NZ BBQ tradition @ Clos Henri

 

 

Any foreigner visiting NZ is gladly surprised by the NZ BBQ tradition. BBQ in Marlborough appears to be a sacred cooking pot, a moment to share with friends and family whether in the garden, in the Marlborough sounds, or on the boat. Name a place to have a BBQ, it’s probably been done already by kiwis.

At Clos Henri we decided to take that great tradition, forget about French cuisine, and get Slow Food lovers to enjoy the sun of Marlborough with some fantastic meat… on 2 BBQs … the idea was to compare gaz BBQ with vine shoots BBQ. But before eating, we had to do some exercise in the vineyard: our winemaker and viticulturist showed the purpose of vine shoots – starting with pruning process and use, then explaining how to make vine shoots bundles, and finally showing at the winery the use for them (as filters in the red tanks during the fermentations).

David Woodley, from the Village Butcher in Blenheim, gave explanations on how he ages his meat, and chooses the best pieces, as well as how he smokes his bacon. Finally he gave few tips to cook perfect steaks on the BBQ.

At the menu was an aged angus ribeye steak, some greek style sausage and New Orleans andouille.

After a difficult start of the fire on the vine shoot BBQ – which reminded us that it is most certainly the reason why gaz BBQ is commonly used – we were able to compare the flavours on the BBQ. To be precise, the tenderness of the meat was not affected, nor was the moisture, but the flavours were very distinct. The vine shoots were from a mix of pinot noir and sauvignon blanc shoots, to which we wouldn’t make any differences once burnt. These shoots had been used during harvest as filter in our tanks; therefore they had been ‘soaked’ into wine for a little while and were still carrying the flavour in their wood. The smokiness and the perfume given by the wine to the meat on the vine shoots BBQ was quite something.

The votes for better taste were unanimously for vine shoot BBQ!

Special thank you to David from The Village Butcher for his beautiful, flavoursome and tender meat!

Slow Food Marlborough August 11 th 2010

6-8pm, Wednesday 11 August
BEC Luxury Lodge, 81 Cob Cottage Rd

Italy is the birthplace of the international Slow Food Movement. For
Slow Food Marlborough's August event, Sarah and Dave Anderson from BEC
Luxury Lodge will host Simon Kelly from Lubrication Wines for an
evening of Italian food and wine delights.  Simon will take guests
through a formal but fun tasting of 6 special Italian wines - 1 white
and 5 reds. After the tasting, mingle and enjoy Italian-styled nibbles
in the wonderful setting overlooking Blenheim and Cloudy Bay.

Limited to 24 guests - Slow Food financial members will receive
priority for bookings.

$15 for members, $25 for non-members - to cover wine costs.

Some bottles retail for up to $80, so this is a great opportunity to
taste some special wines (available at favourable prices on the night)
and great value too.

Please RSVP to Sarah Anderson: info@beclodge.co.nz

Slow Food Marlborough July BBQ !

Summer might seem a long way off here in Marlborough ("Marl-brrrrr"), but July is BBQ season in France, so join Slow Food Marlborough at Clos Henri for a look at BBQ'ing with a French vineyard twist.

The Clos Henri winemaker and viticulturalist will take us through the vineyard and winery - making 'shoot bundles' and showing you their secret use in the winery.

David Woodley from The Village Butcher will then take us through a comparative BBQ - one on gas, and one cooked using the shoot bundles we've prepared earlier as fuel - plus hints on BBQ'ing meat.

David will have some special BBQ treats for us: some dry-aged (not vacuum-packed, wet aged) pasture-raised angus rib-eye (fully traceable back to farm), New Orleans Andouille, Greek Sausage and Bacon.

Clos Henri Vineyard, 639 State Highway 63, West Coast Rd, RD1 Blenheim

Sunday 25 July, from 10.30 am to 2.00 pm

$5 Slow Food International Members, $15 otherwise - to cover the selection of special meats from The Village Butcher, Blenheim.

BYO salads, bread, refreshments, glasses, crockery and cutlery.

RSVP to cellardoor@closhenri.com

We're hoping for fine, clear weather, but the event will go ahead regardless - with plenty of covered spaces we can use.

See you then !

Knife Sharpening 20 May 2010 AND HARVEST DINNER

SLOW FOOD MARLBOROUGH 

HARVEST DINNER

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE

Join us to recognise and celebrate

Marlborough’s local producers.

 

Friday 18 June 2010, from 5.30pm

Barrel Room, Marlborough Vintners’ Hotel

190 Rapaura Rd

 

$50 per person

BYO wine, cash bar also available

 

Three course, set menu

featuring local Marlborough produce.

Marlborough Farmers’ Market Awards presentation.

 

TICKETS LIMITED, AND MUST BE PRE-PURCHASED

- NO TICKET SALES ON THE NIGHT -

Get yours now by contacting:

Sue Gibbs: sue@witherhills.co.nz, 578-1858 (evenings)

Sally Woolhouse: info@lusatori.com 

Many thanks to 

Vicki Young of bon vivant corporate catering   vicki@bvgourmet.co.nz   

and

Volker Schmitt of Sharpen up Knife Services  volkerschmitt@hotmail.com

for another great Slow food workshop, 25 foodies (or is that Kniffies) learnt how to sharpen knives and use them correctly .  If you would like to contact Volker then email volkerschmitt@hotmail.com or phone 5776776 to.  

We learned how to Brunoise, Miropoix and Julienne as well as the finer points of keeping a sharp edge.  Safety is number one and a sharp knife is less likely to cut ourselves than a sharp one

THE LAND OF MILK AND HONEY

     

Seresin Estate is hosting a special event for Slow Food Marlborough, Saturday 10 April at their Home Vineyard.

Suitable for the whole family - have a go at milking Seresin's house cow, make butter and cream to enjoy with freshly baked scones and organic preserves.   Get up close and personal with a bee-hive in the Seresin Estate orchard - learn how Seresin manages it's hives and enjoy some recently-harvested honey to enjoy with scones too.

Saturday 10 April

8.45 am, for 9am start

Seresin Estate Home Vineyard

Enter at 85 Bedford Rd, Renwick, go up the drive, turn left at the top (away from the winery and cellar door) and carry on to the vineyard buildings.

Concludes with morning tea at 10 - 10.30 am.

FREE

Please RSVP for catering purposes: slowfoodmarlborough@gmail.com

Hello World

The news is in from Italy. It's official. Slow Food Marlborough has been established.

Slow Food is a non-profit, member-supported organisation encouraging people to take an interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and to think about how their food choices affect the rest of the world. Today there are over 80,000 members internationally.

Thanks to the following people who joined Slow Food to form our Founding Committee:
Sarah Gianelly and Dave Andreson, Marlborough Vinters' Hotel
Chris Fortune, local chef, and Chairman of the Marlborough Farmers' Market
Nelly France, Clos Henri
Therese Herzog, Herzog
MJ Loza, Seresin Estate
Colin Ross, Seresin Estate, and Diana Frendon

Slow Food Marlborough's first event will be held on Saturday 12 April at Seresin Estate. Be part of Marlborough's harvest, hand picking and hand sorting grapes for the morning (8-11 am), and learn about biodynamic viticulture and winemaking. Register your interest by email or phone MJ Loza on 03 572 9408. A home-made morning tea will be provided.