Wine society Christmas dinner

An event to celebrate the festive season was enjoyed by 75 members and guests of the Algarve Wine Society during a Christmas dinner and dance at the Penina Hotel near Portimão on December 10.~
After a drinks reception in the main salon of the hotel, the group moved into the ‘Sagres room’ for the main event of the evening, a dinner with specially paired wines that the Penina’s executive chef Bernard Lussiano had devised.
The starter was a ballotine of fois gras with quince chutney and toasts paired with a Moscatel de Setúbal from José Maria da Fonseca’s winery. The fish course was a grilled fillet of sea bream with lemon thyme grass, sugar peas and wild mushrooms, served with a 2012 Chaminé Branco from the Cortes de Cima winery. The main course was a fillet of beef Wellington with a black truffle sauce and vegetables matched with the Castello d’Alba Reserva 2011 from Vinhos do Douro Superior Lda winery. And to finish off, dessert was an extra bitter chocolate and citrus fondant served with blood orange coulis accompanied by a Porto Calém tawny port.
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