Quarter Twenty One and the Champagne Bureau – Champagne Christmas
December 21, 2011 at 10:37 am 4 comments
Well, I’m certainly glad I went along to the Champagne Bureau’s Rosé tasting at Quarter Twenty One last week! Being the uncultured pleb novice that I am, I knew very little of the history or technique behind rose until John Noble, of the Champagne Bureau, shared his encyclopaedic knowledge of wine with us. Now, after a brain full of information and a tummy full of some of the best rosés available, I will be able to make educated choices about which rosé I choose out of the fridge instead of, *ahem*, picking the one with the prettiest bottle.
It was amazing to see how varied the different rosés could taste. Some were very dry where as others were on the sweeter side, with some being very sweet – a big trend in the 80s. Even though I’m not that fussed about matching wines to my food, I was quite surprised to see that we would be eating beef with our champagne. We were given a list of foods that go really well with rose and beside the obvious strawberries and raspberries, some others that work are:
- Rare roast lamb
- Quail (and most game birds)
- Duck
- Salmon
- Crab
- Chicken
- Prawns
- Lobster
- Japanese flavours
Being a non-seafood eater (although I did eat a scallop this night!) most of that list is lost on me, but I can really see how rosé would be conducive to Japanese flavours.
Chef Justin North dropped by to demonstrate a few dishes:
Steak tartare
Prawns with aromatic salt
Blackmore wagyu short rib (cooked on a Japanese BBQ)
Along with the three canapés above, we also had:
Heirloom tomato tart with olive and basil and caramelised onion and thyme flatbread with celery cress and goat’s curd
Half-shell scallop with ginger and shallot
and the full list of rosés tasted is as follows:
- Veuve Cliquot Rosé
- Charles Heidsick Rosé Reserve
- Moet and Chandon Rosé Imperial
- Louis Roderer Vintage, 2005
Of the four, my favourites were the Veuve and the Louis Roderer. I found the others to be a little bit sweet and I am into drier varieties of rosé.
If you too are into dry rosé, have a look at Rosé Revolution – Celebrating Dry Rosé. A movement dedicated to rosé and getting it into the Champagne flutes of Aussies everywhere this Summer. On the Rosé Revolution website you’ll find recipes for meals that will go splendidly with your rosé, special offers on rosés and upcoming events. You’ll also find more information on the process of making rosé, how it differs from ‘regular’ Champagne and the history behind the houses.
As a big supporter of anything pink and alcoholic, I think I’ll be seeing a lot more rosé in my fridge this Summer. What’s your preference?
Entry filed under: Food. Tags: .
1.
Nico | December 21, 2011 at 10:57 pm
I don’t know, the bottle has to look good as well! I will fully admit that I like matching my drink to whatever I’m wearing though, as I am shallow, and clearly nowhere near the ‘wine snob’ levels I’d like to be, my father spent my childhood making me a whiskey snob instead, which is just as good
2.
Marlo Perry | December 21, 2011 at 11:12 pm
Matching to what you’re wearing? Woah! Even I’ve never done that.
Nothing wrong with being a whiskey snob. I’m quite partial to whiskey, actually.
3.
Nico | December 23, 2011 at 1:28 am
Not all the time, but I do freely admit to having tried my first martini because I was in a pencil dress and figured I’d cut a hell of a fine figure! Ha ha. Super-Femme.
Also, very excited for Christmas, as I am home and my father’s whiskey cabinet is welcoming me home, hooray!
4. Roast Lamb Recipe | Roast Lamb Recipe | December 22, 2011 at 8:37 am
[...] Jamie Oliver The Naked Chef 2 Cook BookJohn Kirby’s Rare Roast BeefFree Recipe: Roast Beef Studded with Garlic and ParsleyQuarter Twenty One and the Champagne Bureau – Champagne Christmas [...]