A Vineyard Diary Part 16

Coates & Seely, part of the gastronomic cornucopia in the Cheltenham Gold Cup Hamper.

Vineyards and Coronavirus

The story so far: with the prospect of freedom at last now beckoning, we look to provide some pleasurable diversion in the meantime…

Cast your mind back to last March.

The Cheltenham Festival.

A quarter of a million people, in tweeds, furs and trilbies, celebrated the pinnacle of the National Hunt season.

230,000 pints of Guinness were drunk, 20,000 bottles of champagne poured, five tonnes of smoked salmon consumed. The crowds milled happily from tent to paddock to course, meeting friends, talking racing, ‘fleecing’ the bookies and thrilling to the finest national hunt racing festival in the world.

A week later, a pale and drawn prime minister declared the first national lockdown in our country’s thousand year history.

The Festival was an ante-diluvian moment.

Nothing was ever the same after it.

Yet it happened, and it will happen again this year.

Only once in its 161 year history has the festival been cancelled, when the foot-and-mouth outbreak of 2001 succeeded where world wars and global pandemics have failed.

This year the racing will again take place as usual, although sadly we shall have to watch from home.

Yet there is cause for celebration.

Spring already beckons with the prospect of renewal, and the virus that has played such havoc with our lives, and the racing, is in decline.

Within a matter of weeks now we shall once again be mixing with friends, eating and drinking together, and enjoying fully one of the greatest national sporting calendars in the world. Meanwhile, to raise morale still further, and to tease your waist-lines, we have teamed up with our friends and partners at Boisdale and Fitzdares to produce an incredible Cheltenham Gold Cup hamper, for delivery direct to your homes on the day.

The Gold Cup hamper, designed for two and to last the whole day, is a veritable cornucopia of British delicacies.

Start the day, reclined comfortably in your bubble, with a Bloody Mary made from English Puffing Billy Stream Vodka and quite the best spiced tomato mix on the market, from the Pickle House.

Study the form while you do so, taking advantage of the free £25 betting voucher provided by our friends at Fitzdares.

As lunch beckons, open a bottle of Coates & Seely Brut Reserve NV, provided by yours truly, before indulging in a maritime saturnalia of Scottish langoustine (with home-made mayo), Dunkeld smoked salmon (with herby crème fraiche), Orkney pickled herrings (with dill and lemon) and potted smoked mackerel (with horseradish and chives). Do not leave your bubble. Protect the NHS.

Choose, then, between a main course of oxtail and parmesan pie (to be oven-heated for 18 mins – the only cooking required in the whole hamper) and the great Boisdale speciality of fillet of beef, Herefordshire asparagus, Cornish new potatoes and English wild garlic salsa verde, followed, in either case, by crème brulée à l’Anglaise with a praline shard and blueberry compôte, and topped off with a selection of Scottish cheeses.

Cheltenham Gold Cup Hamper from Boisdales

Finally, at the end of an afternoon of thrilling racing, as you count your winnings and contemplate the delicious cold supper ahead of you, indulge in some comforting gin and tonics made from London Distillery gin and Double Dutch mixes.

Whether you are in despair at lockdown, in early training for the re-opening of the British social season, or simply in need of an indulgence, these hampers will not disappoint. They are utterly delicious and amazingly good value. Go to Boisdale to place your orders and know that you will also be helping the Great British food and drinks industry back onto its feet…

A Vineyard Diary Part 13

To ease our clients through further pandemic chaos Coates & Seely are curating a hamper of Christmas food and goods from local Hampshire producers.

Vineyards and Coronavirus

The story so far: after a small but perfect harvest, pandemic chaos strikes again and we enter another lockdown…

Lockdown strikes again and we have re-occupied our positions on Albion – the perfect socially-distanced pandemic-proof office.

It’s sometimes a little nippy, but nothing that long-johns and a hint of vintage fur can’t cope with.

Sales have flat-lined once more as our wonderful clients – hotels, restaurants, pubs and events companies – struggle themselves to deal with the devastation that lockdown creates for them.

We are truly all in this together…

Meanwhile, one of our corporate customers has placed an order for bottles of Coates & Seely to be sent to their clients and has asked us to curate a Christmas hamper of locally produced food and goods around them.

The variety and quality of the produce we have on our doorstep in Hampshire (with the occasional foray into Somerset) is astonishing.

From hand-made Christmas puddings, dressed in calico, made to an original nineteenth century family recipe (Plum Duff & Stuff), to mince pies with home-made mincemeat of pear, walnut and brandy, and delicate sweet pastry (Mrs B’s Kitchen); from Christmas pudding flavoured fudge that literally melts in the mouth (it melts hearts, too) (Marsden’s Confectionery), to chilli, sweet and smoked flavoured almonds and cashews for your Christmas day ‘quarantinis’ (Cambrook Extraordinary Nuts) and mature cheddars made from an ancient recipe and a single family herd of 320 organic dairy cows (Godminster).

And, whilst not exactly edible, you will probably be tempted to eat, when you first experience their delicious scent, Mariana’s home-made soaps of lavender, lemongrass and sweet orange, hand-wrapped by Mariana herself and which, like your bath, will provide the perfect ending to even the most trying of days.

What each of these – and the many other local producers we work with – all share is an artisanal approach to production, using the highest quality craftsmanship, the best and most ethically sourced ingredients, recyclable packaging and rurally-based production facilities, within a family environment.

The artisans are the great sanctuary of quality, the family the last stronghold of happiness. When they disappear, and the big brands take over, all will be lost.

If you are interested in any of these products, or in our Christmas hamper, do please click on the above links or respond directly to us if you’d like to order any of our sparkling wines which will produce the fizz and the sparkle we must all surely deserve after the trials of this rather extraordinary year!

A Vineyard Diary Part 11

Virginia Coates, Head of Events demonstrates local and seasonal food pairing with English sparkling wine from Coates & Seely.

Vineyards and Coronavirus

The story so far: life begins to return to something closer to normality, with the hospitality sector having taken the first early steps towards re-opening, (although crowd-related ‘events’ remain prohibited). Meanwhile, we have completed the first curated tours of Coates & Seely on ‘Albion’, our 1952 vintage coach…

In addition to a curated guide of the vineyards and winery, with transport provided by ‘Albion’, our tour-guests are also treated to food matching – with canapés made from our own ingredients or those of our neighbours – followed by lunch outside under Indian Mughal tents.

Virginia’s culinary skills at this point play a leading role, proving that the chalk soils of North Hampshire not only provide outstanding fruit for the production of English sparkling wine, but also the perfect ingredients for food pairings with our wines.

Food pairing with English Sparkling Wine

England has no food and wine ’vernacular’, in the way that French or Italian wine regions, for instance, have developed – sometimes over centuries – local food dishes that perfectly match the local wines, but we have made an exciting start at Coates & Seely, knowing that no wine is ever entirely complete without matching food and the deep pleasure of accompanying friendship.

Here is Virginia at work.

A Vineyard Diary Part 10

Coates & Seely launch the private tours of their Hampshire vineyard and winery including sparkling wine tasting and food pairing lunch.

Vineyards and Coronavirus

The story so far: after battles with disappearing workforces, collapsing markets, devilish frosts and government fug, are we seeing the early glimpses of a return to a previous life?

Hampshire Vineyard Private Tour lunch under Indian Mughal Tent

In anticipation of the re-opening of the hospitality sector next week, and in an attempt to make up in some part for the lost, but essential, life pleasures of eating and drinking in beautiful surroundings, we have decided to open our Hampshire gardens and English Sparkling Wine vineyards and offer socially-distanced Private Tours of our vineyards and winery, followed by tastings, food pairings and lunch under Indian Mughul tents.

Given the constraints we are under the tours, filmed below, can only be taken by groups of 8-12 people and are aimed principally at the corporate hospitality sector or perhaps for those special occasions.

(to be continued….)

A Vineyard Diary Part 9

Coates & Seely applaud and salute the hospitality industry inspired by generosity and care for their staff and the vulnerable throughout the pandemic.

Vineyards and Coronavirus

The story so far: beyond the struggle to survive pandemics and mother nature, and through the chaos and absurdities of current lockdown policy, the shoots of practical self-help continue to take root.

Commedia dell’Arte – also known as Commedia alla Maschera (masked comedy), or Commedia Improvviso – is said to have died out in the late 18^th century.

Nevertheless, it appears to be making a concerted comeback, in only the thinnest of disguises, with our current leadership.

What could be more ‘improvised’ (and comic, if it weren’t so tragic) than the current farrago around quarantine?

Or a more perfect comic plot than the tortured issue of wearing (or not wearing) (or being seen to wear) a face ‘mask’?

It is as if Il Capitano, Scaramouche and Il Dottore have metamorphosed into some of our most (or least!) eminent politicians. (We will leave it to you to apply names to characters. By email, please – the best suggestions to qualify for a bottle of Coates & Seely).

Away from this hopeless mess, it is heartening to see so many of our clients within the hospitality sector – one of the worst to be hit by the pandemic – emerge with initiatives of their own, fired both by generosity and resourcefulness.

Into the first category fall the Caprice Group of restaurants, who in conjunction with the Richard Caring Foundation have opened the kitchens of The Ivy Collection, Scott’s, Annabel’s, Le Caprice and Bill’s across the country to provide 50,000 meals a week to the vulnerable throughout the pandemic. And our dear friends at Food Show, one of the most renowned events caterers in London, who have done something very similar.

These are wonderful, real-life performances, inspired by generosity and care for their staff, which we applaud and salute.

Initiative and resourcefulness also abound. Skye Gyngell of Spring and Heckfield Place has helped protect their inspired kitchen garden at Heckfield, their bio-dynamic farm supplier, Fern Verrow in Herefordshire, as well their own chefs, by supplying their renowned sourdough breads and kefir butter, cakes, jams and cordials and specialist store cupboard ingredients for their stranded London customers via an on-line shop.

Simon and Jason, at The Wellington Arms in Baughurst, have done something similar, turning their restaurant into the Welli Deli where each morning you can find their signature cheese soufflés, crab & asparagus quiches and home-grown miniature vegetables, along with bottles of Coates & Seely, alongside a good-natured gathering of satisfied local customers.

In London, the Cubitt House group have turned The Coach Makers Arms, The Orange and The Alfred Tennyson into purveyors of the finest takeaways; whilst the deeply talented Jonny Lake and Isa Bal – previously head chef and head sommelier, respectively, at The Fat Duck – have launched an online shop to supplement Trivet, their quite outstanding new restaurant in Bermondsey, which we urge you all to visit the minute lockdown is over (it is the most exciting new restaurant in London).

All of these inspirational establishments, as well as hundreds of our other friends within the industry, will in time thrive once more in providing outstanding service, at the very highest levels, to their devoted customers.

But we do urgently need the current cast of comic characters to speak their final lines, promptly, clearly and judiciously, without contradiction or inconsistency, and to remove themselves from the hospitality stage as soon as possible, as has now been done in almost every other European country.

Not just to save jobs, companies and whole industries, but to save livelihoods.

To ensure success, they might also quarantine the Home Secretary…

Finally, to soften this rather irritable tone, we invite all our friends of Coates & Seely to put themselves forward to win a fabulous prize of bottles of Coates & Seely, boxes of Summerdown Mint Chocolates and photo frames from our friends at Addison Ross.

(to be continued….)

Coates & Seely: The Perfect Pairing

The Jockey Club: Virginia Coates, February 20th 2020

COATES & SEELY AND THE JOCKEY CLUB

Coates & Seely and racing share many attributes: our grapes are grown on the south facing chalk slopes of the North Hampshire Downs, the home to many top racehorse studs – the perfect “terroir” for award winning wines and racehorse winners. The vines thrive on the thin layer of topsoil, pushing their roots down into the chalk, never lacking water which emerges from the aquifers deep below. Racehorses bred on these grasslands have also been proven to thrive, many a winner has been raised on the chalk soil within a stone’s throw of Coates & Seely’s vineyards.

Racing has long been at the heart of British Society. It has been traditional for a day at the races to include fizz with friends, and now there is the opportunity to crack open English sparkling wines at the bar, in the restaurant or at your picnic – an ideal way to spend a day at the races or to celebrate a victory – a natural evolution of the traditions, as Coates & Seely is quintessentially a British brand, along with The Jockey Club.

Both C&S and The Jockey Club are so proud to be British and working in partnership. This harmony was confirmed by a curious coincidence: C&S acquired a retired 1952 British Leyland vintage coach, in British Racing Green, with a “champagne bar” fitted at the entrance, from an event company in Belgian. We repatriated the coach and were thrilled to realise the lucky synergy of the transaction, as it was registered with the number plate “JCK”. The return journey of the coach to Britain coincided with the signing up of our very special partnership with The Jockey Club.

Albion – an ancient name for Britain – as we have named the coach, gets taken to the races at Epsom, Sandown and Newmarket, where it acts as a perfect focal point to serve our English sparkling wines. So photogenic is this vehicle, that it has already earned its keep on a number of occasions, by appearing on request on ITV racing news with Francesca Cumani. Inside Albion are intimate tables to enjoy a glass of C&S, outside are bars in British Racing Green, the colour of our marketing long before we went to the races, with parasols to keep off the blazing British sun.

Coates & Seely is a young company, based on an old friendship, between Nicholas Coates and Christian Seely, who studied at business school together in France; idling many a day at the races. After their respective careers in finance and the wine world, they came together in 2008 to start a business with a mutual passion and the desire to create the very best English sparkling wines.

Their aim from the start was to create wines which reflect the high quality of the English chalk “terroir”, using only the best grapes under the guidance of the top French winemakers and consultants from Champagne. Their efforts were rewarded from the start – the wines were launched in 2011 and the first discerning hotels to order were the Georges V and Hotel Bristol in Paris; subsequently many top awards have been given; and in 2019 the International Wine & Spirit Challenge gave the trophy for the “top bottle fermented sparkling wine in the world” to Coates & Seely. It’s like winning the Derby with a newly discovered racehorse, who has been selectively bred from purebred lines, in new surroundings – and we are still celebrating!

Coates & Seely is listed in many top establishments including the Fat Duck, the Savoy, the Dorchester and Annabel’s; in museums and galleries across London; in five of the Royal Palaces and in ten different countries. The Rosé is served in Paris by Alain Ducasse in his restaurant, by the glass. In addition private clients around the world enjoy the fizz and C&S are so proud to be listed by The Jockey Club at so many of their racecourses.

When we cracked open our first bottle, we reflected that if we lived in a wine producing area of the world, or in Champagne, there would be food in the vernacular, local food matchings that would bring out the best in the wines. Just as winemaking has developed in Britain, so has the availability of top ingredients grown locally, making the development of local food matches a joy. At Coates & Seely we encourage people to drink C&S not just as an aperitif, or in celebration, but throughout lunch or dinner, as the wines work well with so many foods. I trained as a chef under Pru Leith and worked around the world as a private chef, and now work for Coates & Seely as the in-house chef and head of events. I take a particular interest in the wine and food served by the Jockey Club in so many spectacular locations.

When you arrive at the races, a glass of Coates & Seely is the perfect way to get you in the mood for the day, so I would start with a glass before lunch. To follow, if you are having a picnic, the Jockey Club chefs have put together an inspired British Luxury Hamper to serve at the races. The range of ingredients and menu choices reflect the best of British food, yet cooked with Continental flair and confidence, using imaginative recipes, all of which will pair perfectly with the bottle of Coates & Seely Rose NV included in the hamper. The only snag I can see, is you will feel tempted to open more than the one bottle provided!

Chicken Liver Paté, to start, works perfectly with the Rosé, the earthiness of the paté, matches well the sweet fruit of the fizz.

The Beef and Smoked Salmon, so British, are also a natural pairing. I love to make Quail Scotch Eggs to serve at picnics, so I am glad to see them included alongside the healthy lentil salad.

The puddings are too tempting, and at this point in the picnic I would take a break from the C&S to pace yourself, with the South Downs Water, to clear the palate and save the last glass of Rosé for the wonderful selection of three English cheeses – another example of the skill in British craftsmanship. If there is any fizz left in the bottle, bring it out at tea time (or order another one!) – the cream tea, an essential English experience, served with strawberry jam, will be enhanced by a glass of Coates & Seely, and by then you will hopefully be celebrating your victories.

A bottle of Coates & Seely can be found within the Luxury Hamper in the Great British Picnic enclosure at the Investec Derby Festival.