One
of the side benefits of being a member of the Delhi
Wine Club is that one gets to dine at some of the Capital's
newest and most happening restaurants in Delhi. And
so as part of the 5 th year celebrations of the Wine
Club, some two dozen of us members met at Ivy in Friends
Colony for (I just cant wait to let the cat of the bag!!)
one of the more memorable wine evenings since I became
a member some three years and probably fifty plus wine
meetings ago.
Now, hosting a sit down wine dinner for our Club is
not every restaurant's cup of tea, mind you. Apart from
having the glassware to support a multi course wine
menu and a kitchen geared to supply a simultaneously
delivered sit down multi choice menu to our members,
the key make- or- break factor is the service team that
marries the wines and food courses seamlessly. Based
on my experience and the comments I picked up from our
members, Ivy came thru with flying colours.
As usual, the extensive wine and food menus were mailed
by Subhash the day before so it was with a thirsty palate
and a ravenous appetite that I arrived at Ivy –
a modern venue with all white minimalist furniture not
detracting at all from the long and very inviting bar.
The 7 wines for the evening were all Spanish and were
in keeping with the Wine Club's philosophy of expanding
our wine horizons – all were being served to us
for the first time. The presence of our special guests,
Mr. Gonzalo Ortiz, the Deputy Chief de Mission and Mr.
Jose Antonio Bretones, the Commercial Counselor of the
Spanish Embassy underscored their support for the Club.
To start with, we had the Pucela Sauvignon Blanc 2006,
a young wine with a hint of apple, and a Tempranillo
Rose as aperitif wines. I have always felt that a Rose
wine is ideal as an aperitif during Delhi's hot weather
and thankfully this was the second consecutive meeting
to feature a Rose. This offering showed how versatile
the Tempranillo grape is; for this cherry pink Rose
was medium bodied, easy on the palate and simply delicious.
The tapas -finger food was well presented and tasty
and just kept coming and coming around –but soon
it was time to move upstairs to the PDR-our dinner location-one
of the factors that contributed to making it an enjoyable
evening as we (with the exception of a couple of members)
were able to sit in a compact exclusive location where
the music from the main bar was not intrusive so one
could hear Subhash and the wine importer guide us through
the wines.
To get the ball rolling with the Crab cakes was the
Abillo 2006 – a young not too fruity white wine
meant for easy drinking. Next up was our first Red of
the evening – the Valduero Tintafina from Toro–a
young robust character which was unfortunately put into
the shade by the outstanding Lobster Bisque .We had
been primed earlier that their Bisque was great. But
after the excellent one at Orient Express last month
where we had celebrated the first of the 5 events of
'Celebrating 5-years of Delhi Wine Club', I was a bit
skeptical – only to be pleasantly surprised. The
bisque was flavourful and had tons of succulent and
crisp lobster morsels unlik the Express where the emphasis
had been to make it creamier.
Next up with the Salads was a Rioja 2003 – an
elegant and fruity wine in line with the promise of
its Crianza label of a three year old wine with at least
a year in oak casks. A good offset to the dressing of
the Caesar's salad.
The wines just kept getting better and better with a
Pucella 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon / Tempranillo blend
accompanying the main course. Good concentration of
flavours with light tannins and a hint of oak, this
blend turned out to be especially a good match for those
who ordered the Pepper steaks. I ordered the Sole cutlets
as I was intrigued by the accompanying "Sourish
herb sauce" and wondered if the foodie reputation
of our genial fellow member Sourish Bhattacharya had
preceded him! .Two of my dining partners had ordered
the steak and though I did keep an eagle eye out for
any signs of struggle between knife and tenderloin,
there were none –so looks like Ivy's got a good
supplier and a great Chef who clarified that he had
indeed taken the receipe and the name from a haute cuisine
restaurant in Paris.
Saving the best for last as usual was the Calderena
Reserva 2001 – a dark ruby coloured smooth Tempranillo,
well balanced with soft and juicy tannins. Those I spoke
to after they had demolished the Molten chocolate cake,
rated the Reserva as probably the outstanding wine of
the evening.
I would rate this restaurant excellent for food quality,
service and ambiance. It really belongs to the Ivy League
of restaurants in the city. A full house on a Wednesday
indicated that the Delhiites have already noticed!
So once again the Wine club scored a hit – evidenced
as much by a well planned and matched food / wine menu
as by the team at Ivy rising to the occasion to deliver
a high quality evening. I know a lot of our members
are away for their vacations but seeing the Club maintaining
its high standards in terms of the overall experience
delivered to its members for a evening , I would urge
you all to come and support the Club in much larger
numbers for future dinners–you will not be disappointed!
Salud!!
Arun Batra is a management consultant,
foodie and a commentator on food and wine. As he has
mentioned, he has been a regular member of the Delhi
Wine Club for the last three years-editor.
