I went to the Silent Estates Wine Dinner at The Boat House in Kata and put it under the category of “work & research” for my customers. You can thank Juanita and I later for we had to enjoy the most amazing 5 course meal created by South African chef Brian and the team and try delicious wines from Sileni Estates vineyard in the Hawke’s Bay area in my home country of New Zealand.
It was a night filled with warm reminders of home as the lovely Kiwi rep from Sileni talked about NZ winemaking and how each wine suited the dish we were trying. And we learnt a lot of interesting facts about the NZ wine industry. The two-piece band played beautiful music and we met some new people.
Here’s a little selection of my favourite dishes and wines. Some of the dishes are available on the menu and some were especially designed for the evening.
Hokkaido scallop, cauliflower, golden raison relish and micro herbs with Cellar Selection Sauvignon Blanc 2014 which was light and gorgeous.
Braised lamb, potato gnocchi and herb oil with Cellar Selection Merlot 2011. Another amazing dish which had been thoughtfully designed by chef Brian. He’s a master in the kitchen without doubt and a lovely personality.
One of the highlights of the night was the desert. Spiced roasted pear, almond and blue cheese ice cream with Estate Selection Late Harvest Semillon 2011. Everyone was curious but apprehensive about the ice cream and I can report it was amazing. The sweet wine was the perfect ending to the night.
If you are visiting Phuket and want to have a special dinner overlooking the ocean you must try The Boat House and sample some wine as they have divine selections. And I was there last week also and was offered a glass of Thai wine. Interesting because Thailand isn’t known for wine making but since The Boat House has such a great reputation for their wine selections I had to say yes. It was excellent and an unexpected surprise so you should try this too if you happen to be there ~ photo by Jaran from another evening at The Boat House.
