Last week, I co-hosted a Provencal Dinner and wine tasting, ably assisted by Jason Yapp and the genial Chef-Patron of The Ambassador, Clive Greenhalgh.

For a nominal £10 fee, guests were free to partake in a 15 wine, tasting tour of Provence. With the bottles spread down The Ambassador’s long bar and Jason and I on dispensing duties, it made an enjoyable start to a cracking evening. We met lots of new people as well as some old familiar faces and it was great fun sharing the aromas and flavours of the region’s assorted wines with an inquisitive and appreciative audience. With such a diverse range of grape varietals including Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Marsanne and Vermentino in the whites and Cinsault, Syrah, Folle Noir and Mourvèdre amongst the reds, there was a wine and style for everyone and that’s not including the three different rosés on show.

All the wines showed well on the night and here are details of my 3 favourites:

White
Cassis: Clos Sainte Magdeleine 2008 – £16.75
This is always an interesting wine. Clairette, Marsanne and Ugni Blanc give a wine with a herb/pine aromatic nose and mouth-filling citrus flavours with an intriguing oily texture that carries the developing flavours that last for a long finish.

Rosé
Côtes du Luberon: Château la Canorgue 2009 – £12.25
Grenache Noir, Cinsault and Syrah form lovely red berry aromas that continue on the palate. Crisp and refreshing, it is a real taste of summer in a glass.

Red
Côtes de Provence: Domaine Richeaume Cuvée Tradition 2008 – £15.50
This has a fantastic nose, full of fruit, spice and herbs. On the palate, the Syrah provides the warming richness with a spicy core. Cabernet Sauvignon contributes to the backbone of mouth-chomping berries and robust, yet yielding tannins as well as a lingering touch of mint.

Ambassador Cafe

Following the tasting, there was an option to stay for a three course Provencal feast for a bargain £25. There were six wines available to purchase from the tasting to consume with the dinner. My table opted for a Coteaux d’Aix: Domaine Oullières Blanc 2009 (£9.25) to go with the generously portioned Pissaladière with Cornish Sardines. It’s salty, savoury flavours were well matched with the fleshy, oily sardines.

For the main course of Rump of Lamb with Olive Oil mash, peppers & lemon thyme, I just had to go back to the minty Domaine Richeaume. Hats off  to Clive for a superb dish. The lamb was cooked to perfection and the Domaine Richeaume’s complex flavours combined well with the tender meat and the delicious, rich mash.

Forgoing apricot tart we all shared a French cheeseboard. A glass of Côtes du Ventoux: Château Valcombe 2005 (£9.95) was the perfect all-rounder to finish with. Plummy fruit, light spiciness and rounded tannins lead to a smooth finish and there was still enough dry, acidity to cut into the stronger cheeses and leave one wanting more.

Overall, it was a great evening and although officially ‘work’ it never seems as such when you have such a relaxed, fun crowd sharing the experience. From the favourable comments on the night, it really reminded me of how interesting and educational these events can be.

Clive Greenhalgh - Ambassador Cafe

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Ambassador Cafe

The Ambassador, 55 Exmouth Market, London EC1R 4QL.

Tel: 020 837 0009

www.theambassadorcafe.co.uk

JH

An aperitif of refreshing rosé Bandol: Mas de la Rouvière 2007 was accompanied by a delicious amuse bouche of pissaladière. The dry, coral-pink, berry-scented wine was the perfect foil for the warm, flaky, melt-in-your-mouth pastry topped with anchovies, olives and caramelised onions. On my table we fought over the crumbs.

Next up was an equally appetising bouillabaisse served with golden, garlicky croutons and a pleasingly authentic rouille. This was partnered with the ideal wine – a 2007 Cassis blanc from Clos Sainte Magdeleine. The herb-tinged, slightly oily wine moved into a different dimension with the satisfyingly gritty bisque that accompanied mussels, prawns and firm white fish.

Our main course was a (very) generous rack of herb-crusted lamb, served rare with ratatouille. The accompanying red wine was a belter – an organic Côtes de Provence ‘Cuvée Tradition’ 2007 from Domaine Richeaume. This blend of Bordelais (Cabernet Sauvignon) and Rhône (Syrah) varietals is packed with sweet cassis fruit with savoury, minty undertones. It was wonderful with the lamb and equally successful with another Provençal delicacy – a mature Banon goat’s cheese that one seldom sees on these shores.

By this stage nobody actually required further sustenance, but an apricot tart of which Elisabeth David would have been proud (see Yapp ’09 page 10) was very happy in the company of a luscious, straw-coloured Muscat de Beaumes de Venise 2006 from Domaine de Durban that was served ice-cold, in stylish little Parisian glasses. We then had coffee and sensible people (who didn’t abuse their rum rations) caught buses and trains home.

If you’ve yet to engage the Ambassador in diplomatic relations it’s high time you paid a visit. We’ll certainly be heading back soon.

We were delighted when our old friend Clive Greenhalgh the genial patron of the Ambassador restaurant invited us for his ‘Magnum Monday’ in an effort to inject some cheer into this miserable winter. The remit was simple – rock up at the restaurant with a decent magnum (each) and enjoy a delicious set menu with fellow wine lovers/bores. What we didn’t know was that 15 other people would be attending which did mean an awful lot of wines to taste and drink.

We kicked off with some Champagne ‘Le Mesnil’ Grand Cru ‘Réserve Sélection’, actually we kicked off with beers then Champagne. This was clearly quite serious stuff but quite heavy to drink comme aperitif although the preceding lager probably hadn’t done it any favours. After a few informal introductions and a bit of wine trade banter we then sat round a large square table and passed lots of big bottles to and fro debating their various merits.

The white wines, which surprisingly accounted for almost half the total, accompanied a Clam and Cockle Velouté (no potatoes deployed so not a chowder). The shellfish came from Colchester and were tasty and plentiful. Highlights here included a Petaluma ‘Hanlin Hill’ Riesling 2005 (courtesy of Gus Evans the landlord of the Butchers Hook in Fulham Broadway) which was mid-weight with classic limey tastes and good minerally undertones and a zesty ‘Loimer’ Grüner Veltliner 2006. Both got along famously with the bivalves and were a pleasant alternative to a proliferation of white Burgundy all of which was pretty good but none of which was great.

Our main course was an impressive chunk of braised Galloway beef (which was the size of an anvil) served with root vegetables. The red wines were as diverse as the whites with a surprising dearth of Claret (excepting a lone Pomerol) and a few real oddities. Here the tasting notes start to get rather confused but the Ridge Vineyards 1999 Geyserville Zinfandel was memorable as was the same vintage of Le Vieux Donjon Châteauneuf du Pape in which we have a vested interest. I think we had some cheese at some point and possibly some coffee. There was bold talk of regular reunions. All in all a very entertaining evening that made for a rather less enjoyable morning. I think the wines might have faired better if there were fewer of them and of us and we would definitely have benefited from some feminine input – it was rather a blokey affair.

We did glean the priceless information (from his brothers) that our host was a star contender on Junior Masterchef. Now that is footage that we’d pay some serious money for…

www.theambassadorcafe.co.uk

Wines Tasted

White

Champagne ‘Le Mesnil’ Grand Cru – Réserve Sélection NV

Langelois Spiegel ‘Loimer’ Grüner Veltliner 2006

Petaluma ‘Hanlin Hill’ Riesling 2005

Soave Pieropau 2006

Château Simone Palette 2003

Domaine de la Bongran ‘Quintaine’ Viré Clessé 2002

Domaine Robert Denogent – Macon-Solutré ‘Clos des Bertillonnes’ 2005

Chassagne-Montrachet 1^er Cru ‘Les Caillerets’ Domaine Marc Colin et Fils 2001

Red

Savigny Les Beaune 1^er Cru Aux Gravains – Domaine Pavelot 2002

Pomerol Château Combaude Guillot 1995

Domaine de Trévallon 1995

Podere il Bosco – Syrah de Manzane Toscana 1997

Châteauneuf du Pape: Le Vieux Donjon 1999

Casa Lopostelle ‘Cuvée Alexandre’ Apalta Vineyard Merlot 2005

Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Napa 2004

Ridge Vineyards Geyserville Zinfandel 1999

Côtes de Saint Mont ‘Collection Plaimont’ Producteurs Plaimont