Enjoying Summer Food Outdoors

The best thing about good weather and Gliffaes is being able to sit outside in truly wonderful surroundings and enjoy a long and leisurely lunch in the company of good friends. Simple pleasures indeed but I think we fail to under estimate the importance of the simple things in life. With so much rush and hassle everyday, two hours sitting in the warm shade of a tree next to an old friend with a bottle of wine and a plate of cheese is a simple way to bring us all back down to earth.

This weekend it was lovely to host a birthday lunch for Nicola Hill and 20 of her friends and family and as the weather was so fine we set up her lunch table under the shade of the cedar tree on the west lawn. Poached salmon, hollandaise, some lovely fresh salads, cold Welsh beef and some fine Welsh cheese all helped down with some thoughtfuly  chosen wine. We served a light red Morgon, straight from the cellar, and some chilled white Burgundy both of which seemed to slip down quite nicely.

Although not quite so easy to serve 40-50 for dinner outside on Saturday evening, almost everyone had a drinks on the terrace before dinner and with the French doors wide open the scent from the wisteria filling the dining room it was as good as being outside. The menu had a light, early summer feel to it with such things as:

Chilled Pea and Mint soup
Pan Fried Fillet of Mackerel with sweet Pickled Vegetable Salad
Medallions of Cornish Lobster, Pickled Bream, Potted Spiced Crab & Almonds, Potato Salad

Sunday lunch time and no matter what the temperature everyone still loves roast beef and served out on the terrace in the shade of a big parasol makes for a splendid way to write off Sunday afternoon. With more sunny weather forecast I am sure lots more will be taking advantage of our position above the river for some 'al fresco' dining.

A Trip to Tanners of Shrewsbury

Keeping a wine list of over 80 wines fresh and interesting for guests means going to tastings. This is not a great hardship and its is about this time of year that most wine merchants hold their annual tastings. Yesterday was the turn of multi award winning merchants, Tanners of Shrewsbury to throw open the cellar doors to the trade for their annual tasting.  The tasting is arranged through out their rabbit warren of cellars, shop and offices at Wyle Kop in Shrewsbury. This is a great chance to meet and talk to several producers who come from all over the wine making world to show off their wines personally.

There were around 75 wines on show so I had to have a careful look at the tasting list and not just diving in at number one and working my way to the end - I just can't taste that many wines. One of the high spots for me were to meet Bruno Fina from Scilia and taste his lovely Grillio, a grape grown only in the west of the island. It has a very distinctive orange peel nose and will be great summer aperitif. He also gave me a taste of his unusual desert wine (El Aziz, Vendemmia Tardiva, Vino da Tavola) using late harvested Chardonnay, it is superb and he has kept the balance between sweetness and acidity perfectly.

I always try to find wines for the list that are not run of the mill and certainly never found on the shelves of the supermarkets. One such producer is Sami Ghosn of Massaya in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon. A partnership with the brothers Brunier of Chateauneuf has produced a number of powerful Rhone style reds, real meaty, spicy wines that need to be drunk with red meat and rich sauces. Look out for the Massaya Selection Silver on the wine list when you are next at Gliffaes.

By the way, an interesting day out from Gliffaes can be to take the train to Shrewsbury (about 1 hour 25 minutes from Abergavenny) all the way up the Welsh Marches, a pretty journey in it's own right. Shrewsbury has plenty of interesting things to see and do and you would be most welcome to call in at the Tanners shop.

Useful Links : Tanners Wines

Tinkering with the Wine List

We have around 80 wines on the list not including Champagne, sparkling and  dessert wines, and I like to include types of wine from around the globe that really show off the best wine offerings and grape varieties. Today I pulled off a sales report from the last four months to see what is moving and what is not moving. It is never a surprise to me to see that the ‘big brand names’ of wine outsell all the others by a mile. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, Rioja from Spain and Merlot from Chile all just fly off the bar and it is only with careful advice and recommendation that we can sell the more exotic wines. 

For instance, Chilean Merlot out sold a delicious blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon from Tuscany by 14:1. The only way to show guests what is out there is to re-assure them that going away from what they know about is very rewarding and can be a real revalation. In fact, what I do is to suggest that they order the bottle that I recommend and should they not like it I will drink it! This always works and I never get to drink the wine.  I really like it when I am asked for advice on what wine to choose and I don’t think that this is a sign of ignorance at all. Far from it, I have chosen and tasted all the wines and I should be able to recommend something to suit the food and the mood. Why drink something you drink a lot of at home?

I work very closely with a number of wine merchants, none more so that Patrick Pigny from Great Western Wine in Bath. Patrick, a very knowledgeable and charming Frenchman,  and the rest of Great Western Wine work hard to find wines from small hard working producers around the globe who do not want to sacrifice quality for quantity and sell they wine to supermarkets.

We have picked out some new wines to try and offer by the glass over the bar and also a Ribera del Duero from Spain, another Italian, two Portuguese wines and a Chateau Neuf de Pape style blend from California. These wines will be in the cellar and on the list within the next two weeks.  So please do not feel embarrassed about asking for help for the wine list – it is good for my ego.

Useful links:
Gliffaes Wine List 
Great Western Wine in Bath