I was fortunate to have been brought up in a small country town well away from the city and where my brothers and I could roam wild and free. It was a good upbringing, simple and enjoyable mostly and whilst we didn't have a lot we were generally happy and contented with the things we had.
The town I grew up in is only a stone's throw to the world-renowned wine region called the Barossa Valley. I considered this area my back yard, especially when I got my drivers licence and first car at sixteen. It's full of famous wineries and amazing cafés and restaurants most featuring local fresh produce. im src
When I met my wife I introduced her to the Valley and we still visit there a lot, fondly recalling the times we spent there together as young teenagers...There was this one time we went there, I must have been 18 years old, and we found a very secluded barn, half tumbled down but well out of sight from the road...But that's a story I'm not willing to tell and one I'd have to tag nsfw I suppose. 😇 😈
We are heading to the Barossa this weekend, to the town of Tanunda, for dinner with my Sister who will be over for the weekend from Sydney. My family don't see each other much as we are dispersed around the globe so I'm looking forward to it. Sis will be debuting her new boyfriend to me this weekend so that should be quite interesting.
We're off to a restaurant that seems somewhat of a juxtaposition where the Barossa Valley is concerned. You see, the Barossa was settled mainly by German's back in the 1840's hence the restaurants' reference to Teutonic heritage in the text below. Since then it's had a decidedly Teutonic flavour, and with this restaurant being Vietnamese it seems somewhat at odds however it is a great demonstration of the multicultural environment in Australia. Besides, Vietnamese food is legit!
I'm looking forward to Saturday night as I think this restaurant will deliver some interesting food and whilst I'm not much of an alcohol-drinker apparently the wine and beverage list is award-winning. My sister's new boyfriend is a wine-guy apparently [insert roll of eyes here] and so I'm sure he will get excited about the wine list.
I don't feel any need to impress her new dude however decided to practice some "wine talk" so that I come across more cultured. Below you can see my phrase which I will roll out in respect of any, and all, wine I may drink on the night:
"Hmm, splendiferous. Simply magnifico...This wine is zesty on the back pallette with a flowery bouquet of spring fruityness with undertones of plum, wild cherry and woody notes of oak and spruce with a robust finish that's crisp and refreshing in its zestyness with a smoky wetness left lingering on the tastebuds."
This all needs to be said after sniffing the wine, swilling it inside the glass and holding the stem of the glass in a suitably pompous and pretentious manner. So, I'm pretty sure that phrase will make me look like I know what the fuck I'm talking about. What do you think? I'm on the right track yes? 😝
Seriously though, I am looking forward to seeing my sister and to checking out this restaurant.
The two passages below were lifted from the Ferment Asian website.
In mid 2010, rumours began to circulate about the imminent opening of a new Barossa Vietnamese restaurant. With the region’s rich Teutonic heritage, this seemed entirely appropriate. The good burghers of Tanunda began to notice that the old Schrapel family residence, a long-vacant, elegant building was being coaxed from undeserved oblivion. But when news got around that 90 Murray Street was to become the site for a Vietnamese eating-house, that a young lady with neither professional cooking experience nor financial backing had the nerve to foist this unfamiliar cuisine onto the local community, a tsunami of cautions and ominous predictions from all quarters buffeted the prospective restaurateurs. And yet fermentAsian opened, with a motley collection of second-hand restaurant furniture, ovens and fridges and an unlikely team of kitchen and waiting staff characterised more by enthusiasm than capability.
During the five years since that inauspicious opening, much has been written about the miracle of Tuoi Do. Such were the stress levels during those first weeks, she would be seen dry-retching in the back car park after busy Saturday night services; less than two years later, whilst heavily pregnant with her second child, she was awarded the coveted SA ‘Chef of the Year’ award in the 2012 Advertiser Food Awards.
Whilst "dry-retching" are not words I'd use on my restaurant's website I like the above text - Obviously this woman has put a lot of work into her restaurant and I like the fact she got out there and designed and created her vision the hard way...With effort, ownership and a great deal of persistence. I'm always pleased to support people like Tuoi, the owner, and am really looking forward to my night. Can't wait to show off my wine phrase too! 😃
Here's a phrase about her food from her website. Sounds legit.
Like great winemaking, Tuoi’s cooking steers fresh, local ingredients (many from our own garden) to a culinary outcome with minimal intervention. Sure, many of her pastes are complex and laborious, but her dishes are never over-complicated. Hers is a self-effacing style of cheffing, with a quiet humility drawn from the dire poverty of her native region of Phú Thọ in northern Vietnam. Her food is of the people, for the people. And yet so relentlessly consumed is she by exacting perfection, her suppliers know the routine if she is less than satisfied by a delivered ingredient!
I'm not quite sure what to expect a Viet-Teutonic fusion or straight up Vietnamese food although I don't much care as I believe it will be good no matter what. Now...I'd better finish up here and practice my clever wine grape juice phrase.
I'll probably grab a photo or two in-between discussing the merits of one grape juice over another with my sister's new-boyfriend-guy so might do a follow up blog on it for you. For now, I hope you all have a great weekend planned and get after it with passion...Life's short so why not huh?
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