Craft Cider’s Challenges. More Like Wine Than Beer

Craft Cider’s Challenges.

More Like Wine Than Beer

You can see the lone Elstar is bigger and better looking than the surrounding Dabinett!

Gin, Whiskey and Cider were among the tipples highlighted in a drinks series at Merry’s Pub in Dungarvan as part of the West Waterford Food Festival. Simon Tyrrell spoke on Craft Cider on Saturday and gave us an idea of the challenges, both natural (weather, terroir) and regulatory (punitive duty), facing the new wave of producers.

Simon, a winemaker in the Rhone, makes Craigie's Cider in County Wicklow, where his partners are Angus Craigie, Ralf Högger, Emma Tyrrell and Alan Garrioch.  Sourcing good apples can be a problem; Simon is convinced that Ireland produces some of the best apples in the world “but difficult to find”.

Dabinett and Michelin are perhaps the best known cider apples in Ireland. Simon works a lot with Dabinett. “It looks awful, gnarled, small. The flesh is woody and it has tannins.” But these tannins give structure and also help the cider age and eventually helps the interaction between cider and food.

Cider makers only get one chance a year to get it right - a major difference with the making of beer! “We only make vintage cider, “ he said, as he introduced us to Craigie’s Dalliance 2012. “No blends from different years. Cider should taste different from year to year.” Cider looks to express the best qualities of the fruit, show where the nuances lie.

The apples used in 2012 were from the Cappoquin Estate. Elstar is a favourite with Simon: “the finest eating apple” accounts for fifty per cent of the blend. The varieties, the other is Falstaff, were fermented separately “because they ripened separately” and are then allowed sit on the lees for 15 months.

“You have pear and apple like flavours and a natural freshness. The PH, at 2.9, is very low and this helps protect the emerging cider”.

Next up for tasting was the Dalliance 2013 and there were differences, some down to the weather which was better for this one. June and July were very good months and September was above average.

“This is a different drinking experience. It is drier, has a less complex flavour profile but not the concentration of the 2012. Might get there but not sure!”

If the Dalliance illustrated the effect of the weather, the next cider, the Ballyhook Flyer, showed the way soil can impact on the cider. The Flyer is their “principal” cider and is made from 80% Dabinett (availability of this type is increasing) and also some Katy (desert) and Bramley. As he talked  us through the Flyer 2012, we could see that the “dry” sensation is more prominent than in the Dalliance. “Because the PH is higher.”

An extra orchard, near Carrick on Suir, was used for Dabinett in 2013. Here, a slight change in the soil type gave the cider more body, more tannin, and Simon is thinking of using barrel aging in future vintages of the Flyer to “help polish the tannins”. The aromas at this stage are less expressive. It has some of same characteristics as the 2012 but the style is “more gripping” because of the new source for the Dabinett.

Get the best of Irish drink in Merry's: beer, cider, spirits.

And if the problems posed by the weather and the terroir weren't enough of a challenge, you have the punitive tax imposed by the government if the ABV (alcohol by volume, expressed as a percentage) is higher than six per cent and remember that higher ABV could be a natural outcome of the harvest. Luckily EU law allows variations but generally Irish law on the subject does not cater for variations of nature and this can encourage people to water it down. Not what we want at all. And certainly not what any craft cider maker wants.

Happily, we have dedicated people like Simon leading this new wave of cider makers and they should be supported in their efforts. You can see the list of makers here at Cider Ireland. The best way that we can support them is buy local Irish craft cider. And there are some excellent ciders out there as was so ably illustrated in Merry’s.
See also: A Tour of West Waterford Producers on the Bus Bia
See also: The Tannery Kitchen Supper.
See also:

Dungarvan Wrap-Up. West Waterford Festival of Food

See Also: 

From Power With Love. A Persian Dinner. Gorgeous. Generous

Tannery Kitchen Supper

Tannery Kitchen Supper.

Superb Food And Company.

The Kitchen Supper in the Tannery Cookery School was the highlight of our first day at the West Waterford Festival of Food. Paul Flynn’s “festival” was confined to four courses but flavours, textures and colours were unconfined. The  large group at the table certainly enjoyed the meal and the friendly input of hosts Maíre and Paul.

We had taken the long route to Dungarvan, heading up the main Dublin Road before breaking east in Mitchelstown towards Ballyporeen and Clogheen and eventually the heights of the Vee. I like that road through Tipperary, the mountains to the right and, all along the road, well kept cottages and farm-houses, even the roadside grass outside the gate is cut.

It was bright but cold high up on the Vee and we didn't linger too long but had a few stops to watch the newly born lambs and their mothers on the roadside. After checking in to Lawlor’s in Dungarvan, we took a stroll around the town and ended up in Merry’s, a lively busy pub that sells lots of craft beer and increasingly craft spirits. They also do food but we held off for the Tannery event! Beers enjoyed included the Wicklow Wolf Brewery’s American Amber and Franciscan Well’s Chieftain Ale.

Perhaps the main ingredient for the convivial evening at The Tannery Cookery School was a common interest in good food. And in addition we were, of course, in the right hands and in the right place. And it all led to a relaxed well paced evening, as is usually the case with good food and good company.

This was a set menu and the starter was Pea and Wild Garlic with Crab Cream, seasonal, local and delicious.

The humble carrot played a leading role in the main course, at least I thought so. Of course, the ensemble of Silver Hill duck leg, the McCarthy Black Pudding, with Colcannon sauce, that superb glazed carrot, and Star Anise, was a delight, a marvellous mix of flavour and texture.

Rhubarb is absolutely superb at the moment and was included in the dessert: Orange and yogurt panna cotta with rhubarb and sticky orange cake (these last two really combined superbly). The cheese course, two Waterford cheeses including Brewer’s Gold (a favourite of mine), made for an excellent finalé to a lovely meal, to a lovely occasion at The Tannery.

See also: A Tour of West Waterford Producers on the Bus Bia

See also: The Tannery Kitchen Supper.

See also: Craft Cider’s Challenges. More Like Wine Than Beer
See also: From Power with Love. Persian Dinner. Gorgeous. Generous.

Taste of the Week

Taste of the Week
On the Double

Two excellent local products here, each a great taste in its own right. The cheese, from the Farm Shop in the Ballymaloe Cookery School, is creamy and full of flavour, not yet showing the dry flakiness that comes with longer maturing. You don't often see Loganberry jam nowadays but this gorgeous pot, by Follain, is available in Bradley's, North Main Street. 

In the Basque Country in South West France, and probably over the border in Spain as well, they often serve sheep cheese with a cherry jam. So why not put those two together, I thought. And it worked a treat, my Taste of the Week!

On The Bus Bia Tour

On The Bus Bia Tour
Cheese, Ice-Cream, Bread

Wheels of fresh cheese, waiting to be stored.

It is ten o’clock on an April Saturday morning and we’re on the Bus Bia, heading into the countryside north of Dungarvan. The Bus Bia (Food Bus) is just one element in a packed weekend of activities organised by the West Waterford Festival of Food. We’re on the Blackwater tour and there are two other tours to different areas.

In the sunshine, we pass the house of famous local chef Eunice Power and the memorial to the renowned racing greyhound Master McGrath. Soon we are in Cappoquin. For a while we follow the spectacular Blackwater River, its big houses Dromana and Camphire standing proud, before cutting off deeper into the countryside for the farming area known as Knockanore. 

Bus passengers at Knockanore Cheese

First call is to the Knockanore Cheese company where we are greeted by Donal. They have 120 cows milking here. The milk is left unpasteurized and none is bought in. He tells us they make cheese in six flavours. The most popular is their Smoked version though the Black Pepper Cheese is well up there as well. They smoke it themselves, two weeks with oak-wood.

It is a long day in the dairy, from about 6.30am to 4.30pm. They process over twelve hundred gallons three times a week, producing about 190 wheels a batch. Each wheel weighs 2.8 kilograms. The cheese is then stored for around six months before being sold on at home and abroad (including Denmark, California and New York).

Tom Baldwin

They have grown the business gradually but now are in the throes of expanding their facilities at Knockanore, concentrating on more refrigeration and a bigger cutting area. Around six people are involved in the operation that was started in 1987 by Eamonn Lonergan who is still at the helm. The range is widely available and is stocked in SuperValu shops.

Baldwins are neighbours of the Lonergans and here we were greeted by Tom. Tom found himself with a conundrum in around 2005, whether to move from farming or whether to add on an enterprise to the existing farm which was being smoothly run by the family in any case. Inspired by Eamonn Lonergan he took a course in ice-cream making and started the Baldwin Ice-Cream business.

“We make ice-cream the traditional way. Sarah (who plays a similar role at Lonergan’s) does production for me two days a week. The eggs used are free-range, and all ingredients are natural. We sell to cafes, restaurants, hotels, retail. We pride ourselves on the unique quality and that comes out in the product.”

It is all manual work “at the moment”. “It suits me, is very flexible. For instance, if a chef wants a particular small order, we can do that special.”

Esther Barron

 The ice-cream enterprise has seen the dairy herd grow from 50 cows to some 100 plus. He still delivers direct to the customers: “We have no central distributor. I’m happy the way I'm going as it is a sustainable model. Most of our customers are in Waterford and Cork and we have built a good reputation.”

Back then to the bus and we retraced our journey to Cappoquin. Here we stopped at Barron’s Bakery which has been operating for five generations, serving only the local community (up to an 11 mile radius) for all those years. Esther Barron was our passionate host at the oldest bakery in Ireland and she underlined the importance of spending locally.

Oven closed

 They have 12 employed nowadays and bake during the night, using the amazing old-fashion Scotch Brick ovens. Bread-making here is a slow process but the bread is all the better for it. The bread is two hours in the making before it even gets to the oven whereas a factory process take only 20 minutes. “Hand-moulded bread is always more flavoursome. The bread can't be rushed. My father used to say ‘the art of bread-making is beyond science’”.

The bakery was established in 1887 and is one of the last bakeries in Ireland that still uses the Scotch Brick ovens. These give the bread an unique taste, flavour and crust as we found out for ourselves thanks to a parting gift of a Waterford bla from Esther and Joe.

A great half day on the bus, all for 15 euro. Put it in your diary for next year!

See also: The Tannery Kitchen Supper.
See also: From Power with Love. Persian Dinner. Gorgeous. Generous.
See also: Craft Cider’s Challenges. More Like Wine Than Beer
See also:

Dungarvan Wrap-Up. West Waterford Festival of Food

Oven open, like a small room inside

Bellini’s at the Maryborough

Bellini’s at the Maryborough

Lunched at the luxurious Maryborough Hotel at the weekend. Bellini’s is a beautiful restaurant with many well padded nooks and crannies but what struck me was the simple arrangment of the food on the plates. Nothing at all complicated about it and since the food was well handled, well cooked and well presented, we enjoyed an excellent meal.

The restaurant was slack enough at the time, but the bar, which also serves food, looked much busier. Service was excellent and info on the day's specials was delivered with the menus and water to the table, all without delay.

We got some nice breads - loved the Sundried Tomato loaf - as we studied the menu, quite an extensive one. No shortage of soups and sandwiches, the latter including a tempting looking Ploughman's Lunch that included the local Carrigaline cheddar.

The Sundried Tomato loaf was the base for their €10.50 Steak Sandwich (Chargrilled minute steak, crispy onions, beef tomato, vegetables marmalade and mushrooms ketchup on the bread).

I enjoyed my Roast Chicken Supreme, with Boulangere potato, tomato and balsamic puree, caper and raisin pesto. Good flavours and textures and a lovely dish for €16.50. We also had the Marinated Duck leg at the table, another at €16.50. This, with Spiced Mango and cabbage and a plum sauce, also went down well.

We also had one of the specials: Cod with capers and tomatoes and served on a well made bed of mashed potato. This got the thumbs up as well. Indeed all four dishes were well received as were the bowls of vegetables, mainly cauliflower florets, broccoli, and carrots, again a simple bowl but very well cooked indeed.

Not everyone went for dessert and some sharing was agreed on. There was a tempting list though, including Tunisian Orange Cake and a Raspberry and Pistachio Frangipane Tart. My pick was the Millefeuille of Apricot and Raspberry. Both it and the Chocolate Mousse Special had their admirers and there was a bit more sharing than intended!

An excellent meal in an excellent location. Next time, I’ll have to go for the dinner. Or maybe I’ll treat herself to the Afternoon Tea special (3.00 to 6.00pm), a very tempting mix of savoury and sweet, all for twenty five euro for two.

The Maryborough is one of the most popular hotels in the city and is also the AA Hotel of the Year for 2014.

Greene’s Superb Early Bird/Pre-Theatre astoundingly good and great value

Greene’s Superb Early Bird/Pre-Theatre

astoundingly good and great value

 Early last week, in an initial burst of praise, I tweeted: The Pre-theatre/Early Bird menu @Greenescork is astoundingly good and great value. It is now almost two weeks later and my opinion is reinforced. An early evening visit to the McCurtain Street venue is well worth while; the theatre bit is up to yourself!

Just to get the value bit upfront. Three courses here, each with a terrific choice of dishes, costs €29.00 and, wait for it, an amuse bouche and tea or coffee is included. Bryan McCarthy is the chef here and you are in excellent hands.

Hake

Let’s go back to our visit early last week. As we studied the menu, there are about six choices for each course, we were served the amuse bouche, a delicious beetroot mousse with yoghurt. Soon we made our choices.

Greene’s is well known for variations of pork belly and feather blade and they also do a terrific Ballyhoura Mushroom risotto but we went for the fish on this occasion. And each main dish was top notch. And the vegetables on the side were another almost unexpected highlight: just a bowl of peas, florets of cauliflower, potato and so on but so well cooked and such an enhancement of the fish.

CL had the Wild Cod, a special for the evening, with samphire, Morteau sausage, and Roast Chicken Veloute. And this is Early Bird! My Seared Fillet of Hake was served with oyster mushrooms, leeks, baby gem and fennel oil. Another magnificent fish dish. Indeed, the freshness of the fish on both plates was absolutely outstanding, so fresh and so well handled in the kitchen. Service and presentation is also top notch.

The starters had also been excellent. Mine was the Cured salmon and smoked salmon rillettes, with blood orange, fennel, seaweed and squid ink and wasabi mayo, a great mix of colours, textures, and flavours, all getting the taste buds up and eager for more.

Goats cheese

It was the same story at the other side of the table with the Duo of Orchard Farm and Ardsallagh Goats Cheese (verrine and beignets, textures of poached pear, candy walnut and raisin purée) earning bags of kudos. Must stress again that this is all part of the early bird, three courses and more for €29.00.

Sometimes, more often than not, with us, dessert is shared but there was a special on here and no sharing pact agreed. Just as well, as the Poached Pear and Almond Cake with ice-cream and more was such a delight that at least one per person was mandatory!

So there you are. An excellent meal and a couple of cups of outstanding coffee for twenty nine euro. It is a must-try and Very Highly Recommended. The good news is that it is available Sunday to Wednesday all night and between 5.30 and 7.00pm Thursday to Saturday.

Greene’s Restaurant http://greenesrestaurant.com

48 McCurtain Street (opposite Everyman Theatre)

Cork

T: 021 455 2279

Sweet end!

Wines by Aresti. Some of Chile’s Best

Wines by Aresti

Some of Chile’s Best

Jon Usabiaga, winemaker at Aresti in Chile, is highly regarded by his fellow wine-makers. He was in Cork late last year and I met him at the Hayfield. “The main aim for me is to show the real character of every variety. If someone is choosing a Cabernet Sauvignon, it should taste like a Cabernet Sauvignon”.

I reckon he got it right with the two wines below. Makes me want to try a few more from Aresti, including the Trisquel Assemblage, the Trisquel Syrah and the Family Collection.

Jon (right) and Yours Truly

Aresti Trisquel Sauvignon blanc 2013 (Leyda Valley, Chile), 13%, €13.00, was 15.95, SuperValu

Colour here is a medium gold and it is quite aromatic, fairly typical of the variety, with vegetal and herbal notes. Flavours are certainly intense, it is fresh and very well balanced, with a long dry finish. Very Highly Recommended.

Aresti Limited Release Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva 2010, 13.5%, SuperValu

Some serious sniffing here or, at least, some serious rewards as beautiful fruity aromas greet you. In the mouth, you'll note that delicious blackcurrant, also a gentle drift of spice, an imposing character, the smoothest of tannins. There is an excellent balance and the finish is a match for all that has gone before. Another superb wine and again Very Highly Recommended.

Taste of the Week. An Elegant Cider from Orpens

Taste of the Week

An Elegant Cider from Orpens

Orpens Apple Cider Medium Dry, Vintage 2012, 5.3%, stockists include Bradley’s, North Main Street, Cork

A beautiful golden honey colour enhanced by a fountain of bubbles rising and sparkling in the Easter sun. Lovely fruit aromas arise too, cooked apples mainly, and even a hint of cinnamon.

On the palate, this fresh pressed cider is rather elegant and refined, slightly tart, refreshing, and with a good dry finish. One for sipping rather than slugging! Perhaps not surprising, considering the amount of wine connections and wine-making knowledge among the principal players at Orpens.

Indeed, quite a few of the new wave of Irish craft cider producers have strong wine connections including, for example, Simon Tyrrell of Craigies who, lucky fellow, makes wine in the Rhone and cider in Wicklow.

Orpens are listed among the Irish craft cider makers in Slainte (pub. 2014) by Kristin Jensen and Caroline Hennessy and you may find out more about the company and their stockists at www.orpens.ie

• Wasn't too sure what glass to taste this in; eventually settled on the Riedel Restaurant series Riesling/Sauvignon blanc. Thought it worked well and showed the cider at its best but then it looks as if most tulip shaped glasses would be suitable. Open to suggestions here!

Aroi’s Tubby Buddha’s A Good Food Sign

Aroi’s Tubby Buddha’s A Good Food Sign

Char-grilled duck

There’s a tubby Buddha in Aroi - you’ll see him on the stairs as you enter. It’s a good sign. You’ll be well fed here. And at a fair price.

On your entrance, you’ll see lots of well-dressed staff. Another good sign. They'll take good care of you. You won’t even have to ask for your water glass to be re-filled. And there are smiles all round.

You’ll also notice lots of customers here in the Carey's Lane venue. You may even have to wait a few minutes for a table. Another good sign. You are in an excellent restaurant, serving Asian street food, all mains for a tenner.

Aroi started in Limerick about twelve months back but this is the Cork Aroi, boy. Both are proving very popular and there has also been much praise from the critics for chef Eddie Ong Chok Fong.

Aroi's menu is on your table when you arrive along with the chopsticks (don't worry - knives and forks and spoons too!) and it looks neat and tidy but there is much reading in it, great choices under headings such as Curry, Stir Fry, Grilled, Rice, Wok Noodles, Noodles Soup, and Salads. Twenty four dishes in all described in detail for you, the hotter ones marked with an “S”.

Each of the mains costs €10.00. But do check out the sides as well. There are about nine of them, most of them costing a fiver, great to share if you are part of a group. By the way, the lunch-time menu is the same and the usual deal here is one mains and a gelato dessert for ten euro.

We had previously been impressed with some of the curry dishes, including the Red Duck and the Yellow Fish, so we went for something different on this occasion. Nuea Pad Khing (stir-fried beef strips, scallion, ginger, chilli and wood mushrooms), was one under the general Stir-fry heading. Superbly cooked, this went down well.

No shortage!

The other mains was the Char-grilled duck served with Thai green vegetables and Tamarind sauce. Again, both the meat and vegetables were perfectly cooked, a joy to eat.

And then there were the sides. Went a bit overboard there! Rice in a separate bowl came with the beef and, in addition, we ordered: fish cakes, full of flavour in their own delicious sauce; superb crispy duck rolls, again with a delicious sauce; and a small stack of the crispiest chicken wings with dipping sauce.

After all that there was little room for gelato - their only dessert! No shortage of drinks here, by the way: wine, beer, soft, teas and coffees. No shortage of anything really! Excellent food, excellent value for money.

Amuse Bouche

Is there a recipe book for writers? Josephine wondered. Mix one cup of love with a dash of adventure, a few ounces of historical references, and two pounds of sweat. Let simmer on low heat, stir, sauté so it doesn't stick, let sit for six months, a year,...

Stendhal, supposedly wrote The Charterhouse of Parma in three weeks. Georges Simenon could bang out a book in ten days. But how long had they carried those books around inside as they got up in the morning, sipped their coffee, read the mail, watched the morning light on the breakfast table?

from The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles by Katherine Pancol

Top 20 Posts for past Two Years

Top 20 Posts for past Two Years

1 Cork's Coqbull On An Early Charge

2 Happy Gaggle of Wine Geese

3 The Black Pig Wine Bar   

4 Aroi. Asian Street Food in Cork City 

5 Huguenot. New French Bistro

6 The Square Table - Great Addition to Blarney

7 The Sultan of Penrose Quay

8 Happy New Beer at Cotton Ball  

9Island of Asian Street Food at Phô

10 Electric. Easy to Book. Hard to leave.

11The Chapel Steps Celebrates

12 Cullen Wines at Cafe Paradiso   

13 Taste of the Week: Baklava  

14 Brendan is back with Gallo & Galetti 

15 The Greenroom at Sage 

16 Al Fresco at Cobh's Titanic Bar & Grill.  

17 Dining in Style at Pier 26

18 Top Ten Dinners, Top Lunches

19 Happy. On the Pig’s Back 

20 Top Wines 2014