Food & Wine Archives - Page 9 of 21 - Jim Murty’s TravelTravelTravel

The perfect Guinness

25th February 202225th February 2022 funtime65

The perfect Guinness before you leave the country.

Everyone knows you can’t come to Ireland without sampling the Black Stuff.

And now Dublin Airport is setting it up so that any visitor who might have forgotten (difficult) can imbibe in Terminal 1.

Airport drinking

DA will make you feel as if you’re in the next best thing to the St James’s Gate brewery.

They have created a snug that offers visuals of the views they would experience if they were in The Liberties (Guinness’s neighbourhood).

Of course Guinness has a range of drink and foods to enjoy too but it’s the ‘plain’, the stout which you’ll go for, so Sláinte.

Now the old saying goes that the best Guinnesses are in Ireland although they cloud it (never done in a Guinness) in mystery.

Drinking rituals

Here’s Johnny: With Rain in Johnny Fox’s, Co. Dublin

Now I love drinking rituals as much as the next guy.

And I have learned to fix my eyes on the person I’m drinking with when I say Prost in a German bierhouse.

And not question the size of the frothy head on my Urquell Pilsner in the Czech Republic.

Now you don’t have to go to Dublin to learn how to pour the perfect pint although it helps if your cousins run the Liffeyside institution the Workshop.

The global drink

Mac and Black: With former Governor of Virginia Terry McAuliffe at the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

Just walk into any Irish bar around the world, and there are thousands from atop mountains to astride glaciers.

Whether Sean from Athenry will let you tamper with his taps though is a different matter.

One hostelry though where they’ll be glad to help, and in fact insist on it, is at Rí Rá Las Vegas inside The Shoppes at Mandalay Bay.

Glass Vegas

There they’ll give you the only ‘official’ Perfect Pint Experience class outside of Dublin.

Now I don’t want to give it away but there are six steps.

Follow them and you’ll not only get the perfect pint to swallow but also a photo, the glass and discount on the merch.

You can also dine in a pretty realistic recreation of an Irish snug… Vegas style.

Whether you’re fortunate to be in Ireland, passing through or want to escape for a while in an Irish bar somewhere in the world.

Nothing will taste as Irish as the Perfect Guinness.

Countries, Europe, Food, Food & Wine

Toasting Veganuary with a Vegan and Tonic.

20th January 202220th January 2022 funtime65

A popular meme for a vegan’s favourite meal shows a tray of ice but that’s a cheap shot and I’m toasting Veganuary with a Vegan and Tonic.

The Vegan and Tonic is the creation of Fentimans… well, the Indian tonic anyway.

Whether this was the oul Greek Pythagoras’s tipple of choice when he was working out his theorem this shows Veganism isn’t a modern fad.

Ancients’ way of life

The ancient world is a good place to start.

It’s accepted that they would eat fish, eggs from quails and hens, and cheese but they hoovered up veg too.

Legumes, olives, figs arugula (no, me neither), asparagus, cabbage, carrots and cucumbers.

So it isn’t a big jump to think that Pythagoras who philosophised and expounded about human rights as well as hypotenuses was a vegan.

After all his followers weren’t allowed to wear wool either.

So long before Briton Donald Watson is said to have coined the word in 1944 the ancients were going vegan.

All around the world

Veggies rule: Turkish Airlines Business Lounge, Istanbul Airport

The Indian Subcontinent has historically been the bedrock of vegetarianism.

With the likes of philosophers Parshavnatha and Mahavira preaching what we would consider to be the vegan life.

We know, of course, too that what the Greeks started the Romans took on and ran with.

And so for every Pythagoras and Plutarch there was an Ovid and Pliny the Younger.

All of which permeates the Med, Aegean, Middle Eastern (note the Arab poet al Ma’ari poet), North African and Subcontinent diets to this day.

Brand new

Fentimans is the go-to provider and guide for eating, drinking and clothing yourself in Veganism.

And as we all know when you’re drinking you always get the nibbles.

And so you’ll want to try these snacks:

Co-op Bacon Rashers.
McCoy’s Ultimate Sizzling BBQ Chicken• Ultimate Chargrilled Steak and Peri Peri McCoy’s.
Walkers Prawn Cocktail.
Smokey Bacon Hula Hoops.

Student life

While for students everywhere…

Bombay Bad Boy

Brazilian BBQ Steak

Chinese Chow Mein

Piri Piri Chicken

Beef and Tomato

BBQ Pulled Pork

Jerk Chicken

Sticky Rib

Sweet & Sour

Asian Street Style Japanese Miso Noodle Soup

Wear it well

And, yes, I promised you vegan fashion…

Well, what about the Dr Martens vegan collection they launched in 2011.

Now, I’m not one myself but I know more and more and it’s you I’m thinking of toasting Veganuary with a Vegan and Tonic.

Matthew’s Canaries

And while we’re here let’s give a shout-out here to my old mucker and vegan evangelist Matthew Hirtes from my Tenerife trip.

And Canaries-based Matthew has forgotten more about vegan life in those islands than we’ll ever know.

Thankfully he and the Dreams Abroad team where I was Editor continue to show us a world where veganism has an exalted place.

Caribbean, Countries, Food, Food & Wine, Music

Let the bells parang out for Christmas

23rd December 202123rd December 2021 funtime65

Let the bells parang out for Christmas in Trinidad & Tobago and from the Caribbean to the world.

West Indians are all about family and senior members of the community deserve the respect of being called Uncle or Auntie.

And so when you visit Tobago you return with a unique souvenir… no, not the goat you’ve raced.

And in my case that’s Auntie Alison.

Ali and her husband Uncle Kenneth run the Blue Crab restaurant in Scarborough.

And we all got on famously with Kenneth even allowing me to help out cooking the meal, island chicken curry.

Kenneth and Ali are the ideal double act.

While he cooks she entertains the room with tales of their marriage.

With tips of how she keeps their long marriage fresh…

Culture trip: And Tobago and Irish fusion

She demonstrates how she keeps her knickers in the bottom drawer.

And she even wiggles her behind to show us.

This old girl has the moves and a laugh that fills the room.

It’s that kind of spirit which underscores Trinidad and Tobago’s special Christmas parang music.

It’s Soca and South American-infused party music with cheeky end-of-the-pier entendres.

And it’s all the better for having the sun, a beach and a steel band at your back.

Can I help: With Uncle Kenneth

This is how Christmas should be.

Full of laughter, music and full to the belly with Auntie Ali’s Christmas dinner

Asia, Countries, Food & Wine

Cocktail Millionaire Hour

22nd November 202122nd November 2021 funtime65

We’d been seduced by a rooftop viewing over Cannes but I baulked at a $16.50 Aperol Spritz… before I learned this week about Cocktail Millionaire Hour.

They must have heard about me at Pay Day Loans because why else send me news of a $22,600 cocktail, Diamonds Are Forever?

And so if you’ve got that down the back of a sofa then get yourself over to Ritz-Carlton in Tokyo.

What a sparkler

We’re told the DAR in the skyscraper hotel is a Grey Goose vodka and a twist of lime…

And a $16,000 diamond on the side of the glass, and helpfully they advise not to swallow the diamond.

Not wanting to stymie any future chances of a stay at the Ritz-Carlton but that’s one expensive voddie and lime at $6,600.

Vegas mixers

Now you pay for the celeb watching in Vegas too.

Although thankfully I had the good services of my hosts the Las Vegas Convention Board to thank for introducing me.

The Ghostbar in the Palms Casino is where you’d find everyone from Matt Damon to Paris Hilton.

But you always had to take your passport to The Ghostbar, Palms Casino to get in… they’d want verification that it’s really you.

Or you can check in at the XS Nightclub, Encore for a $10,000 Ono.

Which is a Charles Heidsieck Champagne Charlie 1981 and Louis XIII de Remy Martin Black Pearl cognac.

Plus the drink comes with a pair of men’s silver cufflinks and a woman’s 18k white-gold chain.

Playboy of the Cocktail World

Now us playboys need a drink that best reflects our lifestyles.

And the $9,000 Salvatore’s Legacy at the Playboy Club in Mayfair, London, does just that.

It is made from a 1778 Clos de Griffier Vieux Cognac, 1770 Kummel Liqueur, Dubb Orange Curacao circa 1860 and two dashes of Angostura Bitters circa 1900s.

We don’t know what the tip is here but at 10% that’s $700 so be prepared when you hit the Big Smoke.

And the others

We’ve just extended our knowledge of Connecticut following our trip to Dublin for the VisitUSA Thanksgiving get-together.

And they were keen to flag up their rich casino tradition.

Usually if you’re gambling you’ll be offered a comp drink, but not alas a Sapphire Martini at the Foxwoods Resort Casino.

Now Hemingway sure loved his cocktails and the Bar Hemingway in Paris channels the Great Man.

Through its $1,670 Sidecars.

And one we made earlier: With my Cocktail Girl

When I go high set in Belfast I head for the Grand Central Hotel and the highest bar in Ireland, the Observatory.

Alternatively the Merchant Hotel will keep you in maraschino cherries.

They do an Original Mai Thai at $1,270.

While as coral and atoll islands have been in the news with COP26 et al we’ll finish off in the Maldives.

It’s a favourite place and I’m glad to see some Irish friends who had yet to have sampled its charms are over there now.

At $312 for a Hennessy Cognac it’s to be sipped and swirled around the mouth.

Yes, you’ll feel like a high-roller In Cocktail Millionaire Hour.

Countries, Europe, Food & Wine, Ireland, UK

Ho Ho Holyland

11th November 202111th November 2021 funtime65

Bah Humbug to all those who whinge about Christmas decorations being out… in Israel it’s Ho Ho Holyland already.

Now, we won’t get too hung up on the wherefores.

Just to say that Jerusalem Santa Issa Anis Kassissieh, the official Ambassador of the Holy Land Santa, has been filming in Israel’s Golan Heights.

And, of course, with Israel being a little warmer than Lapland JS has parked the sleigh for a kayak.

Jolly Golan Christmas

Santa’s journey began at sunrise, on a kayak on the River Jordan, a waterway I know well from my G Adventures trip.

Adaptable JS carries his Christmas tree and presents.

And he then strolls through the citrus and almond orchards typical of the Golan landscapes.

Sporty Santy

Froome, Froome: Getting on his bike with Chris Froome

Sporty Santy then gets on his bike to cycle with British four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome.

And his fellow team members of the Israel Start-up Nation professional cycling team who are currently touring Israel.

JS ended the day at the Kursi National Park, site of the Miracle of the Swine.

And there as the sun set overlooking the Sea of Galilee, he spread love, peace and joy to the children of the Golan Heights.

JS will be back too later in the year when for those who don’t know The Promised Land will be unaware there will be snow on the ground.

Israel deal

El Al, as we all know, has its route now out of Dublin, with a sample four-day return trip In January from €625.

And out of the UK from London from £287.

So, it’s Ho Ho Holyland and Go, Go, Holyland.

Countries, Deals, Europe, Food & Wine

Winter from Amsterdam

30th October 202130th October 2021 funtime65

It’s at this time of year that I sing again Winter from Amsterdam.

Spring will come in due course and the clocks and nature will burst forward.

But as florid as the first season of the year is in the Netherlands’ biggest city why would you wish these last months of the calendar away?

November is a month special to us as it’s birthday season.

And as The Scary One plans where to take me, back at the start it was Amsterdam.

A ferry long time ago

When we took the ferry from Harwich to Hook of Holland

It’s an option we are all being prompted to consider to help the environment.

And a cabin and a soppy film (Ghost, yes that long ago) made it an unforgettable date night.

We’ve been back since in the searing heat of late summer, and I’ll never complain about the sun.

But there is something special about the winter when the canals in Amsterdam freeze up.

It’s a prospect which was presented to us that last time at the Dylan Hotel when we stepped out into the balmy Dutch air on the Keizersgracht.

What a picture

The old photographs of Amsterdammers skating on the canals mark the city out as special and to be seen.

And special too the Dylan, home to George and Amal when they’re in the Netherlands, and Annie Lennox, and us

The Light of Amsterdam

Amsterdam Light Festival is an annual event during the winter holidays.

Dutch and international artists transform the city every year into a light spectacle.

The Light Festival starts at the end of November and runs until mid-January.

Two beautiful ice-skating rinks are set up every Christmas season in Leidseplein and Museumplein.

The first is surrounded by Christmas market stalls, and the second is by the Rijksmuseum and Stedelijk museum.

Swansterdam

RAI Theatre in Amsterdam will host the biggest Swan Lake Ballet between December 23rd and 27th.

The innovation of this spectacle is that instead of 16 swans, the performance expands to 48 swans.

Christmas Markets

In the frame: As part of Rembrandt’s art

Amsterdam is full of Christmas Markets during this time of the year.

Markets are not only spread across the city but also in nearby places like Haarlem and Leiden.

And why not be part of Rembrandtplein, and Leidseplein?

Food for thought

Flavours of the world: And Amsterdam is all about fusion

And Amsterdam is, of course, more than just cheese, crepes and tulips (yes, they eat them too).

The holidays cannot be experienced without trying Dutch delicacies.

Dutch hapjes (snacks) ) to try would be olieballen and appelbeignets; both traditional Dutch sweets deep fried (and I am a Glaswegian)!

They are part of the Christmas menu for the local people and easily found at this time of the year.

Wine and dine

Putting her on a podium: With my Flower Girl

Top off the festive period with High Wine at The Dylan,

It features a selection of four different wines from the cellar and four amuse-style bites selected by the Executive Chef Dennis Kuipers.

And to stay at the Dylan it’s €425 a night including breakfast excluding tax.

So, it might not be Spring again but let’s sing again Winter in Amsterdam.

Countries, Europe, Food & Wine, UK

Herr of the dog

23rd October 202123rd October 2021 funtime65

Ja, it’s the Herr of the dog.. an Oktoberfest followed by a Pilsener piss-up.

Welcome to my boozie world.

Oktober in Edinburgh I’d forgotten in my 13 years in Ireland turns itself over to resemble the famous Munich Beerfest.

Or at least the party in Princes Street Gardens in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle does.

And that’s where I was with my neighbour (in our Bavarian pigtails of course) clinking steins, dancing on the wooden benches to the oompah band.

And echoing the invitation from the bandstand which all of you who have been to Munich for the Beerfest will know.

Prost

Die Kruge Hoch

Ein Prosit, ein Prosit
Der Gemütlichkeit
Ein Prosit, ein Prosit
Der Gemütlichkeit

All of which means ‘Raise your glasses, a toast to wellbeing’.

Followed, of course, by Oans, zwoa, drei, gsuffa! or one, two, three, drink.

The best Beerfest of course is the original in Germany and I was there for the 175th in 1985 and again in 1986 with a Topdeck busload of Aussies and Kiwis.

And I have left it all this time because I think they might still remember me, the Scot who got up on the bandstand and sang ‘My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean’.

The Beerfest is probably Munich’s greatest export and alas was cancelled this year.

We’ll be back with pigtails on and slap the thighs even louder next year.

Czech this out too

In the Strahov Monastery Brewery in the Czech Republic

And so heavy of head but bright in spirits (that’ll be the schnapps) I Czeched in with my old pals from the Czech Republic.

For a catch-up on how they’re progressing.

And the good news is that they’ve got the red carpet out for us again.

Now I know this from old from clinking glasses and crying Na Zdravi in Prague and Hoptown Zatec.

And all spots in between.

This time around we were treated to the delights of Pilsen too.

Now the Pilsner brewery is one of the top ten most visited tourist attractions in the country and no surprise.

Let’s workshop it

Look at the head on that: Zatec, Czech Republuc

The good folk of Pilsen advise the Pilsner Urquell Draft Beer Workshop, where you can master the correct principles of beer tapping, taught by experienced barmen, during this three-hour course.

The Brewery even offers you the chance to rent a place for yourself in a traditional “šalanda” (a room where beer workers once ate and rested)

And with the kind and wise soundings of our tapman showing us how to do it I glugged my favourite Czech beer down.

It had all started at the Edinburgh Oktoberfest so it was a Herr of the Dog with a Pilsner chaser.

I really am the first among Urquells!

Caribbean, Countries, Culture, Food & Wine

Jamaica? No, she came of her own accord

15th October 202115th October 2021 funtime65

And apologies for the old schoolyard gag: I took my wife on holiday to the Caribbean… Jamaica? No, she came of her own accord.

You see nobody needs a second invitation to Jamaica.

Unless, of course, you’re me.

And herein hangs a tail with me being off in another corner of the world when the first invitation came in.

I had sent a colleague to Orlando at the same time the second invitation came in and I had to stay back in the office to cover for him.

My old buddie Kevin Gleeson was the beneficiary of that mix-up.

Going back to that old joke (groan) and our friends in Yeah Mon Island are shining the light on the romantic side of the island.

Social island

Jamaica reached out across social media to invite followers to share their special romantic memories.

And understandably Negril Beach, one of the best beaches in the world was namechecked.

Rockhouse was highlighted as one of Negril’s most scenic dining venues.

Overlooking the volcanic cliffs on to the brilliant Caribbean Sea. Also named as an ideal spot

While the Martha Brae River through Jamaica’s breath-taking greenery is another favourite.

And the Rio Grande River is a fave boating route, specifically along the aptly named ‘Lovers Lane’.

Strawberry Hill Forever

Strawberry Hill Hotel is just as beautiful as it sounds, with beautiful views of Jamaica’s Blue Mountains.

And it was the location of choice for musical legend Bob Marley’s romantic getaways, set in 26-acres of vivid mountaintop gardens.

From Bob to Bond and GoldenEye, the home of Ian Fleming was named the ultimate proposal spot.

The resort was designed as an idyllic retreat attracting artists, writers and musicians from around the world.

With beautifully appointed villas enclosed in a lush jungle of tropical plants and trees.

Montego Bay

Now Jamaica seems to have the copyrwright on lyrical names (and a good few Scottish and Irish ones too).

And few are more recognisable than Montego Bay.

For foodies, the Sugar Mill Restaurant at the Half Moon counts the Queen and John F. Kennedy amongst its previous guests.

And for you lovebirds (no, not those two icons… I don’t want to end up in the Tower)

There are secluded spots for a proposal such as the candlelit overwater Sunset Gazebo.

So Jamaica? No, she came of her own accord. Of course.

Africa, Countries, Culture, Food & Wine

Ethiopian Enkutatash an d another year younger

11th September 202121st September 2021 funtime65

Doesn’t it roll around quickly? Ah yes, Ethiopian Enkutatash and another year younger.

I’m fortunate to have the woman I title Ethiopia’s First Lady, Meseret Tekalign Bekele, Ethiopian Airlines‘ Sales and Service Manager (Middle East And Asia) around to remind me.

Out of Africa: Meseret and a well-dressed Bandanaman doppelganger

I broke bread, ate authentic Ethiopian food (with my hands) and drank wine with the elegant Meseret on more than one occasion in Dublin when she served there.

Enkutatash is, of course, the best New Year of them all.

Because it’s on the Gregorian Calendar you end up gaining back seven years.

Farewell 2013

Ethiopians will be glad to see the back of their 2013.

And the hostilities that have gripped the country, and the pandemic which grips us all.

And they truly deserve the respite that Enkutatash gives them.

The festivities mark the end of the three-month rainy season.

And on the eve of the celebrations each household lights wooden torches in groups called ‘chibo’ to signify the coming of the new season of sunshine.

And so say all of us.

A land steeped in history

Ethiopia is a country steeped in history.

Wth our touchpoints for our Western Civilisation, Lucy, the first woman, the Queen of Sheba, Emperor Haile Selassie and Olympic great Haile Gebrselassie.

While for this aspiring Eighties schoolboy long-distance athlete Miruts Yifter, or Yifter the Shifter, was an idol.

Enkutatash celebrations usually begin with church activities.

One more cup of coffee

Get your hands in: And scoop up a feast of food

The Ethiopian coffee ceremony is an integral part of the celebration.

And the ritual of coffee serving and drinking can last for hours.

It is a social occasion which if you’re lucky enough to be invited to is a great honour.

And one which I’ve savoured.. and the coffee is well worth the wait.

There is a lesson here that we all need to slow down and allow things to take their sweet, natural time.

Which is why I’m waiting for when I can reconnect with my Ethiopian friends.

And finally visit the East African country and cradle of civilisation.

Melkam Adisi.

Countries, Cruising, Europe, Food & Wine

Vin, biere et Le Supermarche

21st August 2021 funtime65

Vin, biere et Le Supermarche. For many the first port of call, or the very reason to visit France.

Back as a cub reporter the big newspaper promotion was cheap car ferry deals to fill your boots with booze.

But the Francophiles for a day, of course, missed the point… you need to stay and enjoy the country for a while.

Irish Ferries to France

Irish Ferries is bringing back its wine mini-breaks.

Across Le Manche to France, with a special wine-tasting in Cherbourg from €99pp each way pps.

And a detour here on our journey, as is our wont, down La Voie de Mémoiire.

Back as a schoolboy on my first trip abroad with my pals and my palette hadn’t evolved enough to appreciate the grape.

Which meant I had to seek out bier from Le Supermarche to drink by our tent and on the beach.

Only all the lesser-known, cheaper brands are en francais.

And so what I thought were 24 bottles of bier ended up being shandy. Un faute d’élève.

Of course I couldn’t admit it to my wine-drinking pals.

Stop that train

Ra boys: Chris, Mackie, an early Bandanaman and Adam

Another challenge presented itself when we were heading for the train back from Saint Raphael.

And while the boys had stocked up on vino… moi? I had to find some take-away beer.

It being Gaul and not Glasgow there were no off-licences and Le Supermarche was on the other side of town.

Which meant me only getting back to the train to see it pulling away and Mackie, Adam and Chris at the window, glasses of red in hand.

How did I get back? That’s another l’histoire.

Norman request

You wouldn’t want to have to find your own way back to Ireland… nor should you.

When you’re chasing down vin, biere et Le Supermarche.

Particularly as Irish Ferries will give you two nights in Normandy at €99pps each way.

And a special wine-tasting ceremony in Cherbourg in conjunction with Wine Beer Supermarket.

Sailing dates available are September 9, 16, 23, 30.

Poetry in motion

You’ll be sailing on the swanky WB Yeats (or WB Yachts) as I like to call it.

Where you don’t have to rush around town or chase down trains.

There’s vin, biere et Le Supermarche.