A new year, and some new ideas in the kitchen for the Society's first lunch of the year from old hand James Hill, with assistance from Gary Linnane and James Tinslay.

Seafood was (mainly) the go, starting with simple mussels in the shell poached in the liquid in which nori, or dried seaweed, had been reconstituted for the main dish. A bit of salt showed, but not too much to spoil the mussel flavour. A duck and lychee salad on porcelain spoons from Gary Linnane was the other canape, shredded duck and the eponymous fruit with fresh ginger, coriander and crushed peanuts dressed in a sauce based on hoisin. Great flavours and texture, it was a palpable hit, especially with a glass of 2000 Tyrrells Vat 1 semillon provided by Paul Ferman along with an economy champagne from Aubert & Fils, and the same old welcome old Lustau sherry, this time the manzanilla. The Vat 1had a nice grassy nose, but was starting to fade on the palate.

The Asian influence of the canapes continued into the main course: some moderately sized salmon steaks, marinated in a teriyaki sauce made on sake, mirin, soy and a bit of sugar, then baked until (for some, a trifle over-)cooked, and served topped by chopped reconstituted nori, some crunchy diced snake beans, and a well done brown rice in neat moulds with a piece of fresh seaweed salad providing a note of colour and crunch. The sauce was great, especially if you managed to get a second helping and the whole was both pretty to look at and a pleasure to eat. Ferman went out on a limb with the wines, giving us a conventional white in the form of a floral, limey and still youthfully acidic 2008 Stoney Rise riesling from Tamar Valley in Tasmania coupled with a brave rose, the 2009 Castagna Allegro from Beechworth. Made from shiraz, it was quite high in alcohol at 14% and obviously fermented right out to complete dryness, with some meaty guava notes to the nose and palate. An interesting wine: pity some minds were closed at the mention of rose.

For cheese, we welcomed back Ross MacDonald and some little Fromagers des Clarines, a washed rind cheese from the Franche-Comte region of France. They were, unfortunately, very young and quite cold, so we missed out on the full glory of the aroma and nutty sticky paste of a ripe cheese; but there was enough lactic and grass flavours present to indicate what was to come. Some fresh muscatel grapes (the best eating grapes of all) were an ideal accompaniment; closely followed by a 2009 Wairau River Pinot from Marlborough NZ and a 2003 Tyrrells Vat 9 shiraz. The pinot was a bit decorative and confectionery, but the Vat 9 showed some lovely Hunter fruit under a bit of stink, and was the wine of the day.

Spencer Ferrier spoke to the coffee, a Costa Rican medium roast bean with an attractive mix of chocolate richness and some astringent acidity. The birthday port, a Seppelts DP90 tawny from the Wine master, spoke for itself.

Welcome back, one and all.