Possibly the best truffle dinner ever

Did I want to go on a truffle trip to Spain at the end of January? Balmy Barbados seemed like a better option but since that wasn’t on the cards and the enquiry came from an old friend I said yes. The 2 day visit - the annual Viñas del Vero ‘Days of Wine and Truffles’ in Somontano would include an outdoor picnic in the foothills of the Pyrenees (eek), a truffle hunt and - the clincher - a multi-course truffle menu by one of the region’s most talented chefs followed by a gastronomic brunch. “Bring the Gaviscon”. my friend sagely advised.

I’ll be writing about the truffle hunting in due course so let’s concentrate on the dinner at Bodega Blecua which was the best truffle experience I’ve ever had. It kicked off in style with a selection of truffle-flavoured canaps including truffle flavoured macarons, parcels of truffle threads in lambs skein (sic), tartlets of pigs trotters and truffles (awesome) and best of all, truffle flavoured truffles of the satiny consistency of the best chocolate truffles. These were served with Tio Pepe (also owned by Viñas del Vero’s owner Gonzalez Byass) and V de V’s fragrant Gewürztraminer which I’m not sure I didn’t marginally prefer, to my surprise. (The 2009 is currently on offer at £6.49 at Majestic)

The first proper course was a glassful of truffles served with a hot broth which transformed it into truffle consommé followed by ‘Royal de Trufa with egg yolks and passion’. Fortunately this turned out not to be passion fruit as I had feared but a sumptous blend of truffles and pork fat of the consistency of creamy mash, scattered with yet more truffles. (I hadn’t thought of the combination of pork fat and truffles before but it’s a winner, let me tell you). With that we drank the 2010 Viñas del Vero Clarion, a rich, structured white about whose components they were curiously reticent but which seems to be Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer and Chenin Blanc.

That was followed by one of my favourite dishes of the meal, cardoons with oysters and almond sauce topped with a truffle shaving. Again a really imaginative and delicious combination of ingredients. This was served with a 2008 Clarion in magnum which suited the dish better than the younger fruitier vintage would have done.

They then brought on a potato ‘mushroom’ with ceps, a mound of fluffy truffle-infused mash moulded into a ... well, not a mushroom, more like a potato but fantastic anyway and a good match with the Blecua 2004 served in magnum.

Blecua is the flagship wine of Viñas del Vero - a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Garnacha, and Tempranillo from seven different parcels and possibly one of the best wines you've never heard of. It has more warmth and generosity than many Bordeaux and more finesse and complexity than most Spanish reds. The '04 also went perfectly with the next course, a truffle infused risotto topped with an outrageous amount of truffles.

By this stage even I was almost truffled out but just about found room for a mouthful or two of veal shanks with truffle sauce and chestnut purée (particularly good with the richer, more complex Blecua 2005) and some local truffled cheese.

And I didn’t make much impact on either of the two interesting desserts - a semi-frozen cylinder of something faintly ice creamy with amaretti crumbs and ‘snow truffles’ on muscovado cream, a truffle-inspired but, to some relief, not truffle-flavoured finale.

The general conclusion? That truffle dinners could be a lot more inventive than they generally are, that Spanish cuisine, dare I say it, has a lot to teach the French and that truffles can take younger, fruitier wines than you might imagine. Quite an experience.

The event I went to was a private one but If you want to sample chef Carmelo Bosque’s cooking go to his restaurant La Taberna de Lillas Pastia it’s in Huesca. It specialises in truffles and has a Michelin star. Tel: +34 974 211 691.

I attended the dinner as a guest of Gonzalez Byass.

 

What to drink with a TV dinner?

This month’s issue of Observer Food Monthly hasa special on TV dinners featuring celebrities talking about their favourite snacks. Very few beverages are mentioned so I thought I’d suggest a few pairings ;-)

Indian takeaway
Amanda Holden is pictured eating pasta with pesto but actually says her regular TV supper is an Indian takeaway. Lager would be the obvious bevvy of choice for most but personally I’d go for an IPA (India Pale Ale) or a strong fruity rosé

Spag bol
A bit of a messy TV snack from Observer restaurant critic Jay Rayner but who wouldn’t be tempted by Angela Hartnett’s 3-4 hour ragu which deserves a good bottle. Like a Chianti Classico riserva. See my 6 best pairings for spaghetti bolognese.

Fish fingers
(Or equally, fish and chips.) Mentioned by novelist Julie Myerson who also admits to enjoying a glass of Sauvignon Blanc. They’d rub along fine together but I must confess to a secret vice which is that I love fish fingers and champagne. Cava at a pinch.

Tapas
Newsreader Mark Austin says he likes tapas and a glass of wine (unspecified though I suspect it might be a Rioja). He should try a well-chilled glass of fino or manzanilla sherry. See also my 6 best Spanish wines to try with tapas.

Cheese on toast
We also don’t know what wine his colleague Julie Etchingham drinks with her cheese on toast made with “strong cheddar, always with Worcestershire sauce” Could quaff a Cabernet but I’d personally be reaching for a bottle of Timothy Taylor Landlord.

Home-made burgers
The fondly remembered childhood treat of X Factor presenter Dermot O’Leary. Adults should try them with a good bottle of Bordeaux: as fine a match with a burger as a steak - provided you don’t overdo the relish.

Chips
Perfect TV food, according to the BBC’s Alan Yentob - and he should know. Personally I think this is beer food again. Or a mug of builder’s tea, which would certainly be a good match for his other favoured snack, fried-egg sandwiches . . .

Fish pie
Mentioned by Property Ladder’s Sarah Beeny. Her version, which includes smoked haddock and a cheesy sauce, is quite rich which would make me reach for a fairly full-bodied (but not ridiculously oaky) Chardonnay. See also my 4 top drink pairings for fish pie.

Image credit: Andres Ayrton

The tricky task of pairing wine and citrus - wine matches for orange and lemon

This is the perfect time of year for buying oranges and lemons but what effect do they have on the recipes you’re making? Quite a marked one, if truth be told. Lemons in particular have a high level of acidity which will make any wine you drink with them taste sweeter. If that’s counterbalanced in the recipe by sugar as in a lemon tart or lemon meringue pie, for example, the result is a dish that’s really quite hard to match.

Wine with lemon

Many wines have some citrus notes in them of course but I find the lemon flavours in the dish are usually stronger. So a lemony chicken or pasta dish, for example, can make a citrussy Sauvignon Blanc taste flat. Or, if it holds its own, can unbalance the dish by creating an overload of citrus flavours.

Surprisingly the answer is often to pick a red, particularly a red with marked acidity of its own. The Italians do that instinctively when they reach for a bottle of Valpolicella with a spaghetti al limone or squeeze lemon over a bistecca alla fiorentina and pair it with a tannic Chianti. The acid in the fruit subdues the acid in the wine. Lamb cooked with lemon and herbs tastes great with a rustic red. I’ve even found oak-aged Spanish reds such as Rioja reserva taste good with a chicken and lemon tagine.

There are occasions when red doesn’t ‘feel right’ though, especially with seafood and here I find a neutral Italian or Spanish white can work well - something like an earthy Verdicchio, an Albariño or Spain’s up and coming white Godello. A good Pinot Grigio can also do the trick.

Intensely lemony desserts are harder as you have to contend with both acid and sweetness, qualities you need to find in any wine you choose. I find top quality late-harvest Riesling does the job best but even then it’s a struggle. Some advocate ice wine but that can add to the intensity of an already intensely flavoured dish. I still have to find a perfect solution - mint tea, maybe. Or perhaps one of the orangey liqueurs mentioned below - orange and lemon being natural bedfellows. (Though I'm not sure it would work the other way round - Limoncello with an orange-flavoured dessert.)

With a lighter lemon dessert like a souffl or mousse a sweet sparkling dessert wine like Asti or Clairette de Die generally works well.

Wine with orange

Orange is easier and more forgiving. I’ve noticed a lot of chefs putting orange into savoury dishes this winter and it almost always enhances the match with an accompanying red wine. Usually they’re meat-based such as the tagliatelle with duck livers, trompettes de la mort, orange and marjoram I had recently (ideal with a Barbera) but I’ve also had a couple of robust fish dishes with orange such as sea bream with hazelnut crust, fennel, chard, orange zest, capers and parsley and braised squid with fennel where a Mediterranean red also proved a good match. (Syrah, Mourvèdre and Tempranillo all seem to pair well with orange)

With lighter dishes such as some lightly cooked fish with a salad of fennel and orange I’d go for a light, lush white with some acidity such as a Semillon or Semillon-Sauvignon blend, in the latter case one without too many herbaceous notes. A fruity Australian Colombard can also work well with chicken dishes that are flavoured with orange.

With orange-flavoured desserts, one’s instinct is to think of matching orange flavoured wines such as an Orange Muscat but I tend to find that the orange in the dish wipes out the orange in the wine. For orange-flavoured cakes and richer puddings I find sweet - even cream - sherry a great match. With lighter dishes such as an orange fruit salad try a Champagne - or Cava - cocktail or a frozen shot of Cointreau (also a good match in dishes where chocolate and orange are paired together).