Meath and Ireland’s Ancient East

Meath and Ireland’s Ancient East
Part 1

Trim's mighty castle

Headed off to County Meath and the most ancient part of Ireland’s Ancient East last week. Left Cork city about 9.15am and, having taken exit 9 at Naas, landed in Trim about three hours later, just in time for lunch.

At a small café in Market Street, we ordered a Mezze plate. It wasn't the best - the meat (ham and possibly turkey - it was supposed to be spiced salami!) came from the cheapest packets but the rest was fine. In any event, we were hungry and scoffed the lot.

Walk by the Boyne, with castle in background

Refreshed, we headed for the nearby 12th century castle. We had spotted the substantial ruin on the way in - well you couldn't help but see it and be impressed. Trim Castle also impressed the producers of the film Braveheart as much of it was filmed here.   There is a riverside walk around the area of the castle and we enjoyed that too.

Next on the itinerary was the Hill of Tara. This contains a a number of ancient monuments and, according to tradition, was the seat of the High King of Ireland. The kings were crowned by the Lia Fáil (Stone of Destiny) and you can see that here.

Family on top of Tara

 We had a job finding the hill as the side road we were on didn't have any signposts for the famous hill. But with the help of the Sat-Nav and the signs for the Tara Golf Club we made it to the top. Despite the wet and windy conditions, we enjoyed the visit (there is an interpretive centre in an old church) and the 360 degrees views. The biggest building in view is Dalgan Park, home of The Irish Missionary Union Institute.

Tara's Stone of Destiny (Lia Fail)

One more trip for the afternoon and that was to the nearby Bective Abbey,  a Cistercian abbey on the River Boyne. The abbey founded in 1147 as a 'daughter house' of Mellifont Abbey (near Drogheda). The ruin, near a lovely old bridge, is in farmland and is under the care of the OPW. The cloisters are well worth seeing even if bits and pieces seem to have been chipped away. Again, this abbey was also used by the makers of Braveheart.

After all that ancient stuff, it was time to check in at Teltown House. But, wait for it. Much more history here, including the fact that it was in this area that the ancient Tailteann games, the Olympics of the Irish, took place.

Bective Abbey

Teltown House itself is a 17th century country house a few kilometres from Navan and centrally placed for the main attractions of Meath. It is furnished with many period pieces and decorated accordingly. But it is not stuck in the past. The WiFi here is top notch and you may enjoy a jacuzzi bath! And you’ll find amazing hospitality here as both Renee and husband Bartie are so friendly and so helpful. And their dogs are very friendly too!

After scrubbing up, we headed back to Trim and to a restaurant we had spotted earlier. It is called Franzini’s. Not an out and out Italian as you might expect from the name but a spacious lively restaurant alongside the castle serving up a multi-cuisine menu.

Detail from abbey cloister

 This is a good place for a night out.  And they have a very large menu, covering many styles. Everything from fish pies to steak dishes; pizzas and pasta too; Tex-Mex and Asian, even Caribbean. So that means Noodles, Salads, Burgers, Ducks, Ribs, Fajitas - the list goes on. And yes, they do take-away as well. An international menu but they believe in keeping it local when it comes to produce.

We enjoyed our meal here - service was excellent and very friendly - and headed back to Teltown and a good night's sleep ahead of a busy day with 5,000 year old Newgrange on the agenda - next post!

See also:

Historic Martry Mill on Meath’s Blackwater

Older than the Pyramids: Newgrange and Knowth Ireland’s Ancient East Amazes

Salada del Torres in Franzini's

Historic Martry Mill on Meath’s Blackwater

Historic Martry Mill on Meath’s Blackwater

Where it all happens. The flour is bagged on bottom right.

It is a sunny summer morning on the banks of the River Blackwater in County Meath. All we hear is the water falling over the weir, the gentle rhythm of the mill wheel as it turns. The noise of the traffic on the nearby road does not penetrate here. “Here we are transported back in time, just as our forefathers would have heard it,” says James Tallon, the ancient mill’s owner-operator.

The paddles of the wheel  are not metal but wooden and are covered in a rich coating of moss. People ask James why he doesn't clear the moss. But the moss is a crucial element in the longevity of the paddles. If, for some reason, the mill is down and the paddles have no moss, they'll dry out quickly and deteriorate. But with a generous coating of moss to keep them moist, they’ll last for an amazing twenty five years. The wheel, by the way, is quite large, with a diameter of 4.42 metres (14.5 feet in old money!).

James, and an old wheel

A mill pick and three grains (l to r),
barley, wheat and oats

Martry Mill is one of the country’s very few water powered corn mills, still producing stone-ground wholemeal flour in the traditional way and its history goes back to 1641 (at least!) The Tallon’s long connection with the mill began in 1859 when Thomas Tallon (great-grandfather of the present owner) worked here. His son James Tallon bought it out in 1902 and it's been in the family ever since.

It looked like the end of the road though in 1978 when works for the Boyne Drainage Scheme (the Blackwater flows into the Boyne) changed the level of the river. But, with help from the Navan Chamber of Commerce and An Taisce, a scheme undertaken by the OPW preserved Martry as a working mill.

More recently, in conjunction with the Meath partnership (who provided Leader funding) and a group of German engineers and millwrights, more improvements were carried out, much to the delight of the people of the locality who hold in great affection - it is by far the oldest building in the immediate locality.

The mill produces genuine stoneground wholemeal flour and customers include SuperValu (across Meath), local bakers and delis and the well-known Chef Richard Corrigan who uses it in his London restaurants. A visit to the mill is a popular trip for school groups and a special room is set aside for tour groups.

Before (top) and after

Here you’ll see two large stone wheels, bought secondhand in 1938 from another local mill and there was a lot of trouble shifting them the few miles by horse and cart. Interestingly James told me the life of a wheel can be extended by the application of plaster of Paris, which is about the same weight as an equivalent piece of stone.

And then he related an important Christmas “ceremony” for mill owners. They would seek out and keep the four best turkey tail feathers to be used in balancing a pair of grinding wheels. Four people were needed, spread evenly around, and by using the delicate feather, they could find out where any imbalance occurred and that was corrected with a piece of lead. Even when spirit levels became common, quite a lot of the old hands double checked with the feathers!

Grain goes into the grind, slow and steady

 And then there were the fishy stories, one going back to the middle of the last century when some salmon were suffering from a “scabby” disease and the fisheries people were trying to clean up the river. Not all salmon had the disease though. One day, a warden told James’ father about a big healthy one in the weir and, with a wink, hinted that it would be a shame to waste him. So the father, with child James in tow, went down with the warden and during the very civilised handover, young James piped up: “Daddy, where will you put him? Isn't the fridge full of salmon!”

And then he had many stories about eels, no shortage of eel fisheries between Virginia in Cavan and Kells in Meath. And eels were much appreciated around here, not least for their flesh. The skin too had its uses and he showed some examples of mill belts repaired and reinforced with eel skin.

A belt, reinforced with eel skin inserts, and
 the heavy key that sent a Black and Tan to the ground.

 And then, after the cooking, the oil (the eel is an oily fish) was collected and bottled and, every winter, people came to the mill looking for oil for medical purposes. It was used to ease and or cure earache and other ailments such as sprains, arthritis and rheumatism.

During the War of Independence, the Black and Tans came calling, thinking that the store of grain was an ideal place to hide weapons and ammo. They made quite a mess poking around with their bayonets and so on but found nothing. But the Tallons were upset and let it be known. The military said they'll be back. 

And sure enough they returned and tried to grab James’ father as he walked home from the mill with the intention of giving him a hammering. But he gave one a slap across the face with the mill key - and it is a weighty one, I can tell you. The “soldier” went down and was quickly lifted into the vehicle by his sole companion and they vanished.

Fortunately, the Tallons and Martry are made of sterner stuff and survive today among their friends and customers, in a beautiful and historic place. Now, if we could only get those eels back!

The wheel and the Blackwater.
Originally, the wheel would have been up close to the mill.

See also:  Meath and Ireland's Ancient East

Older than the Pyramids: Newgrange and Knowth Ireland’s Ancient East Amazes

Martry Mill

Martry

Kells

County Meath

Phone: 086 8173205

Email: hello@martrymill.ie

Website: www.martrymill.ie

Facebook: www.facebook.com/martrymill

No shortage of moss here!

Amuse Bouche

The drink of choice was Black Velvet, which was poured from largish jugs. Black Velvet is a mixture of Guinness and Champagne, mixed together in equal measure. Haughey was relaxed and appeared to be amongst friends. His friends were giving it to him and being irreverent. Haughey was able to take it and would laugh quite a lot through the dinner. Eventually he had to be carried off or hustled out to the car and home because he was beginning to topple off his chair.

from Haughey. Prince of Power. By Conor Lenihan. (Recommended)

Bellini’s at the Maryborough. Just one look. Hooked.

Bellini’s at the Maryborough

Just one look. Hooked.

Just one look at the list of their suppliers and I'm encouraged as I take my comfortable seat in Bellini’s Restaurant in the Maryborough Hotel. Two hours later, having seen and tasted what Head Chef Gemma Murphy can so with that very produce and I’m full, full of delight. The dishes on this new menu are tempting to look at and all you have to do is yield. I'm not the only one impressed. The Cork city hotel has just been awarded a second AA Rosette.

Quite a few starters to choose from including Warm Chicken Salad, House Cured Salmon with Goatsbridge Roe, Textures of Bluebell Falls Goat cheese, Pan seared Fresh Atlantic Scallops and Soup of the Day.

CL picked the Melon Soup (Compressed Melon, Peach Schnapps and Grapefruit Jelly with Feta Snow). Quite a display here as the liquid was added to the other ingredients at the table. An outstanding starter.

And so was my Boneless Roasted Baby Quail, soft herb mousseline, caramelised peaches and Micro Basil. Beautifully presented and so tender, a marvellous combination of flavours and textures. At this stage we were really settling in, feeling very much at home. Excellent food so far and great service too.

And that’s the way the evening continued. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the breads, the lovely amuse bouche (based on a mackerel pate) and the Mango and Passionfruit Sorbet.

The white wines cover a broad range; you may have anything from an Argentinian Torrontes to a Pouilly Fuisse. The reds range includes Club Privado Rioja (my choice) to a Walnut Block Pinot Noir (one of the Collectibles). No shortage of drinks here, everything from beer to the best of bubbles, as the bar is just alongside.

Melon soup

So on to the mains. Again plenty to choose from including Hereford Steak, Slaney Valley Lamb, Chicken Supreme, Wild Atlantic Hake, Orzo pasta. And check out that list of sides, including a Rocket and Parmesan Salad with Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes. Indeed, the advice is to go beyond the headline and check out the details in each dish.

Take CL’s choice: Pan Seared Sea Bass Fillets. You’ll see that heading in lots of places but here it is served with Broccoli and Yuzu Purée, Steamed Prawn Dumpling and a Prawn Bisque. Magnifique!

I went for a favourite meat, the Skeaghanore West Cork Duck Breast, and got another amazing plateful. The duck, cooked to  perfection, came with a Rhubarb Purée, Walnut Granola, Carrot Textures, Braised Beluga Lentils, Five spice and Balsamic Jus. Another five star dish, every element on the plate playing a role. My side here was the Steamed Market Greens, soy, sesame and Mirin Glaze. Could have eaten a bowl of that on its own, particularly the mange tout and sugar snaps!

Quail

After all that we knew the desserts were going to be good too so there was no hesitation, no talk about sharing one this time. I finished off in style with the Dark Chocolate Cremeux with Griotte Cherries (the one they soak in booze!) and Pistachio Ice-cream while CL enjoyed her Strawberry baked Alaska with Prosecco Foam (more booze) Strawberry and Basil Salsa. Superb.

What an evening in a busy Bellini’s. What a meal. Very Highly Recommended.

• Their suppliers include Macroom Buffalo, Bluebells Falls, Goatsbridge Roe, Skeaghanore Duck, Larousse Fine Foods, Wild Atlantic Way Seafoods, Keelings Fruit and Vegetables, Matt O’Connell Seafood, PJ Sheehan and Co Poultry and the English Market.

Amuse Bouche and desserts

Bellini's at The Maryborough Hotel

Maryborough Hill, Douglas, Cork, Ireland, T12 XR12

Tel +353 21 436 5555 | Fax +353 21 436 5662 | Email: info@maryborough.ie

Sicily The Ancient Land. New Blends.

Sicily. The Ancient Land.

New Blends from Wines Direct.

Wines Direct have a bunch of new wines just in, including these two beauties from Sicily.

Sicily, with a current population of about five millions, has had an amazing history. It was at the crossroads of the known world for centuries and the home of the female monster Scylla. You wouldn't want to meet her after a volcanic eruption. And another Sicilian, we Irish would have preferred not to have crossed paths with is Schillaci, the island’s most famous footballer! Sicilian cyclist Nibali was prominent in the just finished Tour de France.

But let's talk about these two wines and in particular two of its grape varieties: Nero d’Avola and Grillo. Vibrancy and freshness is what Daniela Molaro, winemaker at Feudo Luparello, is seeking and uses these two grapes to ensure a successful outcome. Nero d’Avola is probably the best known of the two and now important in other parts of Italy as well.

Grillo is a key grape in the making of Marsala, the island's well-known, if not now overly popular, fortified wine. Grillo’s robust nature (astringent, earthy, according to Jancis Robinson) is somewhat tamed in this blend with the oily Viognier and the result is a “succulent, well balanced wine”. Feudo Luparello is on the way to being certified as organic and could well be so some time next year.

Feudo Luparello Grillo Viognier 2015, Sicily (DOP), 13%, €16.75 (reduced to €15.85) Wines Direct

The lovely pale colour of this blend catches the eye and draws you in. You won't regret giving in to this temptation. Both white fruits and floral elements, much of which is contributed by the Viognier, feature in the aromas. The very pleasing palate experience also sees those white fruits in flavourful action, but it is bone dry with good acidity and with a long finalé. This refreshing medium bodied white is Highly Recommended.

The blend is of Grillo (c. 70%) and Viognier.

Feudo Luparello Nero d’Avola Syrah 2014, Sicily (DOP), 13.5%,  €16.75 (reduced to €15.85) Wines Direct

Colour is close to purple and there are rich red fruit aromas. The palate is fresh, with fruity flavours, well balanced, tannins close to fine; medium to full bodied, this dry red has an elegant mouthfeel and quite a finish. Quite a pleasant surprise and Very Highly Recommended.

The blend is Nero d’Avola (c. 70%) and Syrah.

Taste of the Week. Bó Rua Farm Cheese

Taste of the Week

Bó Rua Farm Cheese

In Ballynoe, in a corner of North East Cork, you’ll find Bó Rua Farm where Norma and Tom Dinneen make excellent cheese. I first came across the cheese - it came on the market early this year - in Sage where chef Kevin Aherne has it on his 12 Mile Menu. If it’s good enough for Kevin, it’s good enough for me.

But I must admit I forgot about it for a few weeks until I met Tom at the Cork Kerry Food Forum in the City Hall. Had a few samples there and bought a wedge or two of this handmade and handsome cheese with great quality and flavour and already a winner at the CÁIS Awards.

One of the secrets is that the milk comes from their Montbéliere cows, also known as red cows (hence the Bó Rua). The breed is known for the exceptional quality of the milk, a quality enhanced by the rich local grass.

It is basically a cheddar style cheese, semi-hard. They make a natural version and then two flavoured varieties, Cumin Seeds and Tomato with Oregano, Basil and Garlic. The Tomato and Herb was the one I enjoyed at leisure at home and is Taste of the Week.

Careful nurturing of the cheese is needed during maturation, with regular turning and grading. It takes a minimum of six months for the cheese to mature, before it can be sent out for customers to enjoy. The rind is inedible, so remove before eating the cheese.

Bó Rua Farm

Ballyknock, Ballynoe, Fermoy, Co. Cork, Ireland. P51HYH6.

Tel: +353 (0) 86 8385547

Email: info@boruafarm.ie

Twitter: @boruafarm

Web: http://boruafarm.ie  

Kinsale’s Supper Club. Good Food. Friendly.

Kinsale’s Supper Club

Good Food. Friendly Faces.

 Great to see the Supper Club up and running in Kinsale. It’s a friendly place with very good food too of course. And a terrific selection of cocktails. If you like your gins, they've more than a few here. 

They can take singles and couples and larger groups and, on fine days, they have an outdoor covered area available. And, at present, they are open seven days a week from 6.30pm.

You’ll notice on one of the blackboards that they support local producers and you’ll also notice a few specials boards around the place. Conveniently though, they have the specials listed on a page in the menu so you can spend a little time studying them. And the list, includes a highlighted pair of wines and also a special drink.

 So okay. I’ll admit I started with that night's special drink. Bertha’s Revenge Gin with Poachers Tonic (with rosemary and orange) and, to make the whole glass sing, a little sprig of rosemary and a slice of orange were added to make the perfect mix. There was also the option of taking the excellent Kalek vodka instead of the gin. Next time! So local gins and local beers and cider too. Most of the beers come in bottle but you may have the 9 White Deer beers, Stag Ban and Stag Rua, on draught.

And the food. As soon as you begin to read the menu, you'll note that quite a few dishes come in small and large sizes and that can be very convenient indeed.  CL choose the Duck Spring Roll, House Salad, Hoisin and orange sauce and was very pleased with it. And I was most impressed with my Herb Crumbed Egg, Asparagus, Smoked Bacon, Dijon Hollandaise. Very tasty indeed and that little bit different!

Onto the mains then and her pick was the pan-fried fillets of sole, chorizo, bean and tomato sauce and fondant potato, one of the evening's specials and a very special combination indeed.

My choice was from the regular menu and was Braised Beef Short Ribs with Sesame Crusted Sweet Potato, Pak Choi, Star Anise Jus. It wasn't on the bone by the way but a delight to dispatch. And one other tip, the sides here are brilliant and worth the few euro extra. I had the aubergine cassoulet, full of bright flavours and juicy to boot, a dish in itself and indeed a larger version features on the list.

Not that much room for dessert after all that so a decision was reached to share the Passionfruit and Lime Tart and its crème brûlée topping. The decision was amicable but we should really have had ordered two!

Service was excellent, not overly formal, nice and friendly yet efficient. And a discreet watch kept on the tables - your water was refilled promptly, the window was closed if you shivered (even before), they checked if a plate or drink wasn't going down well. So pro-active but not in an in-your-face way. So go in and enjoy yourself. You’ll feel very welcome here.

Some of you will be familiar with the Cork Street venue as this is where Crackpots were based.

The Supper Club

3 Cork Street, Kinsale, Co. Cork

Phone: +353 21 477 2847

email : thesupperclubkinsale@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesupperclubkinsale

Twitter: @kinsalesupper

Amuse Bouche. Bank Holiday Extra

After examining the contents of the pantry and refrigerator, Henry found excellent sausages, acceptable cheeses, fresh eggs, a jar of red peppers, and an unfortunate but edible loaf of white bread made of flour so bleached that it glowed as if radioactive.

He opened three different Cabernet Sauvignons, … Only the third proved drinkable. If this was the best wine that Jim and Nora could afford, or, worse, if this was their idea of a good wine - well, sadly, then they were better off dead.

From Breathless by Dean Koontz (2009). Recommended

Amuse Bouche

A few hours later, Lucy and I were ensconced inside Sean’s Presidential suit. There were lots of shrimps, bottles of champagne, laughs from the throat, laughs from the gut. Tom Jones, a Welshman to Sean Connery’s Scotsman, serenaded the room from enormous stereo speakers with “What’s New Pussycat?”

Eventually Sean took a seat on the couch between us so we could all study the dinner menu. The shrimp scampi and the vichyssoise, he said, were both a must. Sean poured us more champagne, which it was possibly a mistake to accept, as I was almost drunk already. Lucy, I could tell, was flirting with him…

From Boys in the Trees, a memoir by Carly Simon (2015). 

No Recommendation