Food review by Mark Bradford and wine review by Stephen O'Halloran

Food

A full house on a showery Easter Tuesday saw our immediate past president and acting Food master Bill Alexiou in the kitchen with friend Voula Price, presenting Greek Easter Surprises for the first mixed luncheon of the year.  Voula and Bill cooked on our last mixed lunch in November, and they again attracted a large turnout of members and guests.  It is well-known that nobody leaves hungry when Bill is involved in a lunch and today was no exception.

Canapés

These were aplenty.  We started with mini-Greek salads on pita, having dehydrated Kalamata olive flakes, micro-diced cucumber and tomato, and feta with whipped basil.

Following this tasty plate was stewed octopus on china spoons, charred to produce a smoky Greek flavour.  Very tasty with the charring working well.

Finally, we were served a Melinzana Salata (eggplant salad) of flame-roasted eggplant, parsley, lemon, olive oil and sesame seeds (a Greek version of baba ghanoush).

Entrée

Sitting down to an entrée, we had Avgolemono – a traditional Greek soup at Easter, with chicken broth, rice, lemons and eggs.  Voula gave an interesting presentation to the room of the significance of the painted Greek eggs on our table for this dish, including the etiquette of eating them in a group.

Main

Today we were served Pasticcio, a Greek version of Lasagne. Whereas the latter usually incorporates pasta sheets, Pasticcio has special long pasta tubes designed for this traditional dish.  The pasta was cooked al dente and served with a Marouliesalata (lettuce salad), having lettuce, dill, lemon and olive oil.  The dish was a great match for today’s wines.

Dessert

The cheese master was given the day off, and we had a tasty baklava dessert of filo pastry, walnuts and syrup. Delightful, served with an impressive French sauternes.

Thank you, Voula and Bill – much thought and effort went into today’s Greek-themed lunch – a lively atmosphere around the room today with good company, wine and food.

Wine

A full house greeted the ladies to our first mixed lunch for 2025. Further lunches are planned for later in the year.  We were very lucky to secure our erstwhile President Bill Alexiou and his charming co-chef Voula to do their Greek Easter Feast, which indeed it was. See the Food Report for more details. Needless nobody went home thinking about cooking dinner! The lunch wines were as follows.

We began with our House Champagne, the Jacquart Mosaique NV. Nice and cold, crisp and fresh, perfect for the pass arounds of which there were plenty! 

Upon being seated, we were presented with a Margaret River Chardonnay from Nocturn wines 2021 13%. An enjoyable wine, now 4 yo and drinking well. A wine in good balance, crisp acidity with citrus flavours of grapefruit and lemon. Nice clean finish. A good example of a modern style Chardonnay. 

The first red of the day was a classic Australian Grenache from the master winemaker Stephen Pannell. Sourced from fruit in the Blewitt Springs and Clarendon regions of McLaren Vale, this 2020 vintage wine was a classy demonstration of this grape variety. At 14%, medium to lightish body, distinct tannin influence with a very dry finish.  An abundance of fruit flavours, such as raspberry and strawberry, all combine well to produce an excellent wine. 

We then moved on to a Society favourite, the Paolo Scavino Dolcetto d'Alba from 2022 13.5%. Medium to full body wine lots, of dark fruit colour, soft mouthfeel with tannic presence. An easy drinking wine from the Piedmont region of Italy, best consumed when under 5 years of bottle age. At 3 years old now, this wine is a perfect lunch wine, not too heavy and finishing with a smooth, clean finish.  Excellent selection. 

The final wine of the day was the Chateau Gravas Sauternes 2009, 13.5%. Our Winemaster Nick Reynolds provided us today with a treat not often served at our regular lunches, a French Sauternes from the Sauternes district. Vintage 2009 was rated an 8/10 year for that region, and this wine reflected its fortunate vintage origin. Good balance between crisp acid and orange flavours on the back palate. A powerful, clean but lingering finish. A great way to end the afternoon!