I love finding new ways to experience wine, and if food is part of them, I’m in!
Yesterday, I had a fantastic five-course lunch at The Samson’s Paddock at Mosman Park, a historical venue that’s in the forefront of creative cooking in Western Australia. The menu was incredibly inventive, Chef Georgi Partenov composed flavourful, and colourful dishes with high-quality ingredients from the region. To rise to the challenge, they selected a set of unique wines made by Nathan Schultz for a horizontal tasting across 2010 vintage from Willespie winery in the Wilyabrup sub-region of Margaret River, to match every dish and ended up with spectacular results.
The room was set up, there was a relaxed ambience as old, and new food-lover friends chatted while taking their seats; you could sense their anticipation. After all, this would be quite a memorable lunch.
After some introductions and a drink, the feast began.
The first dish was composed of tangy Bulgarian feta and capsicum salad, house bread and rendering slices of wagyu meat over a kimchi blini. The umami richness of the plate and the subtle acidity paired with Verdelho wine; herbal and dry, an aged, already eight-year-old white wine. Complex and still very fruity despite its age, this Verdelho showcases a lot of fruit, with exotic aromas of pineapple and lychee blended with more citric tones, a somewhat crisp lemony acidity. The mouth is really soft, but fresh and clean, with good body, and a really nice finish, long and dry, the pairing was sublime.
Our second course comprised a grilled, buttery Shark Bay bug beautifully garnished with the caviar-like juice vesicles of a finger lime. Purple potatoes and a spicy chorizo emulsion brought everything together. A lovely old school Semillon based wine matched the acidity and complimented the richness of the Shark Bay bug with lemongrass aromas. Soft, full bodied white that’s evolving very well, with a very balanced acidity, already showing some nice complexity from ageing, and not a single sign of decay. On the one hand, there is a strong minerality, complemented by fresh vegetable nuances, and, on the other, complex aromas of flowers and honey, still some fruit, forest floor, moisture, mushrooms, a touch of smoke. Another white which, after 8 years of ageing, is perfectly alive and with a lot still ahead. A dish of textures and rich flavours.
Then came a crispy, yet tender duck with celeriac, apples, endives and candied yuzu. The sweetness and charred bitterness mimicked closely the notes of the well-rounded, Estate Shiraz. Powerful but restrained, this is a big and beautiful Shiraz, strong but with a touch of delicacy. Still fruit forward after 8 years, it’s a dark, ripe and powerful wine, with an enticing spicy, peppery touch that could only taste great together with the rich flavours and textures of the accompanying dish. This fatty duck melted in my mouth and became one with the wine. With great flavour of earthy fruit and chocolate riding long, silky, ripe tannins through a long finish. A great wine.
The Venison that followed stole the show; it came with mushrooms, shallots, roast parsnip, and Kakadu plum. Again, a rich, flavourful dish with a touch of sweetness. The Estate Merlot acted as if it was plum sauce that belonged to the recipe. This Merlot has the typical aromatic profile of the grape variety delivered in a dry, savoury, full bodied style, plenty of rich dark fruit and sweet spices, with a hint of alcoholic warmth. Given its age and size, it’s surprisingly easy, happy, silky tannins and a nice, round body carried the venison to another level of satisfaction.
The last dish of this ceremonial, slow passed and nicely choreographed lunch was a piece of wild boar neck, cooked until tender, over home-made cavatelli pasta, pancetta, and manchego cheese. A bold statement from the chef. An equally bold Cabernet, Willespie’s Estate Cab, gave a new scope to the food as the boar screamed for the tannins in the oaky wine. Deep red. On the nose, candied, spicy dark fruit, plum and berries, with a touch of cinnamon and baking spices from the barrel. Also a bit of smoke, soft, somehow catchy: here’s some nice barrel work. Big and meaty in the mouth, perfectly complementing the assertive flavours of the wild boar neck. Balanced, elegant acidity and a long and rich aftertaste make it, for me, one of the best wines presented at the tasting. Its good fruit and buried tannins allowed it to also pair well with Manchego, a hard, somewhat sharp, sheep milk cheese.
Lunch was unforgettable, and overall the pairings were successful; every wine complimented, one way or another, the artistic creations of the chef, and everyone seemed to agree. I left happily on a full stomach, but privately, I know we all wanted more. Wink wink nudge nudge!
