Members of the Chaîne de Rôtisseurs and their guests met on Wednesday, December 11 in the cosy surroundings of Restaurant Le Marquis, Monte da Palhagueira, Santa Barbara de Nexe, for an early Christmas celebration.
Chaîne members, in particular the newest member, and guests from the Swedish wine tasting society Muskänkarna were warmly welcomed. The event, the last in this year’s calendar, had been planned to have strong Nordic influences reflecting the traditional Scandinavian informal parties held days before Christmas.
The evening started on a warm note with “Glögg”, the Scandinavian glüwein which was served as a welcome drink, and once everyone was seated, the evening continued with a menu chosen to reflect further Nordic influences with both smoked and fresh fish as well as game.
The starter was pea soup with julienne of smoked eel, followed by the first fish course of home-smoked terrine of salmon on guacamole with textures of cucumber and Amsterdam onions and lime. The second fish course consisted of fresh filet of cod in filo pastry flavoured with crystallized ginger, served with spaghetti of vegetables and beurre blanc. A delightful Vinho Verde from Borges Alvarinho was served with these courses. This wine has won many gold medals over the years and, with its floral and acidic notes and well balanced complexity which give a persistent ending, proved an elegant accompaniment to the smoked fish dishes.
The main course was filet of wild boar with textures of beetroot, cabbage and sweet potato and was accompanied by an Alentejo wine, Pontual Syrah, which has good body and scent of chocolate to complement the game meat.
Finally, diners were treated to a Yuletide dessert of a chocolate Christmas tree with gingerbread ice cream and fruits served with a vintage port from 2007. Bailli Roy Clevenholm presented gifts of Reindeer mulled wine for everyone to take home and enjoy again the tastes and memories of an entertaining, convivial evening.
This event, as all other Chaîne de Rôtisseurs events, served to raise funds to support Chaîne charities (ACCR) around the world and in particular the Gastronomy School in Évora, which introduces young people from needy homes to the skills, job opportunities and heritage of the catering industry.
By VALERIE LANTAU
