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Cooking up a 70's storm!

Head of Private Client Sales and resident budding chef, Hector, talks about his food and wine pairing triumph over the festive season and beyond.

My January Food Pairing


Over Christmas I decided to make a fantastic Prawn Cocktail. My simple plan soon evolved into a full blown ‘fruits de mer!’ with big juicy tiger prawns, fresh crab, smoked salmon, and even some lumpfish caviar, plus an unearthly amount of Marie Rose sauce. It was met with comments like ‘WOW how 70s, Hector…’ and ‘do you want a perm and flares with that?’.
This hit me hard.


Why do dishes like my Prawn Cocktail, or with lots of cream in, now get met with such frowns. After all, so many dishes at the heart of the best French cuisine do exactly this or similar! Whilst pairing my first wines of 2022, I decided to keep this in mind and made a timeless classic, Chicken Fricassée. I went for a Rick Stein recipe which has Morels in, I added some extra wild mushrooms and additional cream. Rick suggests a good White Burgundy, but I went for the Domaine Castera Jurancon Sec 2020. Made by Frank Lihour, Frank has lit a fire under this sleepy region with wines that sing with Jurancon purity and terroir. Despite being a region known for its sweet wines, this wine is bone dry with super mineral edge, coupled with fresh orchard stone fruits, a touch of citrus, fresh pineapple and melon. Concentrated whilst being light and refreshingly moreish with each sip, this vintage stands out to me and felt like a step up from the previous. Like a good Burgundy, the Jurancon Sec cuts through fattier and creamier foods, as well as being fantastic with fresh seafood too. It was ideal with my Fricassée, pairing perfectly with the cream and mushrooms, that coated the moist chicken breast and crispy skin that I initially seared.

If you like a Burgundy, steely Chablis or Sancerre, then the Jurancon Sec is such a great alternative and goes fantastically with similar. Especially those ‘timeless’ French classics, with lots of butter, cream, and fancy French names … Here’s to many more Fricassées and Prawn Cocktails.

Cheers!

 

Check out the Jurancon Sec by clicking here.

 

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