Taste of the Week. Ardsallagh Goats Cheese

Taste of the Week. 

Ardsallagh Goats Cheese

A totally unexpected gift from a travelling salesman started Jane Murphy’s long term love of goats and led to the beautiful Ardsallagh cheese that so many people know and love today.

Back in the late 70s, that insurance salesman in County Carlow wasn’t getting the best of receptions from Jane. During the conversation, he noticed, “couldn't help but notice”, that her children had eczema and said that goats milk would be a help. Jane said thanks very much for the tip and sent him on his way.

An hour or so later, she sighed as he returned. This time with a gift. He lifted a goat out of the boot, presented her to Jane and carried on his way. She never saw that salesman again but the goat led to greater things.

For a start, the eczema cleared up and "since then we have always had goats in the garden and following years of experimenting this has grown into something wonderfully and tasty." Ardsallagh has now been making cheese for over 20 years.

Ardsallagh cheese keeps popping up on restaurant menus and not just in Cork. It is one of the most popular and one of the very best goats cheeses in the country. It is widely stocked in shops and supermarkets, various farmers markets and in delis such as On the Pig's Back. I got this particular piece via On the Pig's Back on Neighbourfood.

Ardsallagh soft goats cheese is a white cheese with a creamy texture. This cheese has a gentle flavour as it is made daily from fresh goats milk. It is delicious and very handy these warm days as a lunchtime treat. I just added some beetroot from the garden (not a great crop this year), a few juicy cherry tomatoes, also via Neighbourfood, and a few leaves of basil.

* Luke was one of her toddlers with the eczema and he is now the Dairy Manager at Ardsallagh.

Read all about Ardsallagh Goats Cheese.

Beer of the Year 2021. The Contenders. So Far!

Beer of the Year 2021.

The Contenders. So Far!

August: Hope “Limited Edition No 25“ Classic Gose
July: Yellow Belly “Red Noir” Dark Red Ale
June: O’Hara’s Irish Stout Nitro
May: Dungarvan “Mahon Falls” Rye Pale Ale
April: Heaney New England IPA
March: Whiplash “Melodie Noir” Baltic Porter
February: Eight Degrees “The Pilgrim’s Path” Lager
January: Lineman “Vesper" Pale Ale

August Final Selection:

IPA: Blacks St Tropez IPA Summer IPA 4.8%; Eight Degrees Original Gravity Juicy IPA

Session: Hope Hop On Session IPA; Whiplash Rollover Session IPA; Trouble Brewing Love Below Micro IPA.

Kolsch: Rye River Grafters Clocking Off Kölsch Style; White Hag Keltoi Kolsch Style Ale.

Pale Ale: Hope Pass If You Can Pale Ale; White Hag “Magic Mist” Juicy Pale Ale

DIPA: Blacks Golden Ticket Pineapple DIPA 8.2%

Red Ale: Tom Crean Expedition Red Ale

Gose: Hope “Limited Edition No 25“ Classic Gose

Overall: Hope “Limited Edition No 25“ Classic Gose

July final

Hazy IPA: Blacks Ace of Haze Battle of the Tropics DDH Hazy IPA 5.5%

Lager: Boundary Very Serious Situation Pils 4.8%, Mescan “Seven Virtues” Lager 4.9%,

Red Ale: Yellow Belly “Red Noir” Dark Red Ale 4.5%

Pale Ale: Rascals with Hopfully “Siamese Dream” Pale Ale 4.5%

Sour: Otterbank Brewing “Mates Rates” Tart Session IPA 4.9%

IPA:  Blacks Wild Atlantic West Coast IPA 4.5

Session: Blacks Ace of Haze DDH Cryo Hazy Session IPA 4.2%

Overall: Yellow Belly “Red Noir” Dark Red Ale

June

Stout: O’Hara’s Irish Stout Nitro

Session: Brú Lager; Brú Cheep Flirt IPA

Pale Ale: Lineman Electric Avenue #2 Extra; Wicklow Brewery Hopknut; 9 White Deer “Stag Ban”; West Kerry “Blue Rose”; Whiplash Midnight Dipper;

Red Ale: Western Herd Atlantic

IPA: Brú IPA; O’Hara’s Hop Adventure Strata

Golden Ale: Sullivan’s Irish Gold

Non Alcoholic: Stonewell 0% Cider

Blond: Mescan Westport Blonde

Overall: O’Hara’s Irish Stout Nitro

May Favourites

White/wheat/wit: Heaney Irish White Ale

Rye Ale: Dungarvan “Mahon Falls” Rye Pale Ale

Lager: Western Herd "Loop Head" Pilsner 

Red Ale: Brú

Amber Ale: Kinnegar Devil’s Backbone 

IPA: O’Hara’s 51st State IPA

Session: Rising Sons “5th Horseman” session IPA 

Overall: Dungarvan “Mahon Falls” Rye Pale Ale

April Favourites

Sour: Wide Street “Peach Berliner” Sour or Wheat?

Brown Ale: Whiplash “The Ocean Wide” 

NEIPA: Heaney New England

Session: Blacks The Session IPA 3.5%

German style IPA: Rascals Wunderbar IPA

IPA: O’Hara’s Tropical IPA,

Stout: O’Hara’s Irish Stout,

Overall: Heaney New England

March Favourites

Lager: Wide Street “Mill Pils”

Session: Eight Degrees Bohemian Pilsner Lager

Red Ale: O’Hara’s Irish Red Traditional Ale, 4.3%

Baltic Porter: Whiplash Melodie Noir Baltic Porter

Overall: Whiplash Melodie Noir Baltic Porter

February Favourites

Lager: Eight Degrees “The Pilgrim’s Path”

Pale Ale: Blacks Kinsale KPA

Session: Rascals “Fruitropolis” Pale Ale, 4.3%

Overall: Eight Degrees “The Pilgrim’s Path”

January Favourites 

Pale Ale - Lineman Vesper

IPA - Hopfully Graciosa

Session: Whiplash Northern Light

Lager: Kinnegar Brewers at Play Rye Lager

Porter: Elbow Lane “Liberty”

Overall: Lineman Vesper

No lists kept for 2020 but the “winners” were

Stout: Brehon Brewhouse “Ulster Black” Oatmeal Stout 5.0%

Belgian Tripel: Eight Degrees Devil's Ladder Belgian Tripel 11.5%

Golden Ale: West Kerry Brewery “Béal Bán” Golden Ale, 5.0%

Imperial Stout: Lough Gill Dark Majik Imperial Oatmeal Coffee Cream Stout 11.0%

Pale Ale: Trouble Brewing Ambush Juicy Pale Ale, 5.0%

Session: Whiplash Rollover Session IPA 3.8%

Lager: White Gypsy Munich Lager, 5.8%

American IPA: Kinnegar “Crossroads” American Style IPA 6.2%

Saison: Third Circle “Unsocial Creatures”  Dry Hopped Saison 4.4%

White/Wheat: Mescan “Westport White” 5%

Cider: Highbank “Proper Irish Cider” 2016 6%

Sour: Yellow Belly Castaway Passionfruit Sour 4.2%

Red: The White Hag “The Fleadh” 6.8%

Hybrid: Hope Underdog Hoppy Lager 4.8%

Non Alcoholic: Highbank’s “Drivers” Cider

Overall: Eight Degrees Devil's Ladder Belgian Tripel 11.5%

Expanding Poachers Inn On The Ball In Bandon

Expanding Poachers Inn On The Ball In Bandon

Pannacotta

When we pull in to the restaurant on the Clonakilty Road out of Bandon, the first thing we see is that they are busy dead-heading the flowers in the magnificent display at the front of the long-standing Poachers. Attention to detail is on display here and we see it in abundance as we go through our top class lunch; we see it on the plate and in the service. The people of Bandon and its environs are so lucky to have Poachers Inn (to give it its full title), owned and run by the Mclaughins, Catherine and Barry (chef), on their doorstep.

And, since the weekend, Poachers is even better thanks to the opening of Little Poachers. This new inviting room, a “Covid baby”, is upstairs and can seat up to fifty, so not so little. But it can also be quite an intimate venue as couples and larger groups will find a space here, either for the night or before and after a meal in the main room below. There’ll be food up here too, expect tapas and small plates. And a lot of fun and informality. Why not try their whiskey paddle? This consists of 20 ml samples of three different whiskeys. Watch this space!

Oysters

And of course, they also have a lovely garden area, also in full use last weekend. Looked great at twilight and will look even better soon when the remainder of the new tables and chairs are in place.

Anyway, enough of that ramble and back to our lunch. After a friendly welcome from everyone we met, Olivier delivered our menus and a few tips. We had a pretty good idea of the menu but we delighted to see him bring the little blackboards with the specials. 

Immediately, the oysters, with bacon and cabbage, caught the eye. Full title: Grilled Rock Oysters, with shredded cabbage, bacon, parmesan cream, garlic crumb (9 euro for 3). We both enjoyed those big boys! If you don’t fancy a starter, you can have a choice of nibbles to begin with including spiced nuts, mixed olives, even a glass of Sangria.

Garden. BBQ here later!

Courtmacsherry crab featured in two of the specials. One was  a salad with local leaves, tomato and lime salsa, spring onion, creamy dill dressing, lemon sesame (10.95). The other was Hot Courtmac Claws in a chilli, ginger, basil and coriander sauce and with a bowl of basmati rice (17.95). Perhaps the best crab claws ever, enhanced no end by that superb sauce.

Super Salad with Salmon

Meanwhile, CL was enjoying “the best salad ever”. This came from the regular menu and the details: SuperFood Salad - Mixed local leaves, pickled pear, beets, pomegranate seeds, bulghur, black rice, spiced nuts, candied aubergine with poached salmon (14.95). The salad on its own is 8.95. It was a perfect combination of flavours and textures, not dominated by spices and pickles, just well-balanced. Quite a plateful - the salmon was perfectly poached (it would be! Emotie - but not a bit remained at the end.

Crab 

We really had no intention of taking dessert on arrival but Olivier had two tips for us when he presented the short list and we gave in easily and were happy that we did! So if you do call and if don’t fancy the relatively heavier Sticky Toffee Pudding or the Chocolate Fudge Brownie, I have two recommendations for you, each 7.50.

Posset

One is Coconut Pannacotta, Mango Sorbet, glazed nectarine, tarragon foam and honeycomb and the other is Lemon Posset, blackberry granita, sangria mousse. A couple of delicious easy to dispatch desserts, perfect at the end of a very good meal indeed. And that was just lunch. Must go back and do dinner sometime. Soon.

You may read all the menus (including Little Poachers) here.

The Garden

Later in the afternoon, we visited the nearby Glenview Gardens in Desert, Enniskeane. Some details and pics here.

Glenview Gardens in Enniskeane

 Glenview Gardens in Enniskeane

Glenview consists of a number of different type of gardens, with each style flowing into the next, in a beautiful 3 to 4 acre site at Desert, close to Enniskeane in West Cork. Gardeners will love it and there is fun for all the family as it is full of surprises. Kids will enjoy visiting the Fairy Fort built right through the birch mound or searching for the houses in the Fairies woods. Like all gardens, it changes through the seasons. Perhaps they should do a season ticket! More info here.

Just one of many "animals" you'll meet. The real animals, two goats and a few rabbits are far more confined.

Tearooms are closed at present due to covid but there are places, like
this series of tables, where you may picnic if you bring your own. By the way, our visit here followed top class lunch at Poachers Inn in Bandon, details here.

An impressive double row of hedges surround this grassed circle.

The White Garden, the first you'll come across, is one of a number of themed gardens.

There's a small aviary here.

Wildflowers

Wishing Well

Many butterflies here, especially by the
buddleia bushes. 

Spanish Wine Week at La Cave, Tuesday 5th October, 2021

 PRESS RELEASE by Jean Smullen

Spanish Wine Week at La Cave

Tuesday 5th October, 2021 

Spanish wines are currently in great demand. There are so many positives in terms of their production and innovation to appeal to the Irish wine consumer. It is not surprising to see that Spain overtook France and Italy here in terms of volume sales in 2018 and today Spanish wine is the second most popular country of origin on the Irish market. 

Spanish wine has a lot going for it, the climate is generally excellent for viticulture, there are plenty of old vines and a lot of indigenous grape varieties. Spain also has a very good track record when it comes to producing organic and biodynamic wines. 90% of organic grapes globally come from European wine regions, and within Europe Spain comes in second place in terms of organic production, 11.6% of all wines produced in Spain are now organic. 

Wines of Spain continue to be very active on this market in terms of their promotional work and this has helped sales of Spanish wine to grow strongly. Initiatives such as Spanish Wine Week help drive awareness for Spanish wine with the Irish consumer. 

Now that restaurants are open again and indoor dining is back, Wines of Spain will be turning its focus to the restaurant and wine bar sector. The 6th edition of the Spanish Food & Wine Week will be a focal point for this. Spanish Food & Wine week will take place from 4th-10th October, 2021 and the programme will include a number of consumer events featuring food and wine tastings and cookery demonstration presented by Ireland's most prestigious food and wine experts and chefs. Spanish Food & Wine week will also feature lots of discounts and promotional offers countrywide through a network of wine shops, off licences, restaurants, wine bars and on-line retailers. 

On Tuesday 5th October, 2021, La Cave Wine Bar, Dublin's oldest and original wine bar will join forces with Jean Smullen WSET to offer a fun evening of Spanish Food and Wine in their upstairs function room. Jean will present a selection of six wines from a number of regions in Spain that will highlight the unique diversity of these Spanish wine styles. A selection of Tapas to match the wine will also be served. Those attending can enter a draw to win an exclusive wine hamper featuring all six wines. For the duration of Spanish Food & Wine Week, La Cave Wine Bar will also be offering a range of Spanish Wines by the Glass for their wine bar customers to purchase. 

Details:

Tuesday 5th October, 2021 18:30-20:30 La Cave Wine Bar, 28 South Anne Street, Dublin 2. €25.00 (please note tickets much be booked in advance of the tasting)

Tel: (01) 679 4409

E: lacavewinebar@gmail.com