for such a luxury food. (Yapp also suggests quenelles by which I’m assuming the classic dish quenelles de brochet, sauce nantua - pike quenelles with crayfish sauce),

Not an everyday pairing, certainly, but a sensational special occasion one.

For my other favourite wine and lobster pairings click the link.

*standard bottles are still available from Yapp for £99 if you feel like splashing out!

I attended the lunch as a guest of Yapp Brothers.