AUTUMN NEWSLETTER

WINE DINNERS AT LE CAFÉ ANGLAIS

Our first wine dinner with Giovanni Manetti of Fontodi was a great success. We feared that an imperial - 6 litres - of Flaccianello 1999 might prove too much for the congregation but the chef was only just in time to get a glass of this nectar as the proceedings drew to an unruly end. Grilled Octopus with Borlotti Beans got rave reviews, Signor Manetti made a lot of complimentary noises about the Bucatini with Girolles, Tomato and Pecorino (much to the relief of the chef) and positive howls of delight were accorded the breasts of grouse wrapped in Iberico Lardo. The fact that we forgot to order the Vin Santo was washed away in the Tsunami of Flaccianello.

We do have three more scintillating wine dinners before the end of the year. The next will be Monday 6th October with Paolo De Marchi, the renowned and charming owner of Isole e Olena, an outstanding Chianti estate. The dinner will feature three vintages of Cepparello, perhaps the most balanced, elegant and long lived 'Supertuscans' as well as being an old favourite of ours, followed by two vintages of his majestic Cabernet Sauvignon. Coupled with a rich autumnal Tuscan inspired menu, the dinner is extremely fairly priced at £85.00.

The second dinner, on November 3rd will be hosted by Nicolas Jaboulet and will demonstrate the great strides that have been made in restoring the fortunes of one of the greatest French wine producers. Two recent and one mature vintage of the iconic Hermitage la Chapelle will prove the highlight of the evening but not before a lengthy perusal of the Northern Rhone and not without the ingestion of a menu of classical French cooking. This dinner is again very reasonably priced at £100.00.

Our last dinner before Christmas, on November 10th, takes us back to Italy but this time to Piedmont and a serious look at 2004 Barolo which has been heralded as a miraculous vintage. Starting with some 'lighter' wines we will sample three different producers (Vajra, Massolino and Aldo Conterno) of 2004 Barolo and follow with a 2001 Riserva from Massolino. November and Piedmont means white truffles and the menu will not lack funghal enhancement of a high order. David Gleave MW has kindly consented to chair what should be a memorable evening, which, although not inexpensive, represents excellent value at £150.00.

ART AT THE CAFÉ

We are deeply indebted to Jonathan Clarke (www.jonathanclarkfineart.com) for the incredibly generous loan of the art at Le Café Anglais. The big canvas is The Tropical Forest a major work by Glyn Philpott, completed 2 years before his death in 1937. Superficially a decorative panel - it was painted for and installed in Syrie Maugham's sitting room-the jungle foliage with its intense and insistent priapic imagery mark it out as more Rite of Spring than Colefax and Fowler. We think the colour values and imagery of The Tropical Forest are a perfect complement to the room at Le Cafe Anglais but unfortunately Jonathan seems to think he buys pictures to sell them and is featuring them in his important new catalogue of Twentieth Century figurative art this autumn.

The four drawings in the bar are by Kenneth Armitage, perhaps better known as sculptor. Jonathan writes: 'In 1963, Kenneth Armitage was approached by the Italian publisher Edizione del Cinquale to make a series of drawings illustrating a work of poetry and, without hesitation, he decided to use something by his favourite poet, Geoffrey Chaucer. He finally decided on The Reve's Tale from The Canterbury Tales. He thought it would be perfect for the project, as 'it was short and funny, in a medieval, slapstick music hall sort of way.' Its theme of illicit sex also allowed him to tell the story almost entirely through the naked human figure, which the sculptor regarded very much as his 'home ground'. Armitage researched the project by visiting a number of churches and cathedrals built in Chaucer's time and the style of the drawings is influenced by the heavy black lines of the leading in stained glass windows.

In total, he worked on the drawings for over five years. Unfortunately, The Reve's Tale was never published in the sculptor's lifetime. Not long after the project began, the owner of Edizione del Cinquale died in a car crash and the company soon folded. The drawings are executed in a combination of charcoal and wash.' Unfortunately these beautiful, crazy and frenzied images are also for sale. Strangely the horses copulating inspire more surprise and 'disgusted of Tunbridge Wells' remarks than those of the human figures.

HIDDEN GEMS (CONTINUED)

Given a grouse, a partridge or a civet of hare, the average response is to reach for the claret. Or Burgundy, or, adventurously, for the Rhone. Not a bad idea, although, personally, I favour Burgundy - especially our sensational Savigny-les-Beaune from Mongeard Mugneret - rather than claret with my grouse but, that said, we have an excellent selection in all these areas. I just wonder why we sell so much more French wines than Italian. Not only do the Italian wines represent great value but their exuberant, high octane style and their cracking acidity make them the perfect partners to accompany the robust flavours of the food at Le Cafe Anglais.

One of these undervalued gems is the Langhe Nebbiolo from G.D.Vajra. I shared a bottle with some friends after a bottle of the Savigny previously mentioned. It had so much glorious red berry fruit and pleasantly persistent, grippy tannins, it lost nothing in the comparison. It is in effect a junior Barolo but a lot more approachable.

Another underconsidered gem is the Vigna del Sorbo from Fontodi, very much enjoyed at our last wine dinner. Made with 90% Sangiovese and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, it is an Italian wine for claret lovers: a beautifully textured, elegant wine and its cherry, spice and cassis flavours develop magnificently in the glass.

CHRISTMAS AT LE CAFÉ ANGLAIS

Please ask nicky@lecafanglais.co.uk for our stunning Christmas party menus. We have made them incredibly simple and yet practically brimming over with choice. Sticking to our now proven formula of a selection of hors d'oeuvres, some with a special Christmas flavour, main courses choices are turkey, pheasant beef or goose - with fish and vegetarian options readily available. A new feature is a dessert course served after the pudding for those who want to laze around with a bottle of sticky or Port and nibble on a marron glacé, crack a walnut, peel a Clementine or force feed themselves chocolate truffles whilst wearing a silly paper hat and telling anybody who will listen about their tragic love life or the 1981 Ashes series. We have already taken a flood of bookings so do not delay, especially if you want the private room, so suitable for those who fear their party might be truly embarrassing.

We have a number of big bottles - Magnums, Double Magnums and bigger - awaiting that rather special occasion. What we don't have, we can get. Please consult Willoughby Andrews (willoughby@lecafeanglais.co,uk) for further information or for any help in choosing the perfect wine for your Christmas beano - or any other beano come to that.

THE GAME SEASON

Just as we always promised, we serve just about every type of game bird that we can find. Ptarmigan and Capercaillie may be a bit thin on the ground but otherwise we should be serving most of the following most of the time. Remember that only Le Café Anglais offers proper spit roast game, served on or off the bone according to your choice, and buys and prepares only the very best birds, always hung for the optimum time (between 4 and 8 days, in our view and according to the bird in question).

BRAISED PHEASANT WITH CREAM AND PIMENTON

Pheasant is a tricky bird to cook, especially if you do not have the benefit of Le Café Anglais' magnificent rotisserie. It tends to be dry. It can lack flavour. It can be scrawny. Even worse, it can be hard to avoid. There is an awful lot of pheasant being shot out of the sky and down on Exmoor, we don't know what to with it. Ungrateful guests burden their hosts with the odd brace. In the face of this excess, the locals don't even pluck it: they pull the skin off, feathers and all, whip the breasts off the bone and put it in the freezer. Six months later they pull them out and make chicken nuggets for the kids with it. This recipe is a bit more sophisticated: it requires bathing the pheasants (plucked or skinned is unimportant, but they must be on the bone) in a vat of cream. It is not especially economical, it may momentarily raise the cholesterol level but, more importantly, it makes the pheasant moist and unctuous with a rich and sharp kick from the smoked paprika.

• Season the trussed pheasant well with salt and pepper. Heat an ovenproof casserole just large enough to hold the bird and melt the butter. Add the pheasant and turn down the heat so that the butter gently foams without burning. Leave the pheasant on its side so that it colours really well before turning on its other side and repeating the process, and then finishing on the back oof the bird. The whole process should take ten minutes. Remove the bird and discard the butter. Do not clean the casserole.
• Peel and chop the shallots and garlic extremely finely. Melt the last teaspoon of butter in the casserole and add the garlic and shallots. Sweat them very gently so that they become transparent and take no colour. Add the pimenton and stir it in very well, scraping up the juices from the dish as you go. After a moment or two, add the vermouth or white wine and finish off the job of deglazing, or collecting up all the juices that have caramelised on the base of the casserole. Do not let the wine reduce too much. Pour in the double cream and brinng it briefly to the boil, no more, before returning the pheasant to the dish. Cover with a lid or a well fitting piece of foil and place in a medium hot oven (mark 6) for fifteen minutes.
• Remove the casserole from the oven and leave to stand, still covered, for ten minutes. Then lift out the pheasant on to a chopping board. Once cool enough to handle, carefully remove the legs, taking care to get the 'oyster' that lies under the backbone at the very top corner of the leg. Then slice down either side of the breastbone and remove the breasts, together with the wings. The breasts should be just cooked through, and the underside of the thighs still slightly bloody. Put the casserole back on the heat. If the creamy sauce is very runny, bring it back to the boil and reduce it over a medium to high heat (it should not bubble up incontrollably) for a few moments until it thickens. Add the legs and poach them in this creamy sauce for a couple of minutes, just enough to allow the meat to cook through. Now add the breasts and gently heat them through. On no account let the meat boil in the sauce or cook too long, as it will toughen very quickly. The sauce may need a little pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon to sharpen it up. Serve immediately with some pilaff rice and a green vegetable.
   

SATURDAY BRUNCH

Float above the madding crowd! Escape the purgatory of 'retail therapy'! Award yourself a little escapist interlude away from the recession depression and indulge yourself with some fruit and granola, some bacon and buttermilk pancakes or a kipper, a full English or a Monte Christo sandwich with Maple syrup at our new Saturday brunch.

Starts early, finishes late, could be fresh mango and orange juice or a cherry tomato Bloody Mary, a croissant and cappuccino or dry toast and Earl Grey, no milk, of course.

Brunch, every Saturday from 9.30 and drifting into the afternoon, began on Saturday 20th September with the ridiculously tempting offer of a 33% discount to get the ball rolling up to and including October 18th. By then we think you'll be hooked.

PLATS DU JOUR

Appetite for the plats du jour waxes large, with tagine fans making Tuesday lunch a fixture and suckling pig afficianados following its migrations from Wednesday to Saturday and back to Friday. With a good supply line now in force, pigs are enjoying their new residency on Monday evenings and won't move again, we promise. Meanwhile, a new and exciting feature, a recession special, veg included weekday roast for £10.00, for people who just drop in for a quick bite for a price barely more than the sad sandwich at the office desk.

LUNCH SPECIALS
(featured in the Set Lunch on weekdays, @ £16.50 for 2 courses, £19.50 for three)

Monday ~ Chicken and Mushroom Pie
Tuesday ~ Lamb Tagine
Wednesday ~ Beef Stroganoff
Thursday ~ Breast of Veal
Friday ~ Fish Pie
Saturday ~ Confit of Duck
Sunday ~ Roast Rump of Beef, Yorkshire Pudding

LUNCH ROASTS
(weekdays only, £10.00, fully garnished)

Monday ~ Beef Skirt with Shallots
Tuesday ~ Leg of Pork, Apple Sauce
Wednesday ~ Shoulder of Lamb
Thursday ~ Coquelet
Friday ~ Haunch of Venison

EVENING ROASTS
(featured on the à la carte menu)

Monday ~ Suckling Pig
Tuesday ~ Leg of Lamb
Wednesday ~ Duck
Thursday ~ Middle White Pork
Friday ~ Guinea Fowl
Saturday ~ Fillet of Beef
Sunday ~ Rump of Beef, Bubble 'n' Squeak