Quintessentially Epicure

Quintessentially Epicure

13 September, 2011
by: Tom Jeffreys

Tom Jeffreys enjoys the very first food event from Quintessentially, but feels there's still some areas for improvement.

It launched as a high-end concierge service; now it's a “luxury lifestyle business”. And this weekend saw the ever-shifting Quintessentially launch its latest project: Quintessentially Epicure. Taking place at the Hurlingham Club in Fulham (natch) the event bills itself as, among other things, “an unforgettable culinary experience”, and with tickets ranging from £100 to an eye-popping £500, Quintessentially Epicure sets some very high standards for itself, standards that it isn't always able to live up to.

The two-day event centres around an array of producers letting you sample their wares and have a chat about what they do. There's also restaurants offering a signature dish or two, masterclasses with top name chefs like Marcus Wareing and Giorgio Locatelli, and an extensive wine-tasting section. Basically it's like Taste of London, but inside, and with a more high-end approach, as you'd probably expect from something involving Quintessentially.

The product-based section is the most straightforward, and features all the usual luxury goodies – from fois gras and champagne to caviar and oysters. Highlights here include some scrumptious pine honey and delicate cold-pressed olive oil from Spartan artisan producers, oliveology (who run a stall in Borough Market); and rich, meaty Thames oysters from Bennett, a bar based in Battersea.

There's also various restaurants on hand offering one or two dishes each to try, but the problem with these events is they never really showcase a restaurant at its best. Gordon Ramsay's Maze is disappointing, as is the chaat served by the usually excellent Tamarind. The best dish, surprisingly, is pig's cheek bourgignon from local restaurant, My Dining Room, situated a mile or so away near Fulham Broadway.

But the big draw about Quintessentially Epicure is the presence of some seriously famous chefs. Each offers a masterclass in a particular dish, before you get to troop next door (into a room rather reminiscent of a big budget, low taste wedding marquee) and gobble it up. The only class we catch is French pastry chef Pierre Hermé, who shows us how to make some of his signature macarons. This goes on a bit long, but still feels like a genuine thrill, and offers up some handy hints – like leaving your macarons for at least 24 hours after making to ensure the centre goes appropriately gooey. We sample a couple at Hermé's stand and can vouch for their gooey deliciousness.

We miss the relevant masterclasses, but still get to try Marcus Wareing's venison loin with braised pears and chestnut, which is a really great dish, and Helene Darroze's duck fois gras, which unfortunately is a complete let-down. Rubbery and even a little bland, it's not what you'd expect from either fois gras or Darroze.

Aside from all the food, there's also plenty of booze going around too. The venison is paired with a pleasantly velvety Chilean Shiraz, and the fois gras, innovatively, with a Ribena-like (in a good way) sparkling Shiraz from Australia. Inside the VIP section (basically some slightly differently arranged seating) there's Comtes de Champagnes – the blanc de blancs from Taittinger, which is light, fresh and delightful.

There's also a large section run by Quintessentially Wine featuring an extensive range of both Old and New World wines. Some of these are excellent, including a delicious 2007 Cenit from Cliterra in Chile (£34 a bottle), some solid Barolos (from £32 to £35), a characteristic New Zealand Riesling from Villa Maria (£11.50), and a fairly bog-standard German Riesling (£16.50).

Being able to vertical taste some of the wines is an enlightening experience, but much of what is on offer is simply a little underwhelming, and with the prices Quintessentially are charging for their wines (from £7.50 to £48 per bottle) I'd have expected much more. The other issue is that the stalls are manned largely by staff from Quintessentially Wine (and sometimes even from the Hurlingham) so the kind of specific and detailed knowledge that you'd get from the producer is generally lacking. This is a real disappointment, especially when compared to similar events organised by, say, The Wine Society.

Overall, Quintessentially Epicure is a highly enjoyable evening – a great way to learn from the best chefs in the business as well as try a whole host of new things from some lesser known producers. The trouble is, for me, how expensive it all is. I imagine Quintessentially members wouldn't baulk at these prices, but from an organisation that constantly champions its “specialist” and “insider” knowledge, I'd be looking for a little more.

www.quintessentiallyepicure.com

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Tom Jeffreys