Spelt Risotto, and Octopus & Chorizo Salad

Head Chef, Marcus Verberne has worked with the Sommeliers to add a few additions to the menu and their pairing.

Octopus salad,Spanish style:

First, let’s start with a delicious Octopus & Chorizo salad. The octopus tentacle & chorizo are sautéed in olive oil with Charlotte potatoes and capers. They are finished with a pinch of smoked paprika and chopped parsley. Perfect for a sunny and warm day in September!

Wine pairing:

Deputy Head Sommelier, Emmanuel Cadieu is freshly back from Hungary and recommends to pair it with a great Tokaj wine:
2016 Furmint-Hárslevelu, Homonna, Tokaj, Hungary
“Attila Homonna has started his own boutique winery in 1999. He now owns 3 hectares of vineyards in Tokaj. He is focused on high quality dry wines made from the best terroirs of this volcanic area.
Tokaj has during a long time being only known for its sweet wines (the wine of Kings, the King of wines) but nowadays the focus is also on producing wonderful expression of local grapes and trying to isolate and understand the multiple and complex terroirs of the wine region.
The wine is indeed very terroir driven and showing a lot of citrus and white flowers, dried hay and a slight salty finish.
Although the wine has been made with 5g of residual sugar, it is wonderfully well integrated with the bright and zippy acidity. The residual sugar is contrasting with the smoked paprika, resulting in a very local matching, paprika being one of the main component of the Hungarian cuisine (and also a local pride).
The backbone of minerality is really driving the wine and is a great match with the Octopus.”

And spelt risotto for colder days:

Weather can be quite variable in September, so Marcus came up with a vegetarian organic Somerset spelt risotto, served with wild mushrooms & cavolo neroo. This dish will suit perfectly for the colder days when one might want some delicious yet refined comfy food. It is also available as a vegan option.

Risotto is made with organic spelt from Sharpham Park farm in Somerset. The base is made with mushroom stock and garnished with cavolo nero and a selection of wild mushrooms which will change depending on availability (Girolles, Pied du Mouton, Chanterelles).

Wine pairing:

For this risotto, Emmanuel chose:
2018 Chardonnay, Hamilton Russell Vineyards, Walker Bay, South Africa
“A barrel fermented Chardonnay made from one of the best cool climate area for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
The Hamilton Russell family has first planted the vineyard in 1975 and is since well known in specializing in very high quality Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs.
The vineyard is located in a small sub-region of Walker Bay called Hemel-en-Aarde, literally translated in English by ‘heaven on earth’, and planted on clay rich soils.
The vineyard is affected by a very maritime influence and cool breezes blowing up the valley.
The wine has been aged for 9 months in a third of new French oak and is driven by ripe stone fruits such as peaches and apricot yogurt, along backing spices, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg.
A delicate creaminess and lactic components like warm butter and sour cream is matching wonderfully the subtle nuttiness and slight sweetness of the spelt and will merry very well the earthiness of the wild mushrooms.”

We hope to see you at the Club soon!