Seeing Out 2015 Pt.1

So, as the year draws to a close - when I'm feeling particularly guilty about my lack of efforts on the blogging front - I thought it was prime time to catch up on all those exciting things that I've been up to.

Truth be told, it's been a mightily crap year for The Chap and I; with families somewhat falling apart at the seams on both sides, it's not surprising that I haven't found the motivation, nor the hours in the day, to keep up with my posts. Still, despite not feeling particularly upbeat over the past couple of months, we've had some fun along the way.

Supper with Richard Turner on Thursday 12th November was a meaty highlight. Held at No. 38 The Park, this Lucky Onion Club event was one we really couldn't miss; the Hawksmoor, Pitt Cue and Meatopia legend lived up to his reputation by cooking the most epic menu (and drinking a lot of Bourbon).

Starters were Wild Sea Bass Sashimi with Chilli and Ginger, Fillet Steak Tartare topped with a shed load of Parmesan, Roasted Bone Marrow with Sourdough Toast, and Roasted Scallops with White Port and Garlic... I managed some self restraint and didn't eat everything in sight, but the sheer volume of food could have filled us all up, and I'd have been content just hitting dessert! FYI I still don't like Bone Marrow.

Main was Charcoal Grilled Rib Eye Steak and Chips with Bibb Lettuce Salad and Stilton Hollandaise. Pink, juicy, salty, charred - and seemingly endless - there are no words that can describe how good it was. And that Stilton Hollandaise; if I'd had a heart attack after eating it all, I'd have died very very happy. Sticky Toffee Pudding with Clotted Cream and a glass of Sherry finished us off, and we rolled ourselves home.

In contrast to this, I went along with a friend (K) to The Core Cheltenham's 4 Course Evening Special, which was full of vegan veggie goodness. Greeted with a heathy 'martini' of pomegranate, hibiscus and sumac, we then hit the gin (it was BYOB). Canapés were a shot glass of Pea and Mint soup served with "Cheesy" Polenta Chips, then we could choose our other courses out of three options. Watermelon and Kalamata Olives with a Pistachio Crumble, Capers and Watercress was my starter. K's was much more exciting; Carrot and French Beans with Tomato and Hemp Tabbouleh, Daikon Radish Ribbons and a Coriander Dressing.

K chose the best main too; Red Lentil Dahl, Spiced Sweet Potato Purée, Pickled Carrots, Crispy Shallots, Balsamic Onions and Chilli Enoki Mushrooms. That said, I definitely had the best dessert; Citrus Tart made with a Homemade Almond Yoghurt, Lime Curd and Chocolate Candied Pecan Nut Crumble. 

If you've not experienced raw, vegan foods, then going to something like this is a great introduction. I had a fabulous night, but I think visiting The Core for breakfast/lunch, or for your juice/smoothie fix is the best way to do it, especially after a heavy night! See my previous post on their 5 Day Juice Programme.

As with every month - *cough* week - November saw a lot of wine drinking, and none more special than The Super Fine Wine Tasting at The Grape Escape. Ten wines were opened from The Grape's reserve list, adding up to over £1000 worth of wine! Starting off with one of my favourite Champagnes - Krug Grand Cuvée - we drank Riesling, Chardonnay, and the best/most unusual Sauvignon Blanc I've ever experienced (the Silex pictured above).

With the reds, we worked our way around the globe; Spain, South Australia, Italy, USA and the two big Frenchies; Burgundy and Bordeaux. Needless to say, we were all bowled over by the wines, (which is probably not so great for our purse strings), and in true Grape Escape fashion, the best wines of the night were both Californian! If you're feeling flush, go and buy yourself a bottle of Kistler Chardonnay 'Les Noisetiers' 2013 or Corison Cabernet Sauvignon 'Kronos Vineyard' 2006; you won't be disappointed.

... Part 2 coming up!...

#SpotaSanta With Deliveroo This Christmas

Holy holly hell! How did it get to mid December already? Whether you're super prepared or disastrously disorganised (like me), there's one thing that will add some extra festive cheer in the countdown to Christmas...

I give you @Deliveroo_Chelt's #SpotaSanta campaign!

Following their highly successful launch in Cheltenham earlier this year, Deliveroo have announced a dramatic expansion with more postcodes and restaurants added to their service.

It's not just the central food lovers that can get in on the action now, Charlton Kings, Prestbury, Up Hatherley, Swindon Village and other outer edges of Cheltenham will wangle their favourite restaurant dishes to be delivered to their door.

Newbies include YO! Sushi, Prezzo and Bella Italia, along with local burrito gods Paparritos, healthy heroes The Core, and the best old school boozer, The Beehive (FYI they're doing Sunday roasts for delivery - the ultimate hangover remedy at the click of a button). There are plenty of other businesses already benefitting from the service in case you didn't know - Simpsons Fish & Chips, Real Burger and KIBOU Sushi to name a few. Yuuuuum.

So to celebrate their growth, Deliveroo have organised #SpotaSanta, running from Thursday 10 December until Wednesday 23 December. Each day, a red suited Deliveroo Father Christmas will be delivering foodie presents around the town, and Cheltenham folk are being asked to spy him, snap him and tweet him to @Deliveroo_Chelt using the hashtag #SpotaSanta.

Festive photographers taking part will receive a £20 voucher to spend with Deliveroo, and the lucky guy/gal that captures the best picture of the bearded fella will also receive a whole year’s supply of Deliveroo! That's up to £100 to spend on food every bloody month for a year!

Sounds good doesn't it? So get your binoculars out and let's bring a bit of magic to the streets of Cheltenham this December.

Spot him, snap him and send him to @Deliveroo_Chelt with #SpotaSanta in order to be in with a chance of winning.

Photo credits to Paul Nicholls

Oxford Chelt Wine School: Champagne & Fizz at Wyastone Townhouse

At the end of last month I was invited to a Champagne & Fizz evening hosted by The Oxford Chelt Wine School. I'd seen a fair few things about them on social media - as well as other Local Wine Schools across the UK - but had never got round to attending any of their events... Until now.

Run by Nick and Serena Gay, The Oxford Chelt Wine School does what it says on the tin; it's a wine education company that runs fun and informal wine tastings and courses around both Oxford and Cheltenham. Independent and open to everyone; you don't need to be a wine geek to take part, it's much more about enjoying what you're drinking, learning a bit about it and avoiding all the pretentiousness that often surrounds the subject.

Even if you are a bit clued up about wine, don't think that there won't be enough to stimulate you; everyone seems to discover something new and worthwhile – whether it’s wine they haven’t tasted before or information from the detailed powerpoint presentations. You can even do your WSET's through them if you're keen.

Eight-week World of Wine courses (one night a week over eight weeks); four-week courses (again, a night a week), one-off evening events, and snazzy Saturday extravaganzas (a full day’s wine tasting with a two-course lunch); there are a lot of options!

What's great about the whole thing is that because they're independent, they're not tied to any wine supplier, enabling them to pick the best - as well as best value - wines from local merchants, national online suppliers and your standard supermarkets. This also means no sales push either, if that's something that worries you. You really do just sip, learn and enjoy.

So, the Champagne & Fizz evening, held at Wyastone Townhouse on Parabola Road, Cheltenham, was a perfect start to the festive season; 2 hours, 6 different sparkling wines, nibbles, interesting wine chats, and all for £30.

We kicked off with an intro to the world of fizz, discussing methods of making, and Champagnes vs. the rest of the world. People generally assume that the big price tag that comes with the label 'Champagne' means that it's going to taste the best, but many other countries make some bloomin' good sparklers, and even us Brits are challenging the French to the title of being the best in the business.

Prosecco was obviously going to be first on the list - everyone's still going nuts over the Italian stallion, and sales of the stuff are still going up! I didn't know that the percentage of wine that needs to be Glera (the prosecco grape) has been certified a minimum of 85%, meaning that there's scope for some slightly more interesting grapes being used and different flavours are able to come out; though on the whole I tend to find it's produced more for quantity not quality. It's a drink which is initially enjoyable, but I tire of it easily.

We pour our own glass, smell, taste, discuss, and then guess the price; simple. La Giosa Prosecco Brut 2014 DOCG is a lightly sparkling wine (frizzante), and is full of pear, peach and white flower aromas. I was surprised with its clean acidity, crisp apple flavours and the fact it wasn't overly sweet (which is what usually gets to me with Prosecco), and as such I guessed it as being an over £10 bottle... It's currently available for £13.49 from Waitrose, so I wasn't too far off.

Moving to the new world, we had Graham Beck Brut Rosé NV 'Cap Classique' from South Africa. It's been made in the 'traditional method' - don't call it 'Champagne method' or the Champagne police will be on to you - and is roughly an equal mix of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Pale salmon in colour, we learn that the grapes are picked early in the season to avoid any jammy flavours developing, and to increase the acidity in the wine. It has a bit of oaky toastiness thanks to being aged on its lees, but there's enough strawberries and raspberries to ensure its rosé status. I'm not sure why pink fizz always costs more, but it does, so I guessed £13... I was bang on this time, £13.99 from Majestic.

The third wine was a game changer for me; Heretat El Padruell Brut Cava, Spain. We all seem to have fallen out of favour with Cava, despite being a similar price point (and more exciting in my opinion), Prosecco seems to have taken it's place as the go-to cheap sparkling wine option. Made in Catalonia with the 3 classic Cava grapes (Macabeu, Parallada, Xarel.lo) using the traditional method, the second fermentation takes place in the bottle over 9 months. It seemed very savoury and almost a bit petroly on the nose - some of the things I associate with Rieslings - and lovely lemon and herb notes appear as it opens up. It's drier in style, with grippy minerality and a zing on the finish, and at £8.00 from Marks and Spencer (I guessed a tenner), I think this is excellent value... So much so that I bought a bottle to take to a party last weekend, and plan on getting some in for Christmas. What a find!

The next two wines we tasted blind; Champagne vs. English Sparkling Wine - Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut vs Nyetimber Classic Cuvée 2010. Nyetimber's a personal favourite of mine, so I had to guess it right out of the two - thankfully I did! Both are very similar in colour, both contain the classic Champagne grapes (Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay), with around half of each being Pinot Noir, but they're very different in taste and aromas.

With 3 years bottle maturation, Nyetimber's Classic Cuvée has a rich buttery scent with baked apple and lemon acidity. It's incredibly rounded, with a crisp persistent finish; there's a reason it often beats the French fizz in blind tastings! At under £30 depending on where you get it from, I think it's a good price for an exceptional English Sparkling Wine, and it's one that never disappoints. (Their Blanc de Blanc is just deeeelicious!)

Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut is a name that you'll recognise; it's one of the oldest Champagne houses in the region. A classic, easy going style with plenty of fresh fruit and faint toast aromas; it's not as punchy on the nose as the Nyetimber. It has a good fruity complexity and comes across as nicely balanced - just what you'd expect from a non vintage brut. It's probably not one that I'd go for in the shops, but Id consider it at its current price - £20 from Asda (full price £30).

The last fizz of the night was another Champagne, but this time Blanc de Blancs. Champagne Jacquart, Blanc de Blancs 2006 is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes grown only in Grand Cru vineyards. Straw gold in colour, it has a much deeper doughy aroma of buttered brioche, blossom and honey. It's a greedy wine; bright, fresh and full of juicy peaches at the start, mellowing out giving you an unctuous nutty richness and a creamy finish. A great Blanc de Blancs at a great price; £37.50 from Great Western Wine.

Overall, my experience with Oxford Chelt Wine School was a sparkly dream. There were a lovely bunch of people there - some like us who were just attending as a one-off, and others which come regularly - and with everyone keen to learn and talk about the wines, there were no awkward silences. Passing round nuts, smoked salmon and goats cheese helped us ease into it too - haha!

If you fancy getting involved yourself, then check out their website and book yourself onto one of their events (the Fine Port & Cheese Evening on 22nd January sounds like a winner to me). 

Alternatively, why not give the gift of wine to someone for Christmas? Oxford Chelt Wine Tasting Gift Vouchers start from £25, can be used for any of the listed events, and they NEVER expire! How good is that?! What are you waiting for?...

Thanks to Nick, I shall be having a fabulously fizzy festive season, and will be smugly sipping my £8.00 bottle of Cava on Christmas morning. Cheers!