Familia Torres getting the very best from Albarino in Rías Baixas

Familia Torres getting the very best from Albarino in Rías Baixas

Pazo das Bruxas Albarino Rías Baixas (DO) 2022, 13% ABV

€19.95 Bradleys, North Main Street, Cork. 

The fresh aromas, even as the cork is released, hint that this is indeed an Albarino from the Rías Baixas,  a small winemaking region in Galicia, northwest Spain (the Green Spain). The colour is a clear light gold and there are aromas with both floral and fruit characters, all intense. And that intensity of engagement spreads onto the crisp and minerally palate, rich and flavourful, with apple and pear, and balanced by an acidity typical of the region and the grape.

Very Highly Recommended.

I first tasted this Pazo das Bruxas back in 2015. I had a distinguished guide, none other than Miguel Torres, one of the family’s fifth generation. He said it has good density and finish and added that Albarino can age well, 7 or 8 years, and can get more complex. This is excellent as it is,  with great freshness and flavour. That was the 2013 vintage and it seems the 2022 is keeping up the high standard.

That 2013 was perhaps the first Torres Albarino from this vineyard. It was only in 2012 that the fifth generation of Familia Torres launched a winegrowing project in Rías Baixas and made its first Albariño with the name of Pazo das Bruxas. This wine is made from grapes grown primarily in the subzone of the Valle de Salnés.

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Attention to the world around them and to detail in their winemaking is typical of the Torres family. No magic, just a lot of hard work. But you will notice witches on the front label as Pazo Das Bruxas pay homage to the folklore and landscape of Galicia (much of it with strong Celtic connections). 

It tells the tale of the Galician witches said to have gathered in the woods, which surrounded some pazos or manor houses, to conjure up spirits with their dances and spells. “Nourished by their energy, the sap or lifeblood then coursed through the vines, in the same way, the Albariño grapes give life to this wine today.”

Magic or no, this outstanding multi-award-winning wine serves as an excellent aperitif and is good with raw, cooked or grilled seafood. Pairs perfectly with mild, white fish. Its lively palate strikes a perfect balance with soft goat cheeses. A good wine for Irish cuisine then and no wonder that Albarino has become so popular here.

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Torres, always aware of climate change, says the 2022 harvest in Torre Penela was one of the earliest in recent memory, “brought forward by 12 days compared to the previous year. The winter was extremely dry and warm, followed by an equally dry spring with episodes of nighttime frost, one of which affected part of the vineyard and brought down yields. There was no rainfall in the summer, and the intense heat increased the pace of fruit maturation. After the three summer months, rainfall during the first week of September brought up yields somewhat and helped regulate both the alcohol and acidity of the wines. The grapes were in excellent condition.”

Hats off to the chefs, as Clonakilty’s culinary delights are celebrated at The Irish Yogurts Clonakilty Street Carnival 2023

Hats off to the chefs, as Clonakilty’s culinary delights are celebrated at The Irish Yogurts Clonakilty Street Carnival 2023

Spectacular. All pics by Anna Groniecka Photography.

West Cork’s renowned annual street carnival returned to Clonakilty this weekend on Saturday 17 June, for a spectacular day of food, live music and activities for all the family.

This year’s event was officially opened by award-winning chef Eunice Power. The RTE One Today Show chef celebrated the wonderful talents of all the local chefs, food producers and businesses as she opened the main food tent and sampled the very best cuisine and flavours that Clonakilty has to offer.

Dance and dine

Speaking at the event Eunice said; “I’m absolutely delighted to open The Irish Yogurts Clonakilty Street Carnival, it’s been a fantastic day here in Clonakilty and it’s a great honour to be a part of this brilliant food festival. Events like this are so important for us all to come together to enjoy and shine a light on the wonderful talents within West Cork’s renowned food community, chefs and restaurateurs. I understand the hard work, commitment and ingenuity that it takes to get a festival together. Huge congratulations to the whole community in Clonakilty for such an amazing day and to Diarmuid and Mary O’Sullivan of Irish Yogurts Clonakilty for supporting this day.”

Volunteers at the heart of it

Dishes created by Clonakilty’s finest, award-winning restaurants, bars and hotels tantalised tastebuds with fresh, seasonal and local ingredients. Clonakilty’s long-standing famous food producers Irish Yogurts Clonakilty and Clonakilty Black Pudding featured in the menu alongside Wild Atlantic seafood linguine, poached lobster tornado, curries, Castletownbere crab tacos, burritos, loaded potato nachos, barbequed steak and Clonakilty Black Pudding burgers, and many more. Food tickets included the choice of two main meal dishes with prosecco fruit punch, wine and desserts also included, as the day saw over 1,400 diners from 3pm-6pm tucking into tasty street food dishes on long dining tables, adorned with locally picked wildflowers.

The Clonakilty street carnival is a highly anticipated social event for the town which sees thousands of visitors flock to the award-winning, seaside town to enjoy this special day of food and free activities and entertainment. The entire community of Clonakilty comes together to contribute, sponsor and volunteer their time to organise, set up and promote.

The little ones are well entertained. And fed!

Tim Coffey, an organiser of the event, said; “Without our wonderful volunteers, who effortlessly set up and clear the streets all day from dawn to dusk, we wouldn’t be able to facilitate this memorable day and showcase all our top-class food and entertainment talent. We’d like to thank everyone who has given their time in making this magical day such a huge success and to Eunice Power for officially opening the event and supporting us on the day.”

Headline musical acts throughout the event had audiences dancing in the streets and
drumming groups added extra beat to the festivities. Kids enjoyed their very own carnival experience as they were entertained and dined in the Family Fun Zone, which saw plenty of free activities including face painting, stilt walkers, drumming workshops and giant games and inflatables.

A place for everyone. And a plate also!

The newly opened ‘Flourish & Be’ salon on Pearse Street allowed for an autism-friendly space for families and adults, as part of Clonakilty’s continued commitment to being an autism-friendly town. A bespoke, inclusive and occupational therapy led hair salon for children, has sensory toys and activity stations to help create positive experiences.

Adrift Restaurant at Dunmore House noticed once more by the prestigious Michelin Guide

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Adrift Restaurant at Dunmore House noticed once more by the prestigious Michelin Guide

Added to the Michelin Guide in 2022, Adrift at Dunmore House is a jewel in the west Cork crown with foodies coming to this family-owned and managed seaside property from all corners of the country. No surprise then that Michelin has added Adrift to their latest Best of Guide celebrating The Best Seafood Restaurants in the Republic of Ireland.

Speaking about this latest release from the Michelin Guide, owner of Dunmore House, Carol Barrett said, “This is brilliant news for everyone here at Dunmore, especially our exceptional kitchen team. We celebrate this inclusion with our amazing suppliers, Glenmar Seafoods, too who bring the freshest fish to us daily! Our diners love to enjoy simple, tasty seafood while overlooking the lovely view across Clonakilty Bay. As a family we believe strongly in using what is local and available so seafood is a must. It’s fantastic to be one of just six restaurants in Ireland to make the list.”

Writing about Adrift, the Michelin editors noted, “Locally sourced fish and shellfish power the menu at this family-run restaurant, which features the likes of John Dory, scallops and West Cork mackerel. It sits inside the Dunmore House Hotel and offers stunning views across Clonakilty Bay, ensuring that a window table is always much sought after. There’s a bright and airy feel to the dining room, which fits nicely with the coastal vistas and tasty, unfussy cooking. Dishes often make use of the hotel’s organic kitchen garden; keep an eye out for the famous local black pudding too.”

Adrift is a beautiful space seating 40 guests with sweeping views across Clonakilty Bay. The menus change regularly and feature some of the best produce in the area with a focus on seafood from nearby Union Hall cooked simply– guests can expect poached lobster, John Dory, cod bouillabaisse and black sole on the bone, not to mention house black pudding, handmade ricotta and nettle ravioli. Included in the Michelin Guide UK & Ireland 2023, Adrift is open five days a week from 6.30pm – 8.30pm. 

Menus can be found here, for booking please call 023 883 3352. 

For more visit dunmorehousehotel.ie

Gentil. An engaging Alsace tradition since the 1920s

Gentil. An engaging Alsace tradition since the 1920s

Meyer-Fonné Gentil Alsace (AC) 2021, 12.5% ABV 

RRP €20.95. Le Caveau, 64 Wine, Greenman Wines, Bradleys Cork

Gentil is an Alsace tradition, made from all the white grape varieties of the estate. It is not hit-and-miss. You are not allowed to throw just any old grape in.  It is done carefully, to a very high and controlled official standard. And it is also usually very well priced. Félix Meyer has built a solid reputation in Alsace and other Gentils worth looking out for (and available in Ireland) are Hugel and Trimbach.

The Felix-Mayer winery is very happy with this 2021 assemblage of Muscat, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer. And so am I. This particular  Gentil is on my list every year, such is its high quality and consistency.

It is very aromatic, with honey hints, and draws you in. And so it continues in the mouth. Subtle notes of apricot and apple and again that slightly honeyed fruit sweetness engage your senses. A little spicy too, with a lingering finish.

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The winery promotes it as a dry and well-structured wine for enjoyment in all kinds of contexts, ranging from an aperitif to wine with a meal and friends. Amazingly versatile: “the most wonderful aperitif and can be paired with lots of Umami focused dishes, like Sushi or it lends itself to sweet and aromatic spices, from North African to Indian/Pakistani and South East Asian.”

A gem at the price and Very Highly Recommended.

The practice of producing Gentil goes back to the 1920s. This is regarded as his “entry-level wine”, leaving one very keen indeed to try the full range, right up to a highly rated Cremant, from this organic producer. Le Caveau carries quite a few, starting with this and including the Cremant D’Alsace and the top wine his Alsace Grand Cru Riesling.

See our post on his marvellous Riesling 2019 here.

CorkBillyBeers #30. Craft Session Time With DOT, McGill's, Lough Gill and Tom Crean.

CorkBillyBeers #30

Craft Session with DOT, McGill's, Lough Gill and Tom Crean.

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DOT Brew Spin Off Series Session IPA, 3.2% ABV, 440ml can Aldi

A “tasty dry hop of Centennial & Galaxy” makes its impact in the aromatics in this hazy pale yellow IPA from Dot Brew. It is one of their Spin Off Series which they brew exclusively for Aldi.

Mainly exotic flavours in the mouth as the hops keep it going, yet the body is soft and light and bitterness, while always there, is on the low side. “Perfect all year round drinking” they say and I couldn’t argue with that. It is an easy-drinking East Coast Style, brewed with barley and flaked and malted oats. Suitable for vegans.

Geek Bits

Ingredients: malted barley / pale wheat / flaked & malted oats  /New England style yeast. 

Hops are Centennial (US) and Galaxy (Australia) Suitable for vegans. Exclusive to Aldi.

Very Highly Recommended.

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McGill’s Skellig Monk Irish Blonde 4.5% ABV, 500ml bottle Centra Waterville

Golden or blonde ale is easy to like. Its golden colour and fountains of rapidly rising bubbles is attractive. Easy on the eye. Like this one by McGill, easy on the palate too with a good balance of hops and malt. Bread and biscuit flavours and a subtle malt sweetness make it easy drinking.

Our Skellig Monk Irish Blonde is spot on style, is balanced, light, rounded and smooth, with those bread-like malt flavours and citrusy hops and a subtle malty sweetness. As is usual for the style, the finish is not the longest. An excellent accessible beer to try, especially if you are starting off on your craft trail.

Monks have long been associated with beer making. The beer is named for the monks who lived on Sceilig Mhichíl, the larger of the two Skellig Islands, 12 kilometres off the Iveragh Peninsula in Kerry. Monks founded a monastery on the island at some point between the 6th and 8th century and it remained continuously occupied until it was abandoned in the late 12th century.

Joe McGill suggests matching his blonde with lighter food: such as chicken, salads, salmon, bratwurst, white fish and Monterey Jack Cheese. Sweet tooth? No bother. Joe says try it with Light apricot or mandarin cake, lemon custard tart.

While the Skellig monks may have had beer, I don’t think they enjoyed that kind of diet!

Serving temperature should be in the 4.5–7 ° degrees range. 

Highly Recommended

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Lough Gill Cutback New England IPA, 4.5%, 440ml can Bradleys

“Our Cutback Session IPA was developed as the perfect post-surf, summer-BBQ ale with a lightly tropical flavour to put you in mind of warm weather and…if you can’t visit Sligo, let us bring Sligo to you!” That was how Lough Gill introduced their Cutback New England IPA.

It comes in a light, hazy orange/yellow colour with soft foamy head.  With the hops involved, you are expecting tropical and citrus. And they are there but so too is a reasonably stern bitterness that somewhat tames the flavour or perhaps I should say, balances them. For this is a very drinkable NEIPA from the Sligo brewery and, with an ABV of 4.5%, a very sessional one as well.

The hops used are Comet, Azacca and El Dorado, all American as you might expect.

There is rarely any shortage of ideas for brews at Lough Gill. They explain: We are very fortunate to have such a diverse and dynamic team of dedicated staff at our brewery. It is this diversity that gives us a competitive edge. Each morning in Cleveragh, we're greeted with hello's in various languages. Aside from our fellow Sligonians, we have an Italian head brewer, an Argentinian brewer, and our head of sales is French.”

“When drawing up concepts for new beers, we develop different ideas from across the table. The styles are very different in each country. Argentina prefers well-made traditional old school beers. France is following more after the US scene with modern styles, and Italians have been influenced by Belgian styles and enjoy strong beers. It makes for a good mix. We want to brew the best hand-crafted beers using the finest ingredients and, where possible, to add some local indigenous ingredients to the brews.”

Highly Recommended.

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Tom Crean Scurvy Dog IPA 4.2%, 440 can Carry Out Killarney

Lovely gold colour, soft white head, plenty of bubbles rising. That’s what you see when you pour this low ABV IPA from Tom Crean. 

Scurvy is a disease caused by a significant lack of vitamin C in your diet. Not a name I’d be inclined to give a beer though I understand the mariner connection in that scurvy was a curse for sailors on long voyages in times long past, in Tom Crean’s time I’d say.

The white head has more or less vanished having typed up that first paragraph. Sipping the beer itself now which has citrus aromas,  is crisp and light and very refreshing indeed. 

Highly Recommended and a good fit for the Session category.

If you prefer a hoppier beer, then the Whiplash Rollover (3.8% ABV) is well worth checking out.

FATHER’S DAY TREAT AS SUNDAY LUNCH RETURNS AT CORK INTERNATIONAL HOTEL

FATHER’S DAY TREAT AS SUNDAY LUNCH RETURNS AT CORK INTERNATIONAL HOTEL

Pic: Monika Coghlan

The Cork International Hotel is bringing back its popular Sunday Lunch menu which will be launched on Father’s Day.  

Diners can enjoy a meal made from locally sourced produce in the hotel’s New Yorker Bar and Restaurant.  The a la carte menu offers a variety of dishes as well as roast-of-day specials.

Sunday lunch will be served from 12.30pm to 3pm. 

General Manager of the Cork International Hotel is Eoghan Murphy, he said, “We’re delighted to relaunch our popular Sunday Lunch Menu on Father’s Day. It will change with the seasons and is the perfect way to celebrate a special occasion like a family birthday or anniversary. This Sunday is all about the Dads and Father Figures and there is something for all tastes from our Empire State Double Beef Burger - the Dad of all burgers to our Carving Station.”

Pic: Monika Coghlan

An example of what diners can expect:

Starter: Homemade Soup of The Day, Pan Fried Atlantic Prawn Pil Pil, West Cork Steamed Mussels, New York Inspired Chicken Wings

Mains: Summer Poke Bowl, Chef Mihira’s Authentic Elavalu Maas Vegetable Curry, Empire State Double Beef Burger, Fresh Crab and Chilli Linguine

From the Carving Station: Slow Roasted Shoulder of East Cork Lamb with a Minted Sauce, Prime Roast of West Cork Hereford Rib of Beef with a Rich Red Wine Jus, Fennel and Rosemary Pork Porchetta with Crackling with a Chimichurri Dressing, Lemon and Thyme Marinated Sea Trout With a Kale and Watercress Pesto

Dessert: NYC Inspired Baked Vanilla Cheesecake, Dark Chocolate Brownie, Lemon, Ginger & Chilli Posset, Classic Summer Eton Mess

The Cork International Hotel Sunday Lunch is €26 per person for two courses or €34 per person for three courses. A full kids’ menu is also available. To make a reservation call 021 454 9800.

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Noodlee fast emerging on the food scene in Cork.

Noodlee fast emerging 

on the food scene in Cork.

Beef Noodle

Great to get the opportunity to check out the food at rapidly expanding Noodlee the other evening. 

Noodlee is fast becoming known in the city and county. We dined at Noodlee UCC and they have another branch in Mahon. This month, restaurants are opening or have opened in Mallow, Carrigaline and Fermoy. Douglas, Ballincollig and Midleton will shortly see their newest stores open.  

An additional three stores are slated for Blackpool, Mayfield and Cobh, with discussions continuing for other locations. Oh, and it is not just in Ireland. They have also opened one in the UK, in Nottingham.

When I heard the name first, I thought it was an amalgam of noodles and Lee. But no.  Noodlee in Chinese culture means Chinese street food. Sunny Islam (left) is the company's Operations Manager and we met him the other night. He was keen to stress that Noodlee is more than a noodle bar – they offer an extensive array of Chinese dishes with vegan and vegetarian options available. 

And if you are in, do keep an eye out for the specials. They had three running last week and they included Chicken Zha Jiang for just a fiver!

Sunny was also very keen to let us know that their noodles are fresh and that that marks them out from other restaurants. The noodles are produced in a premises on Center Park Road. They are proud of their fresh noodles and that “you will always get the freshest tastiest meal” and that you’ll get it in double quick time, no contradiction here between fast food and good quality.

Besides, they support local. All their beef is 100% per cent Irish and their experienced Chinese chefs are helping train young Irish chefs.  

You often hear people talking about ethnic food saying that it is “dumbed down” for the Irish or European palate. Noodlee is of course conscious of this and their goal is to create Chinese food that is “as close as it gets” to the real thing. They are encouraged by feedback from their Asian customers “that it is 95% there”. 

So how does all this work out in practice? On an Irish palate? We would soon find out. The menu is extensive and comes under a number of headings. Under starters, you’ll find Chicken Yakitori and Steamed Edamame, a selection of Spring Rolls, and more. 

Singapore Noodle

Mains include Satay dishes, curries, stir-fries, Noodlee Specials and Set Meals. There are sides also of course, Vegan choices, and a few kids' meals, and drinks (all non-alcoholic).

We started with a Spring Roll, three pieces of crispy thin pastry rolled with chicken, carrots, green bean sprouts, green pepper and onions and served with a little tub of sweet chilli sauce.  A big thumbs up for that one, everything, the pastry and the filling and sauce just perfect,  the best Spring Rolls I’ve had in a long while.

Some of the mains allow choices of boiled rice or chips (fried rice for 60 cent extra) but we were keen to try the noddles and one of our picks was the Singapore Noodle with chicken and which consisted of the chicken, the stir-fried fresh noodles with eggs, onions, carrots, bean sprouts and scallions. This had a mild curry flavour, and the noodles certainly impressed as did the dish as a whole.

I hit the jackpot with my special, the Beef Pull Noodles with the in-house broth. Here the fresh white noodles stood out, especially as they absorbed the amazing broth. I was a little worried that the Pak Choi would be tough to eat but Asians seem to have a way with these and the Noodlee version was perfectly cooked and perfectly edible, both the green and white parts nicely crunchy and adding to the tender flavoursome meat. All in all, another winner on this wide-ranging menu.

So wide-ranging, one will have to return, maybe not to the Western Road venue (not that it would be a hardship) but to a Noodlee nearer home in Mayfield or Blackpool! Roll on Noodlee and roll out!