Shiraz and the Chef

Shiraz and the Chef was an event held at "The Lane" vineyard in the Adelaide Hills as part of the Adelaide Hills wine regions "Winter reds" promotion.

Apart from the hor d'ouvres all the remaining courses were matched with Shiraz of one form or another.

We began the night with two neat little appetisers which were a doughy potato ball stuffed with a white anchovy (reminiscant of fish and chips!) and a risotto ball with tallegio and porcini mushrooms which was very earthy and tasty.

Next we sat down to begin the dinner proper which began with thyme cured rare duck breast served with pear jelly and a duck neck sausage. The duck breast was tender and moist yet I couldn't really pick up the thyme and the pear jelly could of done with a bit more oomph. However the duck neck sausage was sensational and a great match with the 2007 The Lane Shiraz

Next for main we had Coorong Angus Beef cheeks which had been shaped into cylinders by wrapping the shredded cheek meat with prociutto - a great look. The Cheek was accompanied with horseradish semolina and a beetroot relish. These two flavours are awesome with beef and the textures Glenn Carr and james Brinklow achieved through this combo made this a truly memorable dish. An interesting aside to this was that the presentation of the cheek was actually an afterthought as the meat had fallen apart a bit after 12 hours of cooking. Testement to the chef initiative as the resultant presentation was one of the best ways I have seen this cut plated. The cheek dish was matched with a yet unreleased John Crighton 2007 Shriaz Cabernet which was my pick of the night on the wine side of things

We finished the night with petit fours and a couple of nice cheeses a local goat milk and brie which were accompanied with The Lane 2007 "Reunion" Shiraz and 2007 Shaw and Smith Shiraz

All in all a lovely night well executed by a couple of talented chefs