Rolland and Rhubarb

Sauternes from Chateau de Rolland was the perfect match for Rhubarb Millefeuille at DiscoverVin's Melbourne Food and Wine Festival Dinner at Bistro Vue.

The 2007 Chateau de Rolland from Sauternes with intense fruit flavours and a crisp dry finish matched perfectly with the rhubarb.  

The rhubarb, freshly harvested by the Chef, from the gardens at Burnham Beeches was served with light puff pastry.  The rhubarb was presented three ways, a puree on the pastry, poached and small slices which had been dried using a cryovac process.  Amazing flavours perfect with the wine. 

The wine is a classic sauternes from an up and coming small producer. It has a nice golden colour and intense aromas of dry fruit such as apricots and figs with soft spices. On the palate, the wine is very elegant and well-balanced. Crisp, minerals and clean botritys. A fantastic sweet wine!! 2007 was a difficult/patchy year for some red producers but was very good for the dessert wines of Sauternes/Barsac. One of France's main wine guides Gilbert & Gaillard gave this wine 90/100 and described it as.. " Golden hue. Intense nose mingling dried fruit, citrus and exotic fruits (mango, pineapple). Abundant freshness on the palate tones down the concentration. Long-lasting aromas, simultaneously exotic, crisp and spicy."

All in all a great dish, great match and a great finish to a wonderful Melbourne Wine and Food Festival event.

DiscoverVin Left Bank vs Right Bank Dinner at Bistro Vue

As part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival DiscoverVin hosted a food and wine dinner at Bistro Vue on Tuesday 5 March 2013.  Welcome to Earth was the theme for this year's festival.  The earth nourishes us - it's the source of all our food and wine.

DiscoverVin presented wines to highlight the contrasting terroirs of the Left and Right Banks of Bordeaux. Succulent Merlot based wines from Right Bank producers Chateau Dassault 2006 and Chateau D'Aiguilhe 2008 grown on the clay/limestone plateau of Saint Émilion and Castillon. Rich Cabernet based wines from the Medoc on the Left Bank of the deep gravel beds of the Gironde Estuary (Vivens 2005 and Amiral de Beycheville 2008 ).  

Melt in your mouth Slow cooked Flinders Island Salt Bush Lamb

The four course menu produced by Chef Chris and the Bistro Vue team was inspired by classic French dishes from the Bordeaux, given a modern twist.  Produce from the Vue Group gardens of Burnham Beeches in the Dandenongs featured on the menu.

 

 

Bordeaux Dinner at Bistro Vue

DiscoverVin hosted a wonderful Bordeaux Wine Dinner in partnership with Bistro Vue in Melbourne on Tuesday 14 August. A selection of our Bordeaux wines were expertly matched to a divine menu prepared by the uber-professional but relaxed and skilled team at Bistro Vue.

Smoked eel and an Oyster. Delightful Amuse Bouche served with Chateau Haut Peyrous Bordeaux Blanc

The first wine: Chateau Haut-Peyrous Peche au Carrelet 2009 was a lovely Semillon Sauvignon Blanc blend from the appellation of Graves. The winemaker is Mark Darroze who purchased this property and modernised it, introducing organic production methods in 2008. The Peche au Carrelet refers to the fishing nets used in the nearby Garonne river to catch local crustaceans fish and eels. So this was an inspired match by chef Chris Bonello and sommelier Maurizio Severgnini to serve this wine with a fresh oyster and some smoked eel.

The Haut-Peyrous was continued and served with the first entrée - crispy prawns, warm lettuce and wild garlic. The body/tail of the prawns were separated from the heads which were also fried and so could be popped into the mouth to savour the intensity of flavour! The Haut-Peyrous was a great foil with enough body and acid to stand up to the slight oiliness of this dish.

Next a look at an older right bank wine: Chateau Lanessan 2004 from the Haut-Medoc. This is a classic blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. It is an interesting producer, held in the same family for seven generations but recently modernising production methods and bringing in young, highly skilled winemaking team to rejuvenate the wines. This one is now drinking beautifully. It still has lots of lovely fruit but the tannins are softening and integrating with the fruit. A classic "claret" style, ready to drink. It matched a delightfully subtle terrine of ox tail - served in thin slices like a carpaccio and served with some cornichons and leaves. Delightful pairing of the older left bank Bordeaux and this dish - a modern twist on a Bistro classic.

We then had a spectacular main course of Flinders Island milk-fed lamb served with beetroot, the leaves of the beetroot and mash. The photos above show a before and after shot of the lamb! The lamb had been cooked sous-vide to maintain its tenderness. Wow! Rich flavours and very tender without  disintegrating into a grey mush. To accompany, 2 younger but very special wines Fleur de Clinet 2008 (Pomerol) and Clés du Pape Clémont 2008 (Pessac-Leognan). Both of these showed the power but restraint of good Bordeaux. They also demonstrated the quality and value for money of the second label wines of these famous producers - Chateau Clinet and Chateau Pape Clémont - usually made from younger vines and designed to be more approachable in their youth. Beautiful fruit, nice tannin and structure but balanced - and approachable now. Another inspired match with the lamb.

Cannelé Cannelé- A deconstructed approach to a Bordeaux classic. Served with Chateau Le Pradey St Croix de Mont, delicious dessert wine.

An then an amazing finale of Cannelé Cannelé - using all the elements of cannele (custard, rum, cinnamon) in a spectacular looking and tasting dessert. Each element had taken considerable time an skill and when reconstructed the whole was a crowd-pleasing triumph. And alongside it Château La Pradey Saint Croix de Mont 2009. This is a blend of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc, affected by botrytis and lusciously sweet but not cloying on the finish. And then coffee, tea and a cannelé those crisp on the outside, moist and gooey on the inside petits cakes much loved by the Bordelaise. A delightful end to a memorable meal.

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The atmospheric dining room, set up for 30 guests for DiscoverVin's Bordeaux Dinner at Bistro Vue.

The Wines of Bordeaux

Tuesday 14^th August 2012

Amuse bouche

Smoked eel & oyster

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1ère entrée

Crispy prawns, warm lettuce, wild garlic

2009 Château Haut-Peyrous Blanc, Graves

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2ème entrée

Oxtail terrine

2004 Château Lanessan, Haut-Médoc

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Plat principal

Flinders Island milk fed lamb

slow cooked in Claret

2008 Les Clés de Pape Clément, Pessac-Léognan

2008 Fleur de Clinet, Pomerol

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Dessert

Cannelé, Cannelé

2008 Château la Pradey, Sainte-Croix-du-Mont

DiscoverVin: Bordeaux Dinner At Bistro Vue