Match of the week

Tuna tartare with wasabi aioli and Prager Grüner Veltliner

Posted by Fiona Beckett (Google+) on November 8 2011 at 22:59

Not last week's match, actually but a great one from a couple of weeks' back just before I went to Paris and which got overlooked.

It was at Wolfgang Puck's new London steakhouse 'Cut' at 45 Park Lane. Yes, of course we drank a good wine with the steak (a 2005 Heitz Bella Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon) but you don't have to struggle too hard to find a full-bodied red that goes with rare beef. A challenging starter like the tuna tartar, wasabi aioli, ginger, togarashi crisps and tosa soy - a deliciously hot spicy mouthful of raw fish - is another matter.

Our engaging and feisty sommelier Vanessa Cinti suggested a richly-textured 2008 Prager Grüner Veltliner Hinter der Berg which rode to the rescue as it often does with this register of flavours, retaining its purity and minerality and providing a refreshing contrast to the dish. I think Grüner is probably my favourite default restaurant white at the moment.

The food at Cut is good and the Californian wine selection probably as comprehensive as anywhere in London but, as you'd expect from Park Lane, very, very expensive. Be warned!

I visited Cut as a guest of the restaurant.

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