Today's ADSactly Food post is a little different from the usual recipe post. This foodie post is more... food porn! I was recently invited to Sunday lunch at Lanzerac Wine Estate by one of my very best clients at work, and so off I drove to Stellenbosch to have the fanciest lunch I have had in a verrrry long time.

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Lanzerac Wine Estate dates all the way back to 1692. Stellenbosch was only established in 1679, making Lanzerac one of the very first farms in the area. It has a very long history of winemaking, with the first vineyards dating back to the early 1700's.

Besides being such an old wine estate, it also has had a hand in the history of Pinotage in South Africa. Pinotage is a wine varietal that was created here in the Western Cape, bred to be a cross ("a new grape variety created by the cross pollination of two different varieties of the same species." ¹) between Hermitage (better known as Cinsaut in Europe) and Pinot Noir.

Lanzerac was the first winery to bottle and sell a Pinotage in 1959, at the Cape Wine Show.

Besides being an ultra luxurious five star hotel with an amazing spa (I know from first hand knowledge - we celebrated two nights of our honeymoon there!) Lanzerac is also known for it's five star food.

We were there for the Sunday Lunch Special, which for R400 a person (about $30) includes a four course meal, a bottle of bubbly, and a bottle of their wine, which is normally between R500 and R900 a bottle (approx $35 and $65). In dollars this may not seem like a lot of money for wine, but here, in Rands, it is quite an expensive bottle of wine, with the average, good wine being anywhere between R70 and R200 ($5 and $15). It is a GREAT deal, even without the wine.

So! Let's get down to the menu. The thing I love about fine dining is that one can have four or six courses, and not be incredibly full because of the chef portioning the food out properly, with the emphasis being on the flavour of the food rather than the size of the dish.

I really felt like every detail was thought of during the meal, from the attention paid to the size of the bowl the soup was served in, to the special home made bread served at the beginning of the meal.

The beautiful homemade bread was served with two butters; one sesame flavoured, and the other, beetroot. The butter was so delicately infused that the flavours just lightly tickle your taste buds. The sesame butter was slightly salty with a very subtle nuttiness. The beetroot was just sublime, with the lightest, ever so slightly sweet beetroot tinge to it. I thought my favourite would be the sesame, but the delicate beetroot came up tops for me.

Starter - Terrine of Chicken, Pancetta and Ham

The terrine was served with a crisp potato ring, a herb bouquet, truffle mousse, pepper caciotta and a walnut crumble. Let's break that down.

A terrine is basically a combination of meats, herbs, spices and whatever else the chef sees fit to press into a mould, and then cooked in a water bath, resulting in an almost ham or sausage like consistency.

This terrine had the texture and flavour of chicken, but had flecks of ham, which added a lovely difference in consistency. It was rolled in the pancetta, giving a delightful, and again, very subtle smokiness to the terrine.

My absolute favourite element of this dish was the absolutely divine truffle mousse. I could literally have ordered three more dollops of that mousse and would have eaten it with a spoon! It went supremely well with the pepper caciotta, a type of cheese (the round ball next to the truffle mousse). The herb bouquet was just the right amount of sharpness to create contrast to the richness of the cheese.

Soup Course - Smoked Snoek Chowder

Served with potato, rosemary oil, spring onion and candy striped beets.

Firstly - for those non South Africans - Snoek (pronounced snoohk) is a particularly bony, inexpensive fish. An interesting fish to choose, as it is so commonplace that it becomes completely unexpected in a menu like this.

We were both expecting a soup that was very fishy in taste, but we were utterly surprised at the delicate flavour. The fish flavour was very soft, almost just an accent, in a very creamy chowder. There were also corn and carrots, all diced to precisely the same size and shape, and just cooked until tender. The slight texture of the vegetables was incredibly beautiful in the very smooth soup. The garnish was crispy potato strings, which were literally to die for.

I must say that I definitely underestimated the soup, as I was really expecting a quite boring dish.

Main Course - Lamb Osso Bucco and Whole Roast Sirloin of Beef

I had the lamb, as I am a total lamb nut. I just love the rich, almost gaminess of lamb. It was a overcast and cold Winter's day, and a roasted lamb shank was the ideal winter warmer.

Served with a truffle risotto (squee!!), caper gremolata, tomato, charred lemon and poached garlic.

I cannot begin to explain the rich, round flavours. One would expect this dish to be heavy and cumbersome, but the lemon and tomato worked together to lift the lamb. The truffle risotto was the best risotto I have ever tasted, and believe me, I have eaten a lot of risotto. The truffle was just soo slight and subtle, but absolutely complimented the lamb along with the lemon and tomato. Two small poached cloves of garlic hid behind the lamb with their incredibly smooth, roasted flavour.

My husband had the roasted beef sirloin, which was served with a fondant potato, creamed spinach puree, parsnip crisps and a red wine jus.

While the beef was the clear star of the dish, it was complemented by two outstanding items; namely, the red wine jus, and creamed spinach puree. The jus had a deep, meaty taste, with the fruitiness of the wine bringing an unexpected, understated depth to the sauce.

I must say that I think the lamb was the better of the two dishes, but he was sure it was the beef!

Dessert Course - Banoffee Cheesecake and a Layered Chocolate and Apricot Slice

My husband had the Banoffee Cheesecake, which was accompanied by a banana truffle, salted fudge crumble, lime bubble glass and brandy jellies.

The cheesecake was again very gentle in its flavouring, with a perfect combination of sweet, soft and salty flavours and texture. The lime bubble glass was the perfect texture to break the creamy sweetness

I had the Layered Chocolate and Apricot Slice,which was served with the most divine chocolate ganache, apricot sorbet and whipped anglaise.

The chocolate ganache was incredibly good quality chocolate, dark, smooth and not too sweet, but the astounding apricot sorbet, light, sweet, fruity and cold, just cut right through the richness of the chocolate and cream. I absolutely loved this dessert to bits

Closing Notes

I felt as if the menu was designed with two different palettes in mind, as both my husband I were convinced we had each had the best dish.

The food was so stunning, with such attention to detail. We were really spoilt, and absolutely loved our time there.

I hope you have enjoyed this walk through of the top knotch menu.

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Sources
1 - Wikipedia