Plantation Vacation 2011

Calling All Intrepid Gourmands

Discover the magical world of vanilla and the Kingdom of Tonga from the 24th to the 31st of October 2011 with acclaimed Australian chef, Damien Styles and Heilala Vanilla.

Seven days of glorious Tongan sunshine, exotic feasts and cultural experiences.

To be part of this small and intimate group, contact jennifer@heilalavanilla.co.nz before the 1st of August 2011.

Click here to view detailed trip itinerary and costing's

The 2010 trip with Chefs Peter Gordon and Natasha MacAller was a truely amazing experience.

"I love the consistent first rate quality of Heilala Vanilla. The best part is that they have a genuine and beautiful story behind their product, a true partnership with the village of Utungake in Vava’u Tonga. My visit there last year to the Heilala Plantation was a very memorable experience, one that I’ll always treasure". Peter Gordon

Sourced Grocer

We love Sourced Grocer, a newly opened modern take on the corner store.  

Owners, Jerome Batten and Louis Joseph have obviously put an enormous amount of work into sourcing lots of new and interesting food and drink.  The fit out is cool and gives it a very comfortable 'always been there' sort of feel.

The business incorporates a small cafe featuring many of the foods fresh from the store.

I highly recommend it.

Selected meats, well sourced from Bangalow.

Freshly pressed, local evo available.

BRISBANE CHEESE AWARDS

Last weekend weekend was the annual Brisbane Cheese Awards.  This year they were held at Portside Wharf and were a huge success.

Judging took place on Friday morning with the awards ceremony and public tasting day on Sunday.  Several thousand people came along and enjoyed artisan cheese from all over Australia.

Fino would like to congratulate the following producers for their highly regarded achievement at the awards.

Vannella – Buffalo Mozzarella (Fresh Curd Textured) GOLD MEDAL

Richmond Cheese – Triple Cream Brie (White Mould) GOLD MEDAL

Hindmarsh Valley Dairy – Boshetto Rotolo (Fresh Curd Matured) GOLD MEDAL, CUP AWARD - Available Soon.

Friday Arvo at the Warehouse

Five freshly pressed varieties of Extra Virgin Olive Oil ready for tasting.

One of the great pleasures of this job is the many opportunities it gives us to taste, learn about and discuss great food and wine. This afternoon was a cracker and yet another reason to be pleased I never did end up as a lawyer!


For lunch today we tasted through a new range of Cuca products selected for us by MoVida. Cuca is a Spanish company that preserves seafood. In Australia we often think of tinned seafood as being of inferior quality, however in Spain preserved seafood is highly prized. The Cuca range are perfect for a quick and traditional tapas.

I am happy to say that both the Pulpo (octopus, Galician style with praprika, EVO and sea salt) and the Ventresca (premium belly tuna) passed our taste test with flying colours. We accompanied them with some Whitestone Farm House cheese, local organic olives and piquillo peppers.

After lunch Luke Fitzpatrick, CEO of Clovely Estate, visited to assist us with the blending of our 2011 Extra Virgin Olive Oils. This years crop from the South Burnett has been very, very good! We have been blessed with both large quantities and exceptional quality.

Luke Fitzpatrick talking us through the new oils.

Luke brought along the remnants of yesterdays Chardonnay Day to wash the oil down (and because I insisted he bring booze). They finished off the evening in fine style.

The everything but chardonnay set are missing out. Idiots!!

Noosa Food and Wine Festival 2011

This year we were very proud to feature Pristine Oysters, the reigning Vogue Producer of the Year at the 2011 Noosa Food and Wine festival.

If you have not tried these oysters yet they are probably as good as oysters can ever get.  Here is a list of restaurants in South East Queensland where you can try these exquisite gems.

Another producer of ours at Noosa was Susan and Peter from Olivfresh.  Olivfresh produces certified organic olives on a property backing onto Wivenhoe Dam.

Glen from Ricky's put together a very tasty bruschetta of Vannella stracciatella, Noosa tomatoes, white anchovies and our locally produced freshly pressed extra virgin olive oil.  This was the very oil that Glen helped us press only a few weeks ago.

Medusa Opening Party

Medusa recently opened to rave reviews.  It was a privilege to attend and see the boys start their journey.  Many thanks to Minh and his team.  Thanks also to Damon who shucked our perfect Pristine Oysters for the crowd and his lovely girlfriend Andi who took the photos.


Medusa Dining PH: 07 3161 1858

Damon shucking Pristine Oysters.

Tapas at Riverbend

Consulting chef Helen Torrington who along with head chef Hadley did a fantastic job.

I was recently asked to join the team at Riverbend for a Tapas and Spanish literature evening.
It was a most enjoyable night with some fantastic food and wine. If you have not tried Riverbend's new menu I can highly recommend it.


www.riverbendbooks.com.au

Cuca Mussels served traditionally in the tin.

Gildas of Ajoblanco (pickled garlic), Concervas Emilia Anchovy,  Cornichons.

A selection of Spanish specialties available on the night.