Chef of the Day this week was Steve Liebeskind assisted by Paul Irwin and Jeremy Lubrano. Steve’s reputation on the pans is such that we had healthy numbers of about 50. It was a real joint effort with canapes.

Canapés. Three was the order of the day. In no particular order, we had pork terrine wrapped in bacon topped with beetroot relish on a slice of baguette followed by gravlax with dressing on the same base and finishing up with pumpernickel topped with pickled herring in a dressing mixed with onion. A prodigious quantity of canapés was produced and eaten, and this may account for the aperitif wine being consumed at full tilt. An excellent set of canapés.

Aperitif wine. Back to Riesling today with the Pressing Matters R9 Riesling 2015. The R9 refers to 9 g of residual sugar which adds just a touch of sweetness to this fine wine from Coal River in Tasmania. Interestingly enough, similar wines just at that off-dry level have not attracted much positive comment in 2019 but this wine was appreciated. A couple of comments suggested they would have liked a touch more acid to offset the small amount of sweetness.

Main Course. The presentation of the main arriving at the table was splendid. Steve later said that he had a lot of fun preparing the lunch and will take his word for that, but there was a boatload of ingredients on the plate and my description shall fall short of naming all.

The dish was sou vide salmon topped with sea weed flakes and touches of wasabi, the latter becoming evident when a spike of heat attacked the palate. On the plate with was an olive tapenade, charred onion, pickled cucumber and a Thai basil and silver beet portion. Oh, there was also some mushroom, but my memory runs out at this stage. What was particularly impressive about this dish was the incredibly crispy skin on the salmon, which was a real treat. A complex dish and a most impressive production. Indeed, Chef of the Year finalist material was the suggestion by many.

The Wines.

• Domaine Roux “Clos des Mollepierres” Rully AOC 2013 (cork, 13%)
• Clerget Bourgogne Rouge 2014 (cork, 12.5%)
• Montgomery Hill The Mulberry Block Reserve Chardonnay 2010 (Albany, WA) (screw cap, 12%)
• Pallister Pinot 2009 (screw cap, 14.5%)

The fish was served with the Rully Chardonnay and the red Burgundy. The former wine we had only a few weeks ago and it is a fine example. At 5 years of age it had a mature richness and fine acid cleanliness. The Clerget was lighter bodied, but an excellent example of the Clerget style albeit at the lower end of the range. It. A delightful pair of wines to have with the salmon.

The Winemaster repeated the combo with the cheese with the WA Chardonnay opening the batting followed by the Pallister New Zealand Pinot Noir. And there the likeness ends. There are winemakers, wine professionals and consumers who like a touch of sulphur in wines on the basis that it can had some complexity and body. The Chardonnay had the match struck reductive sulphur style that divides a room. Whilst proponents claim it adds a degree of Burgundy complexity it is a style that I don’t enjoy but others loved it. It was an impressively low 12% alcohol. The New Zealand Pinot from Martinborough was on steroids compared to the Burgundy in the first bracket. Too big, too sweet.

Cheese and coffee. Gary Linnane provided us with a Beaufort cheese today. This raw milk rather firm cheese is associated with the Gruyère family of cheeses and was in wonderful condition. We were fortunate indeed to have large portions this week.

Spencer Ferrier in absentia provided us with one of his best liked beans, Kenya AA. As usual, fresh beans and high-quality beans produces good coffee.

A top-quality lunch with Steve once again confirming his experience and expertise in preparing attractive, complex and seductive food for large numbers.