The adage that good food is first and foremost dependent on good ingredients seems particularly true for Italian food. Italians are famous for their pride in sourcing the finest raw materials and with consummate ease seemingly just assemble them to produce delicious cuisine. It is the insistence on quality that is impressive. Pasta has to be made from hard wheat, preferably durum, mozzarella has to made from buffalo’s milk, prosciutto preferably from the Parma region and made from a particular breed of pig, and even the humble tomato, of which there are over three-hundred varieties grown in Italy, has to be right and ripe one. The fact that the quality of the ingredients is paramount rather than contradicting seems to reaffirm the fact that most of Italy’s great dishes are what can be described as ‘poor-peoples’ foods. Italian food is everyday food and perhaps that is why it is loved the world over including in Kenya.
Maize is still king in Kenya and for most Kenyan’s they have not properly ‘eaten’ unless ugali, (maize flour cooked with water to a porridge or dough-like consistency), has been consumed. Nevertheless, every Kenyan city and town just like the rest of the world has its pizza and pasta joints that churn out what is occasionally authentic, but mostly approximations of Italian cuisine. Good Italian food in Kenya is usually found as a result of the relatively large and lively Italian community most of whom seem to be involved in a small or large way in providing Italian food and occasionally wine.
The first Italians came to what was East Africa in the 19th Century mostly for the Catholic Church. During the Second World War thousands of Italians soldiers were held at a number of camps throughout the country including in Gilgil, Naivasha and Nyerie. Some of the ex-prisoners stayed on after the end of the war and throughout the latter half of the 20th Century were joined by growing numbers of their compatriots. Malindi on Kenya’s coast north of Mombassa has become particularly popular with Italians and is known locally as Little Milan after the famous city in the north Italian region of Lombardy. There are about 4,000 Italians living in and around Malindi who own and operate 30 beach hotels and six safari lodges not to mention a host of Italian restaurants.
In Nairobi and Mombassa as well as many other cities and towns there are Italian supermarkets stocked with produce from home as well as produce from Kenya, either made by Italian expatriates or made in an Italian style. For the wine it is a different story for while there is plenty of Italian wine to be found whether it is known or even liked by Kenyans is more difficult to say.
Italy has surpassed France in recent years as the world’s largest producer of wine and the Italians still consume an awful lot of that wine themselves: about 50 litres per capita per year. Wine books, at least those written by non-Italians, often portray Italy’s wines in the form of a dichotomy. On the one hand, an ocean of what is euphemistically described as rustic or country wine perhaps the quintessential plonk, and that I should add is not meant to be derogatory. On the other hand, sublime examples of great wines often made from indigenous grape varieties, expensive, but matching beautifully the regional cuisines.
In Nairobi examples of Italian wines that fit into a number of categories can be found. At the lower end, 5, 10, and even 20 litres container of Italian generic wine can be found in the main supermarkets. There is usually not much information on the label as to what is in the container and certainly not what grape variety the wine is made from. At around the equivalent of KSH150 to 200 (US$2 to 2.5) per litre one should perhaps not expect much from these wines other than they are made from fermented grape juice.
Up a notch in quality, Italian wines like Valpolicella can be found in Nairobi, which originate from the Vento region in north east Italy. Valpolicella presents an array of wines of varying quality. Perhaps at their best Valpolicella is fruity, eminently drinkable, medium-weight product that compliments superbly a variety of Italian foods. Unfortunately and perhaps more often, Valpolicella for the most part can taste rather thin and acidic. The Valpolicella wine production regulations, (what is called the Denominazione di Origine Controllata, the Italian form of the French Appellation Contrôlée system), stipulates that a maximum limit of 70 per cent of the Corvina grapes in the wine, which is an impediment to those that believe the best Valpolicella is made from 100 per cent Corvina. In Nairobi look out for bottles that have on the label Valpolicella Classico or Valpolicella Superior, or rather ironically, given that it is in theory a lower classification, Valpolicella vino da tavola as this classification permits the use of 100 per cent of the Corvina grape.
At the upper end of the quality spectrum for Italian wine can be found wines from Italy’s famous and world-class wine producing regions. From the Tuscany region of central Italy famous wines such as Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, (confusingly not made from the grape variety Montepulciano), can be found. From the Piedmont region in the north west of Italy can be found Barbaresco, Barbera, and Barolo wines. These wines often described as massive are made from perhaps Italy’s best indigenous red grape variety Nebbiolo. These wines are only available from a handful of Italian families that import these specialised and expensive wines such as the New Italycor Ltd in Nairobi.
Finally and a wonderful quirk is Kenya’s own Italian wine. Meru Wine based not far from the town of Meru close to Mount Kenya, produce Barbera a Red Table Wine as well as a White Table Wine and a Communion Wine. The text on the back label of the Barbera wine is wonderfully romantic describing how in 1904 Monsignor Perlo and father Carliero planted the first vines around Murang and Nyerie. From the ‘success’ achieved from wines made from the grapes of these first vines, vines were also planted on the Ruiri plains in Meru. It was to these root stock that the brother of Monsignor Perlo grafted Barbera vines brought from the Piedmont region in the north west of Italy. Barbera next to Sangiovese is Italy’s most planted red grape known for its high level of natural acidity a desirable attribute in hot climates; perhaps this is why the brother chose the Barbera grape for Meru? How does it taste? Well the label describes it as, “A mature, full-bodied and honest wine”, and for me that is pretty good description of what it tastes like.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Bastille Day with Patricia
While the French celebrate the storming of the Bastille and the founding of the Republic, July 14 unsurprisingly for this wine enthusiast is always a good reminder of the oenological delights France produces. France’s position as the world’s dominant wine producer has perhaps over the last twenty years waned just a little at least in the minds of some. In volume terms France in tandem with Italy still produces more wine than any other country with between 7 to 8 million bottles a year. More importantly for wine lovers is the fact that France undoubtedly still produces more fine wine than any other country. It is perhaps a sign of the changing world of wine that today I celebrated Bastille Day with Patricia tasting a number of wines only one of which was French.
Patricia Amira hosts her show on the South Africa based TV channel M-Net, which is broadcast all over Africa. Patricia is a sort of Kenyan equivalent of Oprah and her show’s magazine format covers just about anything you care to mention. I was asked along with two wine friends to participate in a ‘snob-free’ introduction to wine. It was all very relaxed and informal as we guided Patricia and hopefully her viewers through a flight of whites and reds.
That wine was a subject on the Patricia Show reflects the fact it is gaining in popularity among aspiring Africans. Wine consumption is definitely going up as the sales graph with its sharply rising line shows. The doubling, tripling, and quadrupling of annual wine sales needs to be kept in context a little as obviously the base level of consumption is extremely low. Outside of South Africa where annual consumption per person is a round 7 litres, the equivalent consumption levels for the rest of Africa where wine is consumed is probably, and unsurprisingly, well below 1 litre. What I think is true, and this is only based on anecdotal observations, is that wine is the drink that has captured the aspirations of the Kenyan middle classes, or, at least middle class women. Kenyan (wealthy) men and for that matter many African businessmen while not adverse to quality wine brands, in my experience love their (malt) whisky, but that is another story.
The Patricia Show is recorded out in the western suburbs of Nairobi and admittedly I am no expert in these things, but to this novice it all appeared akin to organised chaos. The guest line-up for the show included an inspirational story of a teenager overcoming the traumas of paralysis, the ‘light hearted’ wine tasting segment, and on to the shows star guest a gentlemen in a flowing caftan complete with a fez-like hat who predicts the future.
For our small spot we were asked to identify a proffered flight of wines. I am generally uncomfortable with what is a bit of a party trick, guessing the wine. For some reason folk are unreasonably impressed that after a swirl and a sniff you are able to say, “Oh yes, of course it’s a Gewürtstraminer”. I tell myself that this piece tittle-tattle is all necessary and part of the wider objective of highlighting the pleasures of wine. The studio crew, that is the thirty-odd people in the studio that make the Patricia Show happen, were all excited and often the floor manager had to call for “QUIET”. At the end of the recording of the wine segment the rush to secure the leftovers was quite a sight. I hope the recording of the rest of the show retained a steady focus.
Patricia Amira hosts her show on the South Africa based TV channel M-Net, which is broadcast all over Africa. Patricia is a sort of Kenyan equivalent of Oprah and her show’s magazine format covers just about anything you care to mention. I was asked along with two wine friends to participate in a ‘snob-free’ introduction to wine. It was all very relaxed and informal as we guided Patricia and hopefully her viewers through a flight of whites and reds.
That wine was a subject on the Patricia Show reflects the fact it is gaining in popularity among aspiring Africans. Wine consumption is definitely going up as the sales graph with its sharply rising line shows. The doubling, tripling, and quadrupling of annual wine sales needs to be kept in context a little as obviously the base level of consumption is extremely low. Outside of South Africa where annual consumption per person is a round 7 litres, the equivalent consumption levels for the rest of Africa where wine is consumed is probably, and unsurprisingly, well below 1 litre. What I think is true, and this is only based on anecdotal observations, is that wine is the drink that has captured the aspirations of the Kenyan middle classes, or, at least middle class women. Kenyan (wealthy) men and for that matter many African businessmen while not adverse to quality wine brands, in my experience love their (malt) whisky, but that is another story.
The Patricia Show is recorded out in the western suburbs of Nairobi and admittedly I am no expert in these things, but to this novice it all appeared akin to organised chaos. The guest line-up for the show included an inspirational story of a teenager overcoming the traumas of paralysis, the ‘light hearted’ wine tasting segment, and on to the shows star guest a gentlemen in a flowing caftan complete with a fez-like hat who predicts the future.
For our small spot we were asked to identify a proffered flight of wines. I am generally uncomfortable with what is a bit of a party trick, guessing the wine. For some reason folk are unreasonably impressed that after a swirl and a sniff you are able to say, “Oh yes, of course it’s a Gewürtstraminer”. I tell myself that this piece tittle-tattle is all necessary and part of the wider objective of highlighting the pleasures of wine. The studio crew, that is the thirty-odd people in the studio that make the Patricia Show happen, were all excited and often the floor manager had to call for “QUIET”. At the end of the recording of the wine segment the rush to secure the leftovers was quite a sight. I hope the recording of the rest of the show retained a steady focus.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
“I get juiced on Mateus and just hang loose”
I can picture in my mind what I admit is a somewhat romantic scene. It is of a French, Italian, or Spanish family sitting down to a meal complete with carafe of unassuming (cheap) local wine. The children in my imaginary picture learn by example that food and wine are inseparable, the perfect partners, and grow up to be well balanced adults that of course drink responsibly. The counterpoint to this image is one of a kid in America, although nowadays it could be just about anywhere in the world, sat solitarily in front of a TV chomping on a hamburger and swilling it down with a gallon of coke. The inevitable scenario for this imaginary child is a progression to Alco pops and a young adult life where Saturday nights are spent being sick in the local town centre. Both of my imaginary pictures are based of course on stereotypes, the former less common than I would hope and the latter far less common than I imagine. In reality wine has largely become merely another alcoholic beverage competing with a plethora of alternatives.
Most British people of my generation were not brought up in what can be referred to as a wine culture, something akin to my romantic image of a Mediterranean family at dinner. Growing up wine or alcohol of any kind for that matter was not common in our house. I have a vague memory that at Christmas time one of my parents took out of the cupboard an old, (meaning opened the previous Christmas as opposed to treasured vintage), bottle of sweet-sherry, Harveys Bristol Cream was the favourite. Alternatively a lucky visiting relative maybe offered a port-and-lemon, or pushing it a Stones Ginger Wine, which turned out not to be wine at all by today’s accepted definition, but instead made from a fermented blend of ground ginger and raisins. Wine appeared relatively late on in my teenage life and ironically given my enthusiasm for fermented grape juice I realise now was probably a result of cleaver marketing.
Mateus Rosé was probably the first wine I ever drank. For those of you not familiar with the name, Mateus Rosé was, and still is a sweet, and what the French call pétillant and the Italians call frizzante, but what we called slightly-fizzy, pink wine - a sort of (semi)grown-up equivalent of an anaemic, but crucially alcoholic Ribeana. Originally Mateus Rosé was made in the Minho region in Northern Portugal and modelled on the traditional Vinho Verde wines, (pronounced veen-o-verday), both facts I certainly did not know at the time, and in any case for me far more hip was the funky-shaped bottle. The bottle shape then as it is now was globular, or onion, or what the Germans call Bochsbeutel, and at the time it seemed that a whole cottage industry developed based on turning the empty bottles into table lamps.
The carefully constructed image for the wine was complete with a renaissance-style painting on the label depicting the Mateus Palace, although ironically the wine was never actually from the famous estate. It was all a created myth that this impressionable teenager fell for hook line and sinker. For me Mateus Rosé was the height of sophistication further enhanced when in 1973 Elton John released his Goodbye Yellow Brick Road double LP containing the lyrics of the title of this blog (the song Social Disease, last-but-one track, side four).
Mateus Rosé is in fact one of Europe’s first branded wines with production starting at the end of the Second World War. It was created deliberately to appeal to the developing North American and northern European markets and boy was it successful. By the late 1980’s fifteen years after I was introduced to this iconic wine, sales of Mateus Rosé and a sister white reached 3.25 million cases a year and accounted for more than 40 per cent of Portugal’s total annual table wine exports. By the mid-1990’s Mateus Rosé had lost its lustre as the increasingly sophisticated wine drinkers of North America and northern Europe moved on seduced by the fruit-bomb wines of Australia and the New World in general. For the last decade or so the Mateus Rosé brand has been owned by Sogrape, Portugal’s largest wine producer. Sogrape have relaunched the brand and expanded the range to include a Mateus Rosé Aragones (very sweet at 30 grams of sugar per litre), Shiraz, Temranillo, and a Rosé Sparkling. Interestingly the original Mateus Rosé is largely unchanged the only major differences being that the label is smaller than the original and that it is now mainly produced in the Bairrada region (south of the Minho region) of Portugal.
Kenyans can also enjoy the delights of Mateus Rosé as the main supermarket chains here supply at least two of the variations, the original rosé and the new(ish) Rosé Sparkling. In wine speak they are both technically semi-sweet and relatively low in alcohol; 15 grams per litre, 11 per cent alcohol, and 12 grams per litre and 12 per cent alcohol respectively. The difference from my youth is that in Kenya there are dozens of direct competitors for Mateus that line up on the supermarket shelves. I far as know Kenyan’s like Mateus Rosé and my local supermarket tell me it sells well. I am keeping my eyes pealed to spot the first Kenyan Mateus Rosé table lamp complete with Masai bead work.
Most British people of my generation were not brought up in what can be referred to as a wine culture, something akin to my romantic image of a Mediterranean family at dinner. Growing up wine or alcohol of any kind for that matter was not common in our house. I have a vague memory that at Christmas time one of my parents took out of the cupboard an old, (meaning opened the previous Christmas as opposed to treasured vintage), bottle of sweet-sherry, Harveys Bristol Cream was the favourite. Alternatively a lucky visiting relative maybe offered a port-and-lemon, or pushing it a Stones Ginger Wine, which turned out not to be wine at all by today’s accepted definition, but instead made from a fermented blend of ground ginger and raisins. Wine appeared relatively late on in my teenage life and ironically given my enthusiasm for fermented grape juice I realise now was probably a result of cleaver marketing.
Mateus Rosé was probably the first wine I ever drank. For those of you not familiar with the name, Mateus Rosé was, and still is a sweet, and what the French call pétillant and the Italians call frizzante, but what we called slightly-fizzy, pink wine - a sort of (semi)grown-up equivalent of an anaemic, but crucially alcoholic Ribeana. Originally Mateus Rosé was made in the Minho region in Northern Portugal and modelled on the traditional Vinho Verde wines, (pronounced veen-o-verday), both facts I certainly did not know at the time, and in any case for me far more hip was the funky-shaped bottle. The bottle shape then as it is now was globular, or onion, or what the Germans call Bochsbeutel, and at the time it seemed that a whole cottage industry developed based on turning the empty bottles into table lamps.
The carefully constructed image for the wine was complete with a renaissance-style painting on the label depicting the Mateus Palace, although ironically the wine was never actually from the famous estate. It was all a created myth that this impressionable teenager fell for hook line and sinker. For me Mateus Rosé was the height of sophistication further enhanced when in 1973 Elton John released his Goodbye Yellow Brick Road double LP containing the lyrics of the title of this blog (the song Social Disease, last-but-one track, side four).
Mateus Rosé is in fact one of Europe’s first branded wines with production starting at the end of the Second World War. It was created deliberately to appeal to the developing North American and northern European markets and boy was it successful. By the late 1980’s fifteen years after I was introduced to this iconic wine, sales of Mateus Rosé and a sister white reached 3.25 million cases a year and accounted for more than 40 per cent of Portugal’s total annual table wine exports. By the mid-1990’s Mateus Rosé had lost its lustre as the increasingly sophisticated wine drinkers of North America and northern Europe moved on seduced by the fruit-bomb wines of Australia and the New World in general. For the last decade or so the Mateus Rosé brand has been owned by Sogrape, Portugal’s largest wine producer. Sogrape have relaunched the brand and expanded the range to include a Mateus Rosé Aragones (very sweet at 30 grams of sugar per litre), Shiraz, Temranillo, and a Rosé Sparkling. Interestingly the original Mateus Rosé is largely unchanged the only major differences being that the label is smaller than the original and that it is now mainly produced in the Bairrada region (south of the Minho region) of Portugal.
Kenyans can also enjoy the delights of Mateus Rosé as the main supermarket chains here supply at least two of the variations, the original rosé and the new(ish) Rosé Sparkling. In wine speak they are both technically semi-sweet and relatively low in alcohol; 15 grams per litre, 11 per cent alcohol, and 12 grams per litre and 12 per cent alcohol respectively. The difference from my youth is that in Kenya there are dozens of direct competitors for Mateus that line up on the supermarket shelves. I far as know Kenyan’s like Mateus Rosé and my local supermarket tell me it sells well. I am keeping my eyes pealed to spot the first Kenyan Mateus Rosé table lamp complete with Masai bead work.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
OFSP to you too
Sometimes dubbed as “super-food” the orange-fleshed sweetpotato[1]is much the centre of attention in our household. Part of the convolvulaceae (morning glory) family for those of you botanically inclined they originate from South America where they have been propagated for the last 5,000 years. In Africa the sweetpotato is an important staple in some countries, but more often a supplementary food and usually of the white, cream or yellow fleshed varieties. The International Potato Centre based in Lima, Peru, and its sub-Saharan Africa regional office here in Nairobi, has a large programme underway that aims to promote the growing and consumption of orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) varieties. These are high in beta-carotene (the precursor to Vitamin A) and are also a valuable source of vitamins B, C, and E, and contain moderate levels of iron and zinc. In addition they have a low glycemic index, and therefore are a good energy source for people with diabetes. They are also reported to have all sorts of other almost magical properties such as anti-oxidants and anti-cancer properties, so I heartily suggest you increase your personal consumption forthwith. For me though in our household the challenge has been what wines go well with OFSP?
There is a saying that food and wine go together like peas-in-a-pod and for many cultures one without the other is unimaginable. Throughout Europe at least where vines are grown most regions have over the centuries developed a cuisine to match the local wines, or, it maybe it is the other way around. France is well known for its regional food and wine culture such as the Alsace in the east. With a distinctly Germanic flavour to its food with its charcuterie and terrines, the Alsatians quaff down their spicy Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, and Sylvaner wines as perfect compliments. The Northern Rhône Valley is famous for its red meats and rich sauces that can withstand the robust Syrah based wines of Hermitage, Cornas, and perhaps the more refined Côte Rôtie. In the Southern Rhône the softer Grenache based wines reflect the more subtle flavours of their local cuisine. The Loire Valley in the east of France is famous for its Muscadet white wines produced in Pays Nantais region, which match the local seafood specialities. I could on and it is not just France that has these gastronomic-vinous matches. Throughout Europe at least where grapes are grown and wines are made examples of complimentary food and wines are all around.
I think somewhat different to century’s old traditions of local food and wine cultures, is the growing art and some would claim science of food and wine pairings. If the glossy food magazines are anything to go by, there appears to be a whole industry dedicated to finding the perfect food and wine match. California as with so many new ideas is much at the forefront of the world of food and wine pairings led by some of the large and well known wine estates. The Fetzer wine company for example based in Mendocino County is well know for its almost religious zeal in its search for the perfect food and wine pairings. This is perhaps not unsurprising given that Fetzer has an awful lot of wine to sell, 4 million cases a year to be precise, and to be a tad cynical anything that can help sell wine in this highly competitive wine world is not to be sneezed at.
Personally I am standing on the fence when it comes to an opinion about the merits of the more recent trends of food and wine pairings. On the one hand, I sometimes cringe at the over exuberance of some ‘foodies’ as they wax lyrically about how well foie gras goes with Sauternes or some other such exotic combination. On the other hand, I have also been privileged to have experienced some fabulous food matched superbly with accompanying wines. Indeed next time you happen to be in South Africa’s Cape try the new(ish) restaurant at the Jordan winery just outside Stellenbosch to have your taste buds metaphorically blown away. The Jordan family have also this year opened a restaurant in London called the High Timber and although I have not been there I understand it offers much the same fine dining and wine experience.
In Kenya food and wine matching is somewhat of an esoteric exercise at best confined to a few up-market restaurants or the homes of the elite. As mentioned in a previous blog, this is not to say that Kenya lacks for either an almost infinite variety of foods, most of which it grows or harvests itself, or wines from around the world. Nairobi nowadays as with almost any capital city has access to a myriad of cuisines and styles of cooking from around the world. This is in stark contrast to not that many years ago when it would have been inconceivable to think that now (some) Nairobi residents can now tuck into for example sushi and sashimi washed down with a well chilled Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa or New Zealand.
Finally back to the important OFSP and what wine to match with it. Given the versatility of the OFSP almost anything goes. The sweetpotato by definition is sweet, but as with most food and wine pairings it is either a question of contrasting or complimenting. For a contrast for soups or roasted sweetpotato a zingy Sauvignon Blanc or young Riesling seems to do the trick. For desert such as sweetpotato pie or, I kid you not, a sweetpotato and cinnamon sorbet, then a good compliment seems to be a voluptuous Viognier or sweet wine such as a madeira. Perhaps the ultimate combination of food and wine would be sweetpotato wine, which I have yet to try, but some seem keen to encourage me to try making some.
[1] Sweetpotato is all one word in recognition of the fact that it is recognised by the botanical boffins as a distinct species and not simply another variety of potato.
There is a saying that food and wine go together like peas-in-a-pod and for many cultures one without the other is unimaginable. Throughout Europe at least where vines are grown most regions have over the centuries developed a cuisine to match the local wines, or, it maybe it is the other way around. France is well known for its regional food and wine culture such as the Alsace in the east. With a distinctly Germanic flavour to its food with its charcuterie and terrines, the Alsatians quaff down their spicy Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, and Sylvaner wines as perfect compliments. The Northern Rhône Valley is famous for its red meats and rich sauces that can withstand the robust Syrah based wines of Hermitage, Cornas, and perhaps the more refined Côte Rôtie. In the Southern Rhône the softer Grenache based wines reflect the more subtle flavours of their local cuisine. The Loire Valley in the east of France is famous for its Muscadet white wines produced in Pays Nantais region, which match the local seafood specialities. I could on and it is not just France that has these gastronomic-vinous matches. Throughout Europe at least where grapes are grown and wines are made examples of complimentary food and wines are all around.
I think somewhat different to century’s old traditions of local food and wine cultures, is the growing art and some would claim science of food and wine pairings. If the glossy food magazines are anything to go by, there appears to be a whole industry dedicated to finding the perfect food and wine match. California as with so many new ideas is much at the forefront of the world of food and wine pairings led by some of the large and well known wine estates. The Fetzer wine company for example based in Mendocino County is well know for its almost religious zeal in its search for the perfect food and wine pairings. This is perhaps not unsurprising given that Fetzer has an awful lot of wine to sell, 4 million cases a year to be precise, and to be a tad cynical anything that can help sell wine in this highly competitive wine world is not to be sneezed at.
Personally I am standing on the fence when it comes to an opinion about the merits of the more recent trends of food and wine pairings. On the one hand, I sometimes cringe at the over exuberance of some ‘foodies’ as they wax lyrically about how well foie gras goes with Sauternes or some other such exotic combination. On the other hand, I have also been privileged to have experienced some fabulous food matched superbly with accompanying wines. Indeed next time you happen to be in South Africa’s Cape try the new(ish) restaurant at the Jordan winery just outside Stellenbosch to have your taste buds metaphorically blown away. The Jordan family have also this year opened a restaurant in London called the High Timber and although I have not been there I understand it offers much the same fine dining and wine experience.
In Kenya food and wine matching is somewhat of an esoteric exercise at best confined to a few up-market restaurants or the homes of the elite. As mentioned in a previous blog, this is not to say that Kenya lacks for either an almost infinite variety of foods, most of which it grows or harvests itself, or wines from around the world. Nairobi nowadays as with almost any capital city has access to a myriad of cuisines and styles of cooking from around the world. This is in stark contrast to not that many years ago when it would have been inconceivable to think that now (some) Nairobi residents can now tuck into for example sushi and sashimi washed down with a well chilled Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa or New Zealand.
Finally back to the important OFSP and what wine to match with it. Given the versatility of the OFSP almost anything goes. The sweetpotato by definition is sweet, but as with most food and wine pairings it is either a question of contrasting or complimenting. For a contrast for soups or roasted sweetpotato a zingy Sauvignon Blanc or young Riesling seems to do the trick. For desert such as sweetpotato pie or, I kid you not, a sweetpotato and cinnamon sorbet, then a good compliment seems to be a voluptuous Viognier or sweet wine such as a madeira. Perhaps the ultimate combination of food and wine would be sweetpotato wine, which I have yet to try, but some seem keen to encourage me to try making some.
[1] Sweetpotato is all one word in recognition of the fact that it is recognised by the botanical boffins as a distinct species and not simply another variety of potato.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)