A Taste of New Zealand

New Zealand holds amazing coastlines with golden sandy beaches, sweeping mountains, caves, hot springs, wildlife and many more attractions that make it a popular destination and on many people’s holiday bucket list. It’s approximately a 25 hour flight time away from London and indeed it is more or less on the other side of the world to us (The antipodal city to London is Portobello, New Zealand. This means that, among all the populated locations in the world, the farthest city from London is Portobello).

The country is mostly made of two islands, North and South, and holds a land area of 268,000 square kilometres. The population is around 4.8 million which equates to 18 people per square kilometre compared to the UK which has 274 people per square kilometre. Many parts of the country are remote and there are also around 600 islands to explore.

New Zealand fact: “First sighted by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, the country was later mapped by James Cook” Teara.

A mention of New Zealand would not be complete without acknowledging the All Blacks international New Zealand rugby team and their famous Haka dance – New Zealand has won the Rugby World Cup three times.

In amongst the things New Zealand is famed for is of course lamb and wine which brings us nicely to the main theme of this article where we look to pair these two together with a little help from the winery No.1 Family Estate.

Two classic fizz labels from No.1 Family Estate were paired with grilled lamb chops, new potatoes, roasted cherry tomatoes and mixed boiled veg (plus mint sauce):

 

No.1 Cuvée – Silver Medal Winner Light & Fruity Glass of Bubbly Awards 2019: “Dry apple and dry pear with a touch of cured ham on the nose. Citrus driven in the mouth.”

No.1 Rosé – Silver Medal Winner Forget Me Not Glass of Bubbly Awards 2019: “Aromas are what won it the trophy for Sea Breeze for two previous years running – It is crisp and fresh, carrying almost a salty air aroma with dry walnut, mineral and faint red berries. As with all the labels from No.1 Family Estate you can rely on this wine to be memorable and enjoyable – Flavours of minerals, dry raspberry and citrus.”

 

Pairing No.1 with lamb chops:

No.1 Cuvée: “It’s quite a lively pairing with the No.1 Cuvée bursting with dry yellow fruits / sea breeze flavours, then quickly fading / settling back to allow clean meat and veg flavours. Quite a lively reaction so depending on your food pairing preferences this will be either a big thumbs up or a definite no, no.”

No.1 Rosé: “Leaves a sweeter / riper red fruit taste initially then a quick fade to savoury notes from the lamb with most of the greasy flavours / textures removed. A great palate cleanser action from the rosé yet it does not spoil the dish – a great balance and partnership here. An elegant pairing.“