The world's first kombucha paired dinner
You take 4 varieties of kombucha and add some culinary genius... the result: a 4 course wild dining feast
By way of an introduction, we met with Mclean SInclair-Parry from Colstoun (a beautiful heritage house, renowned cookery school, and wedding venue in East Lothian, Scotland) two years ago at the Edinburgh Food Festival. We had just started selling our kombucha, and back then it was solely on draught from a bespoke bar. We knew then we wanted to do something together, and fast forward two years, and this was the result... a Sunday evening wild and foraged dinner of four courses, each paired with one of our kombucha varieties. Alison Henderson, chef at Colstoun, said it was a lovely challenge to effectively be the "food sommelier" to pair the food to the kombucha as opposed to choosing wine to suit the food. So, the kombucha was the starting point.
We have always made our kombucha to sit well at the dinner table, hence no added fruits to the brews. Their flavours are there to highlight food dishes, in the same way that wine/beer does. For example, the Darjeeling kombucha in the dinner was used like a dessert wine (vinous yet virtuous!).
If you are interested in the inspiration/thoughts of exciting chefs, we have included the full menu below and chef Alison's thoughts. The menu was developed with choices for herbivores and carnivores. For example, I had the pulled smoky aubergine in the main course with a Yunnan Black kombucha and it was yummy!
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W I L D F O O D A N D R A W D R I N K , 29 / 07 / 18 Menu by Alison Henderson, Chef, Colstoun
4 Kombuchas, different origins for the tea, different characters and flavour profiles...a delicious food challenge to pair foods with the Kombuchas that reflected and emphasised their flavour as opposed to contrasting which is another way to pair drinks with food.
C A N A P E S....
S E N C H A G R E E N T E A ....to me this light, gentle effervescence with that hint of citrus yuzu back note hinted at its Japanese roots and inspired thoughts of clean, simple Japanese food....
F O R A G E D A N D W I L D S U S H I
Nori seaweed wrapped around sushi rice, dressed with our own Wild Garlic sushi vinegar and showing off ...
- Beetroot and North Berwick Gin cured Gravlax, paired with Saltmarsh foragables....Sea Arrowgrass, Marsh Samphire and Sea Aster
- Cucumber from the Walled Garden with Wild Garlic and pickled Magnolia petals
- Homepickled Beetroot with Sweet Cicely
S T A R T E R
O O L O N G KOMBUCHA ... a hint of gooseberry with an elderflower backnote, the flavours I felt would work with our starter....clean and light, bit of acidity to complement the beautifully delicate flavour of freshly caught and simply pan fried mackerel or garden beets...
Paired with:
Fresh mackerel
Pan fried and served with Garden gooseberries 2 ways...pickled pink goosegogs and fresh and crunchy green ones. Nasturtium capers, leaves and flowers for a bit of peppery heat and a splash of colour.
OR
Roasted garden beets with ginger, nasturtium capers, seeds and pine nuts
Served with Homemade bread.... Rye, White yeast and Brown yeast... with Smoked butter
M A I N
Y U N N A N B L A C K KOMBUCHA ... a slightly richer Kombucha...bit more body with a smoky finish....
Paired with:
Shoulder of Pork... Long marinated in Yunnan Kombucha and a touch of cider, windfall early apples from the orchard with sage, lavender and the sweetness of foraged birch sap reduced and reduced to a syrup, then slow cooked until falling apart.
OR
Smoked and pulled, roast aubergine with pickled redcurrants
Served with: Hay baked Ayrshire new potatoes adding that smokey note, foraged green salad leaves with a wild garlic vinaigrette, gingery Kimchi...giving a real bang of clean flavour... another fermented element with great health benefits, Garden salads, Red cabbage and raw beetroot, dried apricots and sultanas with and elderberry vinegar dressing, Fennel, cucumber, mint and sweet cicely and a honeyed dressing
D E S S E R T
D A R J E E L I N G KOMBUCHA real rose petal aromas on the nose, like the scent of rosa japonica in the air midsummer with a lighter finish...sophisticated...not Rosewater strength! An Ode to the Rose and the Indian origin of the tea and Colstouns long historical connection with India....served in the Indian room in the main house...
PAIRED WITH: Rose and cardamom icecream cones with fennel sherbet and wild strawberries, Rose, Redcurrant and fennel seed marshmallow, and delicate Rosepetal shortbread (India meets Scotland).
Keep your eyes open for more collaborations and kombucha pairing dinners. Get in touch with us if you would like to collaborate.
