AGM & Dinner on 22nd January 2015 - Manchester Branch
This event was held at the Alderley Edge Hotel in Cheshire. 58 members were present for the occasion which was held in the Laurent Perrier Suite.
The aperitif wine, an excellent Champagne from Canard Duchene, started the evening off in fine style. A non-vintage Champagne, it had an excellent mousse, with good fruit, a well balanced acidity and finish The fact that the wine had bottle age was much appreciated.
We then proceeded into the main room for the meeting and dinner. The AGM meeting lasted about 20 minutes, and then dinner was served.
The first course was Goosnargh duck, served three ways with mulled blackberries and pain d’epices crumb. The duck was beautifully cooked and the accompaniments complemented it. The wine, Domaines Schlumberger 2007 Pinot Gris (Spiegel) grand cru from Alsace was fabulous. It tasted slightly off dry, with excellent fruit of apricots and oranges. Well balanced and a long finish.
The main course was slow cooked saddle of lamb with tomato jam and basil potato cake. The lamb was tender and succulent and was well received by everybody. This was accompanied by Bodegas Eguia 2009 Rioja Reserve red wine, this wine received mixed reviews, in retrospect, maybe a better quality wine would have been an improvement, however some members did enjoy it.
The dessert was rum roasted pineapple, drunken raisin, and hazelnut parfait with ginger crumble biscuit. The flavours combined together well to make a very tasty experience. The wine, a Vouvray moelleux 2011 Bourillion Dorleans with its orange overtones, complemented the dish perfectly. It was a change to have a sweet wine from somewhere other than Bordeaux.
We followed this with freshly ground coffee and petit fours.
We have had many good meals at the Alderley Edge Hotel and this one proves that they have not lost their touch. Their head chef, Shaun Sutton is to be congratulated for producing a fine dining experience for us, having only taken over from Chris Holland at Christmas.
Bob Lloyd 8th February 2015