Afternoon delights matched with NSW wines at The Bayside Lounge

As well as those stunning duck confit pies I wrote about last year, The Bayside Lounge at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre is also serving up a fantastic selection of New South Wales wines – many by the glass – until the end of July. As a fierce proponent of NSW wines being offered in NSW venues, this makes me really happy.

The list was compiled by Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre’s Certified Sommelier, William Wilson. William is one of only a handful of Australasian sommeliers to attain the Court of Master Sommeliers’ title of Certified Sommelier; a title that recognises high standards of wine service, commitment to quality customer care and extensive knowledge of international wine, beer and spirits.

Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre's William Wilson at work tasting wines

William Wilson with me

Scottish-born William (who incidentally looks fabulous in a kilt!) has remarkable wine knowledge that is as vast as it is impressive. He has handpicked some outstanding wines from New South Wales regions including Cowra, the Southern Highlands as well as the Hunter Valley, Mudgee and Orange. The newer alpine region of Tumbarumba is also well represented on Williams’s list (and I love the way he says Tumbarumba too, with his Scottish accent!). If you are not familiar with wines from Tumbarumba or the Snowy Mountains, the relatively high altitude and cool climate make for ideal pinot noir, chardonnay and sauvignon blanc styles.

William’s two stand-out wines are both from New England: 2009 Toppers Gewurztraminer and 2009 Zappa Reserve Release Barbera. With its rose and citrus nose and mild spicy plate, think cinnamon and nutmeg, the Gewurztraminer would complement many of Uwe’s sweet and savoury afternoon delights, especially the Crystal Bay prawn and cucumber bruschetta and the Orange and vanilla crème brûlée. Barbera is an Italian red grape variety with low tannins and high acid. Why not enjoy the Zappa Reserve Release Barbera with those duck confit pies?

Pop in for an afternoon delight at The Bayside Lounge. It is served from 1pm to 4pm on Wednesday through to Sunday. The menu is presided over by Executive Chef Uwe Habermehl and highlights include duck confit pies, Crystal Bay prawn and cucumber bruschetta and white chocolate pistachio eclair. Click here for more details. 

Executive Chef Uwe Habermehl with me in The Bayside Lounge enjoying afternoon delights

Click here to view venue details including the full wine list and menu.

Celebrating Sydney Royal Trophy winners and Champions on Kerri-Anne

Last week in my regular segment on Kerri-Anne (Thursdays at 9:40am) on the Nine Network I presented a selection of the newly crowned champion and trophy winners from the 2010/2011 Sydney Royal Wine, Fine Food and Cheese & Dairy Produce Shows. I combined a few of these products into a mouth-watering:

Striploin steak sourdough sandwich with walnut chilli dip and eggplant

 and

Crab, Potato & Leek Ravioli with truffle infused extra virgin olive oil

Click on the links below for the recipes on my main site:
Stockyard Striploin steak on Brasserie Bread Boulot with Hasham’s Walnut Chilli Dip and eggplant
Pasta Di Porto Crab, Potato & Leek Ravioli with Pukara Estate Truffle Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil

I have a long history with the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW. I am a long time councillor and board member. This is my first year as Chair of the Sydney Royal Wine Show; formerly I was founding Chair of the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show. Australian producers enter thousands of products into the three Sydney Royal Shows each year. To maintain credibility and integrity, the products are judged by panels made up of industry experts, producers such as winemakers and educators and specialist media.

Here is a full list of the champion and trophy winning products featured on Kerri-Anne:

Sydney Royal Wine Show
Three time trophy winner (Macquarie Group Perpetual Trophy, Royal Agricultural Society of NSW Annual Prize for Best Semillon and Albert Chan Memorial Prize for Best White Wine of Show): 2005 Margaret Semillon, Peter Lehmann Wines. This true Barossa Semillon is named in honour of Peter Lehmann’s wife, Margaret. Released as a five year old wine, Margaret is a fruit driven, deliciously dry, white wine.

Sydney Royal Fine Food Show
Champion Oyster: Pristine Angasi, Pristine Oyster Farm. Brothers Brendan, Tony and Guidera have been farming oysters in Coffin Bay, South Australia for twenty years. The award-winning native angasi oyster is plump, sweet and strong tasting.

Champion Prawn: Crystal Bay Farm prawns 21/30. Grown by Seafarm, one of the largest prawn farming operations in Australia, sustainable Crystal Bay prawns are available all year as fresh-chilled, cooked and uncooked.

Champion Beef: Stockyard Gold Beef. Established in 1948, family owned and operated, Stockyard is one of Australia’s most reputable producers with an internationally recognised brand. The award winning, consistently tender and flavoursome Gold range is derived from Angus genetics, fed and cared for over 200 days and MSA graded to ensure superior eating quality.

Champion Deli Meat Gourmet Product: Barossa Fine Foods Duck Terrine. All Barossa Fine Foods’ products are 100% gluten-free and made from traditional recipes handed down through four generations.

Champion Flavour Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Pukara Estate Truffle Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Hunter Valley based multi-award winning Pukara Estate produces distinctive, sophisticated and flavoursome extra virgin olive oils and vinegars. The Truffle Infused oil is rich, earthy and decadent.

Champion Regional Food: Nicholson Fine Foods Euro Style Spiced Beetroot Finishing Vinegar. Nicholson Fine Foods is an artisan food company that creates and develops an eclectic range of products for professional chefs and home cooks alike. With spiced earthiness, the multi-purpose Euro style Spiced Beetroot Finishing Vinegar can be used to dress salads, barbecued meat, fish or chicken.

Champion Fancy Pasta: Pasta Di Porto’s Champion Crab, Potato & Leek Ravioli. Pasta Di Porto’s range is free of artificial colours, preservatives and flavour enhancers. Most ingredients are grown by local farmers and/or sourced nearby. Some are also certified organic. To maintain high quality and freshness, only small quantities are made.

Champion Sourdough or Artisan Bread: Brasserie Bread Boulot. As well as supplying numerous cafes, restaurants and delis, Brasserie Bread runs their own café, baking school and retail shop in Sydney’s Botany. Taking two days to make, the Boulot is a traditional round sourdough with ingredients that include 16 year old sourdough starter, organic flour and river salt.

Champion Bottled Beer: Matilda Bay Brewing Company Alpha Pale Ale. In 1984 a group of guys got together in Fremantle, Western Australia to make beer under the Matilda Bay Brewing Company brand. Alpha Pale Ale mirrors traditional English India Pale Ale yet with assertive bitterness and distinctive fruit and citrus aromas from local hops.

Champion Traditional Sausage: Avoca Beach Butchery's Australian Breakfast Sausage. Robbie Hunt from NSW Central Coast based Avoca Beach Butchery has a passion for quality meat. He produces a range of sausages with an emphasis on quality and versatility – suitable for the oven or barbecue.

Sydney Royal Cheese & Dairy Produce Show
Champion Butter: Fonterra Spreyton Duck River Premium Butter. Fonterra Spreyton, near Devonport is supplied with high quality cow’s milk from some of the best dairying land in Australia. The Duck River Brand is named after the Duck River near Smithton, where the factory was originally established in 1904.

Gold Medal Dip: Hasham’s Dips Walnut Chilli Dip. Established in 1998 Hasham’s Dips is a Cairns based family owned and operated business. Their variety of dips, tapenades, pesto and marinated vegetables are made from local produce, using traditional recipes. Turkish style Walnut Chilli Dip is made from fresh walnuts and hot chilli.