I am Valérie, the French trainee at Bubble Brothers. After already two months working in Ireland, I had the opportunity last week to visit the London International Wine Fair. It was my first time there and I really enjoyed it a lot.
After a chaotic journey, I finally reached the Customs House Excel, overcrowded for the first day.  Continue reading »

Paul Weller was fifty at the weekend. Crikey.
It’s the Suffolk Show again Wednesday and Thursday. Few places I’d rather be, really few. Crumbs.
Our roving reporter, Valérie, is just about to publish her account of her trip to the London Wine Fair with pictures and everything, and I still haven’t posted ninety per cent of my Vinisud news from February. Stale buns at this stage. Crivens.  Continue reading »

The Beer Revolution has been away for the past number days but he hasn’t been idle. I’ve been in England and though it hasn’t been a beer trip (yes, I know the Cambridge beer festival was on while I was here) I have been observing and keeping notes while fulfilling family duties.
So, after many years of CAMRA being active in this land, what has been the result?
My first port of call was a manor garden café (dutiful husband).  Continue reading »

Could Portugal be the new Spain? Reading Tessa Kiros’ Piri Piri Starfish and its references to petisco (tapas, Portuguese-style), chourico (substitute chorizo), port instead of sherry and salt cod (in Portugal – bacalhau, in Spain – bacalao) you could be forgiven for wondering if things are moving that direction. This, the follow up to Kiros’ acclaimed parent-and-child-orientated Apples for Jam, is a more straightforward cookbook.  Continue reading »

Could Portugal be the new Spain? Reading Tessa Kiros’ Piri Piri Starfish and its references to petisco (tapas, Portuguese-style), chourico (substitute chorizo), port instead of sherry and salt cod (in Portugal – bacalhau, in Spain – bacalao) you could be forgiven for wondering if things are moving that direction. This, the follow up to Kiros’ acclaimed parent-and-child-orientated Apples for Jam, is a more straightforward cookbook.  Continue reading »

Could Portugal be the new Spain? Reading Tessa Kiros’ Piri Piri Starfish and its references to petisco (tapas, Portuguese-style), chourico (substitute chorizo), port instead of sherry and salt cod (in Portugal – bacalhau, in Spain – bacalao) you could be forgiven for wondering if things are moving that direction. This, the follow up to Kiros’ acclaimed parent-and-child-orientated Apples for Jam, is a more straightforward cookbook.  Continue reading »

Could Portugal be the new Spain? Reading Tessa Kiros’ Piri Piri Starfish and its references to petisco (tapas, Portuguese-style), chourico (substitute chorizo), port instead of sherry and salt cod (in Portugal – bacalhau, in Spain – bacalao) you could be forgiven for wondering if things are moving that direction. This, the follow up to Kiros’ acclaimed parent-and-child-orientated Apples for Jam, is a more straightforward cookbook.  Continue reading »

There is a very simple recipe that uses the principles used to thickened sauces with particles. As funny as it may sounds, a soup is by definition a liquid thickened by vegetables, seafood (bisque), fish or fruits pure.
This recipe follows that principle but I added a little bit of starch and fat globules to help to achieve a nice velvety consistency. So this is how it goes:
Recipe for 4 to 6 people:

6 medium or 10 small Carrots, washed, peeled and coarsely chopped.  Continue reading »

Un petit d’un petit
S’.  Continue reading »

I got a text from my brother David yesterday;who like me inherited from our father an addiction for doing crosswords.
The text read:
Crossword enthusiasts know that someone who is wierd is just wired differently.  Continue reading »

Living with my two sisters and my parents, I rarely get the house to myself. So this evening when I finished work and headed home to my temporary sanctuary (they’re away for the weekend, yay!), I decided I deserved a treat! I thought about it all day and it got me through work, considering all the options – what delightful meal would I treat myself to???

This is what I came up with!!  Continue reading »

 There’s so much I could write about here in Barcelona, but I’ll keep it somewhat brief. What strikes me more than anything, is how this city revolves around eating and drinking. It truly is a food and drink culture. 
Between the restaurants, tapas bars, markets, cafes, and snack shops, there is very little danger of going hungry or thirsty. People eat standing up, walking, sitting down, or any combination of the three.  Continue reading »

Truffle trouble – The French black truffles are threatened by global warming’s effect on the climate in France.
Smoothies can be good for health, bad for teeth – Dentists worry about too much smoothie intake, especially now that they’re pitched as “healthful beverages” when made with the right ingredients.
Saying goodbye to a Wine Legend – Robert Mondavi, who reinvented the Napa Valley vineyard scene passed away at the age of 94 last Friday.  Continue reading »

In honor of the holiday weekend and the forthcoming warm weather (ahem, warm weather, did you hear me? you may arrive now!), I wanted to share a fun beverage with you today. I have a special place in my heart for sangria and I’m on the search for a perfect recipe. This one was pretty darn good and there wasn’t a drop left.
But before I give you the recipe, I want to impart some of my sangria knowledge onto you, dear readers.  Continue reading »

I was in Bucharest/Romania for 3 days. Obviously, I couldn’t keep myself too far away from a food store or from my parents fridge, as they always keep some good food stuff in there.
So, from the food store I bought “cașcaval afumat împletit” (3,20 euro = 500 grams) – a braided smoked kashkaval. And from…  Continue reading »

A couple of years ago in a Brocante in the Auvergne I found an old bowl with a wonderful French motto printed on it.
“Il y a plus de vieux ivrognes que de vieux m.  Continue reading »

IT’S RESTAURANT WARS! I sort of thought that the Wedding Wars episode was in place of Restaurant Wars but apparently I thought wrong. But I’m glad they brought Restaurant Wars back in its own episode because this challenge is a great one. A true test of a chef’s ability to both conceptualize and execute a menu, this one always seems to make or break the cheftestants.
Warning: Spoilers after the jump!  Continue reading »

Even though I’ve been spritzed and sprinkled by the rain, I’m quite happy to be here in Barcelona! My feet are sore, my belly is full, and I’m feeling more relaxed already. And no, that’s not me in the above photo.
Thanks, everyone, for your tips, and keep them coming!
Last night, after arriving and sampling a few tapas, I headed to the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the opera house. Sadly, there was no opera on, but I did get in some ballet.  Continue reading »

And the prodigal blogger as well. Like a bad penny or an early summer Irish downpour I turn up, hands in pockets and whistling sheepishly, pretending I never left. You may be forgiven for thinking that I've been sitting in a darkened room stuffing my face with chocolate, but the truth is I just haven't made anything that didn't already appear here (I only spent one week stuffing my face with chocolate).  Continue reading »