- A couple of our reviewers had a bit of a crack at the ingredient lists as menu descriptions over the past fortnight. The Fin Rev did too, but have hidden it behind their paywall. It’s an interesting question – the evolution of menus is interesting. Bizarrely Gaggan writes his in emoji, so as to make it universal. What is the world coming to?
- I’m pleased to see so many media publications jumping on the War on Waste bandwagons. The SMH article looked at seven of the best people tackling the problem in Australia and abroad, while Letho looked back to campaigns of yesteryear. There’s a lot to inspire, and some bandwagons are built to be laden. Harris Farm have removed the packaging from their organic section (this needs to happen across the board – nature does not need plastic straight jackets). To that end, also read this great article from the NYTimes about advances in creating natural packaging from food waste: mushrooms to replace cardboard, milk powder to replace plastic. Excellent.
- And then, there’s this woman, doing the most incredible things on the other side of the world. Selina Juul is almost single-handedly credited with reducing food waste in Denmark ... by 25%. A big part of her thinking was to change the bargains for bulk into bargains for singular purchases (bananas sold with a “take me, I’m single” sign). “Food waste is the lack of respect for our nature, for our society, for the people who produce the food, for the animals, and the lack of respect for our time and your money.” Yep.
- Personally, I would like to see a little more doggy bag suggestions at the end of meals too. Imagine if the “still, sparkling, tap” diatribe was bookended with “would you like me to pack up what’s left?” Asking for left-overs is not about being tight, it’s about rescuing food from the bin.
- And here’s one to stir up the wine makers – a discussion about mousiness that can be found in natural wines. There were some interesting points raised: “‘Once detected, the taint renders the wine undrinkable and worsens in the glass, but as many as 30% of winemakers are unable to detect it.’ That last statistic is important, but it’s not only winemakers who vary in their ability to taste mousiness. Anecdotal evidence suggests there’s a very wide range of tolerance amongst wine professionals and consumers, from blissful ignorance to super sensitivity. An individual’s ability to detect mousy taint may well hinge on the pH level of their saliva – ergo possibly a genetic condition.”
They go on to look at a number of producers who successfully avoid SO2 - who suggest it largely comes down to cleanliness in the winery or using concrete over wood. "Cornelissen is now an elite member of that very small club of winemakers who have close to 20 vintages under their belts working without sulphur. Natural wine’s grandfathers Jules Chauvet and Jacques Néauport also spent decades researching and experimenting before their ideas were taken up by the ‘gang of five’ winemakers of Villié-Morgon in Beaujolais. The risk with less-experienced producers who’ve since adopted this most challenging winemaking method is that the same mistakes are repeated endlessly, perhaps even implying that mousy wine is excusable on ideological grounds."
- For something lovely to finish the week on (or start the week on - whoops again), this little match making guide to companion planting made me smile. Nature is really so very clever.