A Good Old Time in Castlemartyr

A Good Old Time in Castlemartyr
John Saul Picnic and Vintage Fair

The Castlemartyr Resort was the place to be in sunny East Cork last Monday (yesterday) and I joined the thousands that flowed through the gates to enjoy the John Saul Picnic and Vintage Festival in aid of the East Cork Rapid Response and other local organisations.

After parking (no shortage of stewards to help out), I enjoyed the walk through the grounds and past the castle ruins before coming round to the front of the hotel, finally reaching the fields in front  where much of the action was taking place.

The first big event that I saw was the parade of horses and carriages, each carrying a “Victorian” lady or two. The parade entered the grounds having first toured the village and then passed the front of the hotel before doing the rounds of the fair fields. And that wasn’t the end of the horses as we were treated to quite an exhibition, the well turned out animals put through their paces. Great discipline on display from the various units, ranging from some with just one pony to larger carriages with up to four and indeed it was one superb combination, with the four blacks together, that was a highlight for me.

Lunchtime was fast approaching. Unlike some, particularly the family groups, we hadn’t brought our picnic. But no panic.  We were in the right place with a good variety of stalls catering, everything from crepes to pulled pork available.

Spotted Annie’s Roasts in the line-up and didn’t go beyond her as she has a great name at markets and festivals all over the county. Helped myself to one of the free range chicken burgers with salad and mayonnaise and a drink, all for a fiver. Grabbed a bale of straw as a seat and tucked in and enjoyed it no end. Great stuff as usual from Annie.

Annie's Roasts. No picnic? No panic!

As we ate and drank we were entertained by the the kids in the face painting tent, one of the most popular venues of the day.  Indeed the kids were royally entertained throughout with foot races for various age groups, pottery lessons, a Teddy Bear hospital, and other amusements, such as swing-boats and carousels available.

Le Chat Noir Vintage Fair was also a major draw with specialists in clothes, jewelry and music and song (all on vinyl)  displaying their wares, some new, some old, but all reminding one of times past. Noticed quite a few of the “Victorian” ladies checking out the stalls here!

Some toys too for the bigs boys! I’m talking vintage cars here. Everything from modest Volkswagens to big red Fords. There was  an impressive Buick but my favourite was the Silver Beresford, a top class limousine according to the sticker!

One of the highlights of the day was the old time threshing, a busy spot with a bunch of small tractors around the big thresher and not a bottle of porter in sight. Could have done with some liquid though as the chaff in the air dried out the mouth. But great fun (great noise too, giving the band a run for its money) as the sheaves were tossed to the man in the thresher and the grain came out one end to be bagged and the straw out the other to be baled by an old Allis Chalmers Roto-Baler.

Hard work for the crew here but great fun for the spectators, many of who had never seen anything like it. All in all though a terrific day out and if you are a parent with kids, put this in your diary for next year.

Amuse Bouche

Murphy’s four hundred thieves keep coming to Monto for entertainment every night, even as they wreak famine on the working families of the area by day. But some of the Monto girls donate food or money at the Liberty Hall. You have to sneak them in the back door – if your workers or their wives knew where their meal came from, the food would turn to ash in their mouths. Every now and then, Peggy O’Hara makes you liver and onions, and by God, you’re grateful for it.

from After the Lockout by Darran McCann

Top Posts for Past 12 Months. Almost 10,000 hits for Bandon restaurant post!

Top Posts for Past 12 Months

(to end of Jul ‘14)

Pork Belly at Pier 26

Almost 10,000 hits for Bandon restaurant post!

Welcome to the newcomers to this list. Minimum of 700 hits required.

Some posts keep the attention, long after the first publication. Take Busy at the Chapel Steps, for instance. This post on the Bandon restaurant, first posted in November 2012, still has its fans and close to 10,000 hits. Amazing!

1 Happy Gaggle of Wine Geese

2 The Square Table - Great Addition to Blarney

3 Happy New Beer at The Cotton Ball

4 Electric. Easy to book. Hard to leave.

5 The Sultan of Penrose Quay

6 The Chapel Steps Celebrates

7 Pride of Ireland Awards 2013/14

8 Dining in Style at Pier 26

9  Jack McCarthy Butchers. An Afternoon in Kanturk.

10 Schull Country Market

11 Discover the magic of Barnabrow

12 Good Food Ireland Conference and Awards

13 Slow and Low at the Chicken Inn. Swing by. And Buy.

Cono Sur Want Your Recipes! Superb Prize

Cono Sur Want Your Recipes!

Superb Prize

Duck is regularly mentioned as a match with Pinot Noir. Not too sure about geese though!

Cono Sur Single Vineyard (No. 21 Viento Mar) Pinot Noir, Chile 2012, 14%, for availability - see below

St Antonio, west of the capital Santiago and very close to the ocean with a climate ideal for Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, is where this excellent wine comes from. You may know that Cono Sur are running a recipe competition, with a fantastic prize of a trip for two to Chile.

They are asking for your ideal dish to match with either their Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc or this Pinot Noir. Closing date is Monday 11th of August and you may see all the details here .

To see my recipe attempt and extensive tasting notes on both the Sauvignon Blanc and the Pinot Noir, please click here . I guess not all of you are interested in creating a recipe but I can heartily recommend that you take a look at these two wines as both are top notch.

I enjoyed a bottle of the Pinot during the week and it is going straight on to my Top Wines for 2014. Colour is mid ruby and the pretty intense aromas hint of red berries. Concentrated is the word on the label and every appropriate indeed. Smooth too, warm with spicy notes, with silky soft tannins and a delightfully long finish. One of the best Pinot Noir I’ve come across recently and Very Highly Recommended.

Availability: Cono Sur Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir are available exclusively in the on-trade and specialist off-licences such as O’Briens Wines, nationwide; Mitchell & Sons, Dublin; Redmonds of Ranelagh, Dublin; Sweeney's of Glasnevin, Dublin; Jus de Vine, Portmarnock, Dublin; Bradley's of Cork; O’Driscoll's of Cork.

Griffin’s Spinning Wheel Unveils Gorgeous Gluten Free Options!

Griffin’s Spinning Wheel Unveils Gorgeous Gluten Free Options!

Sweet GF! Don't forget, today is Fiver Friday at the Spinning Wheel.

Paid a visit to the beautiful Griffin's Garden Centre on the banks of the Lee in midweek and came home from the Dripsey venue with a Eco-Friendly Champion Anthurium. I can’t eat it - that’s what the label clearly says!

But I ate more than enough as the main purpose of the trip on a sunny aftenroon was to check out the new range of gluten free food that they have in their lovely river-side Spinning Wheel Restaurant, a very busy spot indeed. It is open 9.00 to 5.30, so you may have breakfast and lunch here and lots more besides.

Miriam, who invited me out, told me they  “have been working hard with our head chef, bakery team and customers to ensure that we have a large range of gluten free meals, cakes, scones, desserts and breads available at all times from our customers. We will always have gourmet options for coeliacs and people who wish to live a gluten free life.”

GF samples: Chicken salad, Fish Pie, and, right, breakfast options

"We offer a range of gluten free breakfasts from gluten free scones, breads, omelettes and full Irish Breakfast. Gluten free quality sausages are  available on our breakfast menu. A range of gluten free sausages have been taste tested by our customers and restaurant team. And the best have been given the Granny Griffin seal of approval and are now on the menu.Throughout the day, we are constantly baking gluten free scones, bread and desserts that are available to eat in our restaurant or to take away.”

“Our Lunch Menu has one the largest ranges of gluten free options in Cork. Lunch is served from 12 to 3pm. We have two options of soups every day which are both gluten free. Over 80% of our  salads are Gluten free including an option of gluten free quiche. So for a light lunch option you have a choice of soup, quiche and salad or a vibrant flavoursome open Sandwich.”

“Our head chef is always creating new and improved gluten free lunches. The majority of sauces created in our kitchens are gluten free. Each gluten free meal is well signed to inform the customer. A expansive range of Gluten free desserts and Cakes are also available in the restaurant,  Pavlova, apple tart, brownies, orange and almond cake are just to name a few. And why not try our gluten free Afternoon tea. Pre booking is essential for all Afternoon Tea.”

More sweet stuff!

Chef Chris took me through the tasty options, starting with those Clonakilty Sausages and puddings which he tested on the visitors at last week’s World Feeder Fishing Championships. He uses the black pudding too in a delicious salad. Perhaps the top salad I tasted was the Caesar, great tasting chicken from his Macroom supplier and gluten free croutons that tasted better than the average.

And most impressive of all, I thought, was the Fish Pie, the excellent cornflour sauce recently developed by Chris. Many people think that Gluten Free food is bland, as Chris said. But this tasting plateful was full of great flavors, proof positive of the exact opposite.

The restaurant manager Helen introduced us to Pastry Chef Mary and what a belt bursting selection she had for us, everything from a simple scone to Pavlova to a stunning Chocolate cake. No penance going GF with these kind of goodies on offer!

Creme Brûlée
To get the best from this, and other Heuchera, plant it a little proud of the earth!

Aided by copious cups of coffee, we finally managed to get up from the table and enjoyed a stroll around the magnificent garden centre which will be familiar to many of you. Had another chat with Miriam and got lots of gardening advice!

They also have a home section and that includes an indoor plant display and it was here that we bought the Anthurium, pictured left!

* You have an even better excuse than usual to visit Griffin's today. It is Friday and they have a Fiver Friday offer in the restaurant. Check it out here.

The Spinning Wheel Restaurant

Campo Viejo. Still and Sparkling

Campo Viejo. Still and Sparkling

Tempranillo

Campo Viejo Rioja Reserva 2008, 13.5%, €14.31 Widely available.

Campo Viejo is the "dependable" Rioja. Even in Spain, according to our guide on a recent Tapas Trail. And not just in Spain. It is in the No. 1 Rioja position worldwide. And one can see why, or at least taste why, in this bottle. The wine has been aged for 18 months in French and American oak and a further 18 months aging in the bottle.

Colour is a clean and bright ruby and it has inviting red fruit aromas. You’ll find rounded fruit flavours and spice notes on the palate. Really well balanced with little or no sign of tannins and it has a lovely long finish. Made mainly from Tempranillo (85%), it is added to our Very Highly Recommended list.

Campo Viejo Cava Brut Reserva, 11.5%, €15.38, O’Brien’s nationwide http://www.obrienswine.ie .

Cava is usually associated with the Catalunya region of Spain and indeed the vast majority of this traditionally made sparkling wine is made there. But it is also produced in quite a few other regions such as Aragon, Navarra, and La Rioja. The usual grapes in the blend, and in this wine, are Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel-lo.

Take a look at this in the glass and you see a clean greenish yellow colour, bright and with no shortage of rising bubbles. There are white fruit aromas which I've seen described as complex but I didn't find anything very intense. White fruits too on the palate and a terrific balancing acidity. Fresh for sure and with an excellent dry finish. A good value Cava, made by the Metodo Tradicional, and Highly Recommended.

They also produce a Rosé Brut, made with 100% Trepat.

Taste of the Week. Your Pick!

Taste of the Week. Your Pick!

Trying to break the logjam in the Taste of the Week room. Four beauties to pick from here and, not surprisingly at this time of year, three of them are drinks, two non alcoholic by the way!

A superb ale from 9 White Deer, the new brewery in Ballyvourney.
This is their first beer and has great flavour and just the requisite amount of bitterness.
Well worth a try and I'll be on the lookout for their next beers, which will
include an oatmeal stout! Stag Ban is available at Bradley's, North Main Street, Cork. 

Not a new product but a welcome one these warm days.
This is a superb Lemonade cordial, one of the very best.
Just dilute to taste and take a few minutes out for yourself.
Bought this at the Fresh from West Cork stall in the English Market.

Eating and drinking in this Blueberry Yoghurt from
McCarthy's Natural Dairy. Just shake it up and drink it.
Enjoy. Two euro from The Rocketman in Prince's Street.

Eoin O'Mahony of O'Mahony's in the English Market is one of the
more innovative butchers in Cork, always worth a call. Picked up some of
these Toonsbridge Buffalo Burgers there at the weekend and they are
a treat, great meat enhanced by some herbal magic. Been buying lamb from
O'Mahony's over the past weeks and that too is top notch.

Friendly Festival at The Slí Eile Farm

Friendly Festival at The Slí Eile Farm
Harvest Festival in Churchtown

The Slí Eile Farm was the venue for a lively Harvest Festival on Sunday. The Churchtown event had something for everyone: lots of food stalls, advice (on organic growing, men’s sheds), a dog show, entertainment (bouncy castle, pony rides, penalty kicks, archery and more) for the kids, while the adults were entertained with some old fashioned farming, a thatching demo, and music.

No shortage of parking and just as well as there was a great turnabout on a lovely day in North Cork. Our first priority was something to eat and we found it quickly. A rustic restaurant had been set up in the environs of the barn and the smoke was rising from the grill. Soon we were sitting and enjoying a delicious organic burger from the farm itself.

Time then for an enjoyable stroll around the yard of Burton Park where most of the stalls were situated. The farm itself had a stall with vegetables, jams and apple juice and fund raising tickets were on sale as the music and the conversation flowed.

I had missed Bluebell Falls cheese at Killavullen last week and so was glad to get a tasting this time and came home with their lovely Honey, Garlic and Thyme Goats Cheese. The Golden Vale has been the traditional home of Irish cheese and isn't it about time we had an artisan cheesemaker from the area. Well done to all concerned. Be sure to check out their website above for their products and recipes.

Now we were in the kitchen gardens, where all kinds of healthy looking vegetables grew, both outdoors and under the polytunnel. Continued the walk past a collection of vintage vehicles and soon we were in the fields.

And here the beautiful big horses were hard at work. A pair of greys, harnessed to a reaper, were cutting the corn, stopping every now and then for a tasty munch! Behind, the workers were busy making sheaves of the corn. Saw one sheaf tied in the traditional way but most were being secured with a blue twine.

Nearby, another large horse was being guided up and down between the drills and his attached scuffler was uprooting the weeds. Perhaps the guide and driver were needed but that big dark horse showed neat footwork as he worked the narrow spaces without standing on the plants.

What a refreshing change of scenery for a Sunday afternoon! And what a refreshing place Slí Eile is. The aim of the Slí Eile approach to recovery through community living is to provide another way of supporting people to recover from their experience of mental distress. A great afternoon and a great cause. And, those of us, of a certain age, who remember innocent people consigned to the loneliness of dark corners, will surely agree. Check it all out here.

And there will be another festival in Churchtown soon. The local development association hosts the Churchtown Fine Food and Craft Beer Festival on the 8th to the 10th of August. Keep an eye on Facebook for further details.

Krug at Ballymaloe. Patience and perfection

Krug at Ballymaloe

Patience and perfection

Toast to the harvest! The Krug is served in its special Riedel glasses.

"Champagne is all about pleasure."

Nicole Brown got widespread agreement on her opening statement at Ballymaloe last Thursday evening. And that agreement was reinforced by the time the audience in the famous Cookery School had sampled the amazing Krug Grand Cuvée.

Nicole was in Ballymaloe, both as a visitor - she is on holiday in West Cork - and in an temporary extension of her role as the US Brand Ambassador for Krug Champagne. Ballymaloe’s Colm McCann was delighted with the visit and welcomed Nicole, who was accompanied by Adrien Combet of Moet Hennessy Ireland, and the rest of us to the first ever Krug tasting in Ireland!

Krug, perhaps the premier champagne house, was founded by Joseph Krug in 1843. With some previous experience of the trade and his own principles to guide him (detailed in a journal he started for his young son in 1848), he set about extracting pleasure from a difficult climate (200 days of rain per annum). The chalk soil though was and remains a huge factor in the champagne maker’s favour.

The boundaries of champagne have long been set (though there is a move on to extend them in the next year or so) and so the competition among the houses for the raw material, the grapes, can be intense. Very few houses have enough grapes of their own. Krug, with some contracts dating back to 1878, are loyal to their suppliers and it seems to work both ways.

Krug use 5000 small oak barrels (average age: 23 years) for the first fermentation. Repairs are constant but Eric Label, Chef de Caves, is determined not to use stainless steel at this stage.

The tasting committee - we are talking about the Grand Cuvée here - consists of six members charged with using their memories and tasting abilities, not to mention the legibility of their handwriting, to make the flagship wine as consistent as possible each and every time!

There is no magic formula here, just memory and taste, and taste again! Some 200 plus wines are tasted twice while the reserve still wines are tasted once or twice each year. No less than 5,000 thousand hand-written tasting notes are accumulated in Eric’s big black book and then consulted before the blend composition is finalised.

The final blend may consist of over 100 wines from ten or so different vintages (years)! The wine then matures in the cellars for at least six years. Memory, taste, and so much time! The patience of perfection.

Roast Guinea Fowl and those amazing Heritage tomatoes.

While champagne is the most regulated wine in the world, its workings are not always clear to the outsider. “Krug wants to be transparent,” said Nicole and pointed to the ID on each bottle. Download the APP and you’ll get the key info, including important dates, on the wine. Let’s check the Grand Cuvée in our hand. We see that no less than 142 still wines (some going back to 1990) were blended with the base 2006 wine and that it was aged for seven years on its lees.

The audience was now eager to taste and Colm and his crew obliged. Nicole: “The Grand Cuvée is unique, an incredible expression of champagne”. And so it is. The deep golden colour and the endless fountain of fine bubbles promise much as do the amazing aromas. And it is all delivered on the palate, full and yet fine, mature yet fresh. You won’t forget this one in a hurry.

The Krug Rose, first made commercially in the early 1980s, is crafted in much the same way as the Grand Cuvée, and includes Pinot Noir from La Cote Valnon “to make it pink. It is aged for five years and the reserve wines date back to 2000. It is amazing with cheese.” Krug offer five champagnes and all five are Prestige Cuvées.

Back in Ballymaloe House, at dinner, we were amazed at the versatility of the Grand Cuvée, matching everything from fish to fowl and not forgetting vegetarian. Ballyhoura Mushroom and Marjoram Bruschetta and Hot Buttered Ballycotton Lobsters featured in the starters while Poached Wild Blackwater Salmon, Roast free-range Guinea Fowl and Braised Ballymaloe Pork were among the mains listed.

Sunset finds Nicole and Adrien doing some field-work.
The gigantic tin whistle is the newest
addition to the FORM sculpture trail, showing all
summer long at Ballymaloe.

Cheeses included St Gall, Triskel Goats and Cashel Blue and here the Rosé was put through its paces. No problem!

It was a delicious well paced meal and one of the highlights was the Shanagarry Heritage Tomato and Basil Salad. Colm McCann had been talking this up all evening and, boy, was he right. This simple salad illustrates the essence of the Ballymaloe farm and kitchen. Here they start with simple and end with simply superb!

We dined with windows and doors open on this lovely summer’s evening. Walked out then to the front, the canopy of farmland darkness broken by a myriad of sparkling stars. The Milky Way, I saw. And then I thought. What a prosaic name. All that sparkle and the best they can come up with is milky! Why not The Champagne Way? Pourquoi pas?

Amuse Bouche

One day, a newspaper had published a highly flattering review…. and everything changed. Letizia often wondered when it was that the man had come in, just one more anonymous diner, and taken his seat at the red-and-white checked table, sampling the ‘red onion-tomato sauce’ and the fantastic ragu meat loaf, a sensory delight’, as he had described his meal. Actually, she was glad she hadn’t known at the time; she was proud of the fact that the reviewer hadn’t been given any special treatment.

from The Crocodile by Maurizio de Giovanni.

Taste of the Week

Taste of the Week

Bee Sensations, namely Tom and Croéin Ruttle, are well known for their innovative range of jams and, of course, for their Amarena Cherries in Potcheen. All these jams and marmalades are based on their own Irish Honey which is used as a substitute for sugar. 

Perhaps, their most basic product of all is their Raw Honey, from their own hives. Resplendent in the newly designed Bee Sensations packaging, the raw honey is a beautiful product with lots of uses - try using it in your porridge!  

I know many of you are more familiar with clear honey but please don't leave this behind because it is cloudy. Just take a smidgen on your tongue and soon you’ll know this is a natural gem and why it is Taste of the Week.

“Our bees are Irish Bees and we are involved with the preservation of Irish Bees through FIBKA and also NIHBS. As long standing members we are again true to nature by making sure while providing Irish Honey that our bees are well maintained...” 

Sounds good. Tastes even better! You'll find Irish Bee Sensations on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Bsensationsnews where they've just announced that they are have qualified for "the finals of Q awards".

Blas na hEireann update on Bee Sensations July 2015 here