Food review by Mark Bradford and wine review by Stephen O'Halloran

Food

Good to see the ever reliable and former Chef of the Year, Nigel Burton, cooking for us on a warm and sunny spring day.  Nigel served an innovative duck meal, always a favourite protein at the Society.  He was assisted by “The Three Gees” or was it “The Bee Gees” – Greg Brunner, Greg Chugg and George Winyard – on canapés and with plating on the day.

Canapés

We started with Greg Chugg’s creation of Gravlax on a bed of horseradish cream.  Next was Mushroom Conserva served on toast with four types of mushrooms, put together by Greg Brunner.  Finally, George provided us with prawns with smoked paprika served on a breadbasket.

Comments were favourable for the canapés, with the Mushroom Conserva drawing particular praise on the day.

Main

Nigel prepared an interesting main course of “Duck Three Ways” and separated by dried raspberries, snow peas and pomegranate molasses so as to depict a peace sign from the nuclear disarmament era.

The first and dominant duck was breast sous vide for two hours at 57 C and grilled off for a crispy skin.  The sauce on top was a combination of duck stock, fresh pomegranate juice, raspberries and vincotto.  This was all topped with fresh pomegranate seeds.

The duck ravioli had a butter sauce and fried leak, while the Foie Gras had pita bread and was shaped as a Star of David.

The dish was widely applauded.  The flavours were excellent, as was the presentation.

Cheese

The Cheese Master served Fromage d’Affinois Florette, a white mould goat’s milk cheese, which was a hit today.

The name d’Affinois is a play on ‘affinage’ – the French word for the ripening process of cheese.  Using an innovative method called ultrafiltration, Jean Claude Guilloteau pioneered a new method of cheese making in the 1980s that created a luscious and velvety cheese naturally richer in proteins and minerals.  Florette is a hexagonal-shaped goat’s milk cheese with a silky consistency made near Pelussin in the Rhone Valley.  As it ripens, the cheese becomes quite runny retaining its delicate creamy goat’s milk flavour.  It came to the table in terrific condition.

Nigel accompanied the cheese with sliced cucumber, fresh mint leaves and olive oil.

The bread, sourced by George, was a sourdough baguette from Indochine Corner in Lindfield.

Wine

Today we had a reasonable turnout, just under 30, to enjoy Nigel Burton's duck. I was a bit surprised there were not a greater number of members attending, as Nigel is one of our most accomplished chefs. However, I guess the old saying, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink", has some applicability to those members who would normally attend a well-anticipated event. So it goes. See Food Report for full details. 

We started with some delicious canapes, which were accompanied by, firstly, a Cincinnato Bellone 2022 @ 13%. Those who were at last week's lunch will remember that we drank it then, and I am pleased to say that, in my view, it was just as enjoyable as last time. Clean, fresh, strong fruit flavours, with lively acidity and a crisp finish. I think it is fair to say that not everyone in the room enjoyed the wine as I did, from some comments I heard, but for a canape wine, light and fresh, I thought it was pretty good. 

The second canape wine, as per the menu, an Ox Hardy Chardonnay, failed to be delivered, much to our Winemasters’ chagrin, so we had to fall back upon a very, and I mean very, young Riesling, an O'Leary Walker Polish Hill 2025 from the Clare district. This wine was made by some very good winemakers and from a celebrated part of Clare, and will in the future become a fine wine, but today, barely 6 months post-bottling, the wine did not taste like anything familiar, hardly any taste at all. I am gobsmacked that the wine was put out on the market so soon. I guess the wine makers had their reasons. 

Wine no 1 on the list for lunch was Helen's Hill 2022 The Smuggler Pinot, from the Yarra Valley, @ 12.8% Some of you will remember that back in April this year, our Winemaster put on a tasting of several Pinots from different clones. This wine came from the Abel clone, originally from the Burgundy district of France, with cuttings then smuggled into NZ by a rugby player in the 1970s, via his boot. So the story goes. In any event, the wine today presented as a light-weight Pinot, same body weight as a lot of Australian Pinot, medium red brick in colour with a pleasing aroma of red fruits, strawberry and raspberry.. Generally attractive mouthfeel with noticeable acidity. I quite enjoyed the wine with the duck, but its lightweight structure did not allow for any lingering aftertaste. More depth of flavour would have improved the finish. 

The second wine on the lunch list was another Pinot, this one from France, a Christian Clerget Bourgogne Rouge 2017 @ 12%. A much bigger wine in its structure than the preceding wine, with dark berry fruit, colour and greater intensity, but having said that, I found the wine to be somewhat underpowered in the flavour department. There was none of that luscious, decadent, mouth-filling warmth of a good French Pinot, redolent with the rich strawberry and cherry taste, we all find so alluring. This wine, to me, had none of that, failing to lift my spirits to any extent after the first few tastes. It just sat there in the glass, doing nothing for me. Others may have a different opinion; however, in my view, the wine was dumb and boring. I think the acid must have fallen away after 8 years, leaving it flat and flabby. 

The third wine on the list was the Robert Stein Mudgee Riesling 2019 @ 12%. This wine is marketed as a 'dry' Riesling, and the maker meant every word! Stein is an excellent Riesling producer, and this was a quality wine. Bone dry, but with excellent fruit in the background. Pale straw colour, some hints of pear and lemon, with no residual sugar, leaving one with a mouth puckering sensation after the solid acidic finish. The absence of any detectable sugar allowed one to really taste the fruit, which was exceptional. A classy wine, better served in my view with the canapes than with the goat's cheese. The oily ocean trout canape would have been a better pairing with this super dry wine.

Final wine of the day was the Shaw and Smith Adelaide Hills Shiraz 2015 @ 14.5%. I have for a long time been a fan of Shaw and Smith wines, which have consistently produced a range of high-quality wines from vineyards in SA and Tas. Backed by Yalumba and with a team of some of our best winemakers, their wines are amongst some of the best in the land. This wine comes from the mildly cool climate of Adelaide Hills, better known for producing excellent Chardonnay. In any event, this wine was a medium-weight Shiraz, quite elegant, with good integration of oak and tannin. Rich dark fruits coupled with some spice and a trace of peppery overtones. Now fully developed, the wine finishes with just enough acid to deliver a smooth and satisfying finish. A classic cool-climate Australian Shiraz.