Food review by James Tinslay and wine review by Chilly Hargrave

For the second Chef of the Year cook-off, we had Paul Irwin in the kitchen with a support team of Steve Liebeskind and Romain Stamm. As expected, it was a full dining room.

Canapé

We were treated to three canapés today, a more common occurrence than it used to be. They were served in a specific order with the first being, citrus cured salmon on a spoon, then a pork and venison terrine served on crusty bread and topped with beetroot chutney and finally a mushroom pate with truffle oil and parsley in a pastry cup. Comments on the salmon were very positive as were the comments on the beautifully prepared terrine with beetroot chutney, adding a little bit of flourish in both flavour and presentation. The mushroom pate was thought by many to be a little bland, especially as it was served after the terrine.

Main Course

As expected and required the main we were served today was based on the meal Paul served last year that landed him in the Chef of the Year cauldron. As was the case in 2019, it was a picture-perfect presentation with the word pretty coming to mind.

The meal was based on lamb backstrap which had been sous vide and coated in salted leek ash but there appeared to be a slight bite reminiscent of chilly. The lamb was served on a smoked eggplant baba ghanoush with roast carrots and blanched broccoli. In addition, there were duck fat roasties that Paul had parboiled and then cooked twice in duck fat. The only complaint from the floor with that they would have liked more. This addition was to add some diversity of texture to the meal.

The lamb was tender and tasty and the presentation of this dish would not be out of place in a fine dining restaurant.

Cheese

The cheese presented by James Healey today led to an amount of head-scratching. Blue, clearly, but it was not salty enough to be Roquefort. A number of informed guesses proved to be wrong and it was revealed as a Berry’s Creek Riverine Blue from Gippsland in Victoria. To add to the mystery it was a 100% pasteurised buffalo cheese. It had a beautiful soft creamy mouthfeel and was at its peak.

Coffee

Spencer’s aim for 2020 is a “Society coffee”. Whilst absent this week that didn’t prevent him from continuing the quest. In Spencer’s sometimes cryptic style we knew that today’s coffee was 50% peaberry which he described as an intense flavour, but often a little thin. The other 50% was a general full-spectrum coffee but no other information was given. It had a round sweet palate that could be described as a little thin.

Wines

Today’s excellent starters were accompanied by a couple of wines that share the German tongue. A 2017 Groiss Germischter Satz from Weinviertal, Austria’s largest vineyard region, was confusing for many. Although it had some citrus, lime notes to indicate Riesling, it was actually a blend of a multitude of varieties, the majority of them unpronounceable - except perhaps for Josef. Certainly a wine with complex fruit aromas, it was dry and a little closed.

The 2016 Timo Mayer Remstal Riesling from Baden-Württemberg in Germany was an excellent match for the terrine with its fruit and off-dry finish. The glass stopper closure was a new experience for some and difficult to extract for many.

The main course was yet another matching of lamb and the Cabernet family. From Bordeaux, we had a 2010 Chateau Peyzat. A wine from the renowned Teyssier portfolio and vines near to St Emilion, it was a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon. With the expected Bordeaux aromas, it was an attractive mix of spice and blue fruits with fine-grained tannins. The 2006 Jacob’s Creek Cabernet Sauvignon had regional cassis and mint notes but was a little on the ripe side at 14.5%.

There were two more Cabernet-based wines with the fantastic cheese. The Yalumba Cigar is a Society favourite and the 2009 vintage was preferred by many. It still carried fresh oak but lacked some varietal definition. It had excellent Cabernet tannins. The last red was a Tapanappa Whalebone Cabernet (65%) Shiraz (35%) from Wrattonbully. A rich wine at 15.1% alcohol, it seemed more Shiraz than Cabernet. It was well balanced and complex with none of the jam or heat one might expect from that degree of ripeness. The tannins led the wine to a soft, round finish.