Connect with us

Restaurant Review

Everything Wine and Fine

Wine has an illustrious history dating back thousands of years, with the earliest known production occurring around 6000 BC in Georgia. It plays an important role in day to day life and religion

Published

on

5 TIPS TO STORE WINE

 

WineStorage1)   Keep It Cool

Storing it in a temperature higher than 70° F will cook the wine resulting it to have a flat flavor. So for the wine to have a longer shelf life, the ideal temperature is between 45° F and 65° F. At the same time keeping it too cool can also do harm to its storage. Though you intend to refrigerate wine for a couple of months, never allow it freeze as turning liquid into ice could expand the bottle, pushing the cork out.

2)  Far from Lights

Exposing wines to sunlight can pose a problem to a long-term storage. The sun’s UV rays can degrade the quality of wine. That is one of the reasons why wines are packed in colored bottles. They act like sunglasses for wine.

3)  Place it Sideways

Bottles have to be stored on their sides to keep the liquid up against the cork, keeping the cork from drying up.

4)  No Shaking Bottles

Moving around the bottles could damage wine in the long term as it acts as a catalyst to speedy chemical reactions in the liquid. Shaking wine bottles can possibly disturb the sediment in older wines and keep them from settling, making them unpleasantly gritty.

5)  Anti-storage Rooms

Storing wines in the kitchen or laundry room is out of question as these places have constant hot temperature around. The ideal place will be a wine cooler or else the smartest way to go about storing without shelling bucks can be by converting a little-used closet or a vacant storage area into a wine store.

 

Wine, Cheese, Grapes, PomegranatesFood and Wine Harmony

White wine like Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio / Pinot Gris, Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc  would be perfect with seafood or with some fresh cheese.

A bottle of Rosé wine be it the White Merlot or the White Zinfandel goes with different dining options. It can be had with salads, stews and pastas.

Red wines are highly recommended for steaks, stews and other meat preparations. The popular red wines that rule the list includes Beaujolais, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chianti, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Zinfandel.

Sparkling often referred to incorrectly as Champagne is a type of sparkling wine that blends well with seafood.

Dessert wines that are wines with high sugar content are a popular choice with or as dessert.

 

Must watch wine movies

earth-is-mine1)    The Earth Is Mine (1959)

The film featuring Rock Hudson and Jean Simmons portrays the lives of the Rambeau family, a committed Californian winemaking dynasty that tries to keep afloat during the prohibition in the United States. For the movie, the actors cracked the practical of vineyard procedures under the guidance of locals making its lead actor Rock Hudson, a left-hander to attach bud from one plant to the root of another with perfection.

 

Mondovino_movie2)    Mondovino (2004)

This Italian word which means ‘World of Wine’ is a documentary film that reconnoiters the impact of globalization in various wine-producing regions. ‘Mondovino’ portrays the battle between large winemaking corporations and the single-vineyard wineries, the filming of which originally started off as a two-month project, but on getting to gather more information across the globe, ended up by taking more than three years to wind-up.

 

sideways-poster3)    Sideways (2004)

The movie is about two quadragenarians, Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church going on a week-long road trip to Santa Barbara County Wine Country. It’s a wine tasting road trip to kick up Jack’s (Thomas Haden’s) final days as a bachelor. ‘Sideways’ made us realize that ‘one need not be wealthy to buy bottles of wine’.

 

good_year4)    A Good Year (2006)

Directed by Ridley Scott, the movie has Russell Crowe as Max Skinner involved with wine making. In it he plays the role of a carnivorous Wall Street lion who returns to a French wine country where he is tamed by the routines he gets to follow at the vineyards.

 

bottle-shock-movie-poster5)    Bottle Shock (2008)

 The movie chronicles Alan Rickman as a British wine dealer who cracks to pit American wines against the French legacy, by going to Napa Valley for a blind taste test. This movie based on the 1976 wine competition is a true story called the ‘Judgment of Paris’ which had the Californian wineries defeat the French.

 

Corked_poster6)    Corked (2009)

It’s a feature film lampooning the Oscar winning movie ‘Sideways’. The film is about a prominent celebrity wine critic going to a locality having everyone, trying to make their wine end up on the critic’s golden palate. ‘Corked’ travels behind a manic winemaker, a billionaire, a clueless winery manager and an incompetent rich kid, who tries to compete in winning the trophy.

Advertisement
Comments

Restaurant Review

A Mishmash of Flavors- Farrago House

Published

on

What happens when an Engineer, a doctor to-be, a BBA graduate and a Chef plans something together? So, when Arjun, Mishal, Akshay and Suneesh got together, it resulted in a restaurant. Farrago House may look like just another ordinary eatery at Athani Centre in Thrissur, but the food that comes out of their kitchen is a must try.

When asked about how they decided the name Farrago, Akshay, one of the owners said “Farrago means a mixture of things. Similarly, we serve a mixture of all kinds of food over here”, and yes from Chicken Pidi and Meen Mulakitathu to Burgers and Skewers they serve all varieties of food.

They have a large open kitchen with 7 chefs mixing together ingredients, combining them and bringing out steaming hot tasty food to the customers.

They started this restaurant on July 1st of this year, and in this short period of time they have a very large number of customer base in the city. Their pricing of food is on a lighter side. Hence college students, families etc. can devour tasty, high quality food in an affordable price range.

When asked about their special dishes, they said that Pothichoru and Dum Biriyani have a separate fan base in the area. A large number of these dishes get sold on a daily basis. Similarly, their different variants of Burgers are a must try. Also, by next month they are planning to introduce Fusion Food to their customers and the main dish is the flavorsome “Elaneer Chicken”. Even though everyone is stuck at home and can’t dine out, the restaurant plans to deliver tasty mouthwatering food to your doorsteps.

Their parking space is something that should be pointed out. For many people parking is a huge headache while going out. Either you have to wait to get some space or you should park somewhere far away and then walk to the cafes or restaurants. But here, Farrago house has a spacious car parking facility where they can accommodate a large number of customers.

Due to covid restrictions and curfews, Farrago house does not have a dine-in facility. Currently takeaway and delivery is only available. Once it opens, you can visit and enjoy the fine dine space and the cool ambience of the restaurant.

Follow them on Instagram for delicious posts- https://instagram.com/farragohouse

Words by: Malavika Venugopalan

Photo Credits- Arfan Abdulazeez https://www.instagram.com/the.procaffeinator/

 

Continue Reading

Restaurant Review

It’s their Turning Point

Published

on

Life of so many took a turning point due to the stressful yet to end COVID disaster, many industries got stand still shattering life and dreams of many. The great Socrates had said, “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new”. Arnold and Rohit have done the same, despite all these struggling pandemic days, they have come up with Turning point- the newest food joint in town.

People of Kochi, especially the once active party goers may recognize Arnold Heiden as that young DJ who have made people groove to his music in almost every popular dance floor in Kochi, but being the clubs and pubs shut, Arnold took a break from the turntable to the billing table at Turning Point, were you can see him with that warm smile welcoming his customers. Arnold left his decent 9 to 5 desk job for this and joining him was his friend Rohit who was an engineer in Saudi Arabia. Both of them left their jobs and ventured into the food business.

Arnold and Rohit had been planning for a food truck concept but due to the strict laws the authorities were not giving the license for a live kitchen on a vehicle and then they settled with a concept of dine in food joint.

Turning point has already become the fav among the youngsters in Kochi with the beautiful ambiance and the mouthwatering food which they offer. Due to the Covid regulations currently dining is not allowed and only take home is available, but once the restrictions are withdrawn turning point will surely become one of those buzzing hangout food joints in the City. They are even planning to add Pizza’s, pancakes, live desserts etc. into the menu once the dine in restrictions are withdrawn

You can have a wide range of menus from Croquettes, fries, Wings, Wraps, Rolls, Burgers and even veg and nonveg bowls for those who are looking for a heavy dining. The price is on a lighter side with respect to the premium quality food which they serve. For the hot tea lovers, Chembil Chaya within the premises is a live tea counter which will serve you a variety of tea they have. Turning point will be soon available over the online delivery portals and you can have their food served at your doors, but we highly recommend to have a visit to Turning Point once the covid scenario is over.

Turning Point/Chembil Chaya is in PT Jacob Road, opposite to Our Lady’s Church, Thoppumpady

Words by: Vivek Kadavath

Continue Reading

Restaurant Review

A Twist Of Taste At Crowne Plaza Kochi’s Trilogi Restaurant

Published

on

FWD Life had the pleasure of savouring the delightful additions to the restaurant’s popular menu last week

Text credit: Charishma Thankappan

Raising the standards of fine dining in Kochi, Trilogi Restauarant at Crowne Plaza Kochi launched their revamped menu this past weekend. Adding to their existing menu which features tastes par excellence, the latest dishes promise to elevate the gastronomic experience.

The entire hotel wore a festive look, being ornately decorated and the staff dressed in traditional Kerala attire of cream and gold saree and mundu and kurta. Lilting aromas of fresh jasmine flowers adorning the entrance way to the restaurant set up the warm welcome for the guests on this night of the new menu launch.

Trilogi wore a romantic look, with each of the tables being decked up with a candle placed creatively on a stub of banana stem. There was no surprise that the place was packed for the night.

Candle

The night began with a welcome drink called Ilaneer Paaniyam, a most imaginative concoction of ilaneer, ilaneer malai, and coconut milk blended with a dash of mint, ginger, and sugar. Served in a tall glass with a rose petal, this was a most refreshing and unique taste that won the heart right away.

In streamed the platter of starters next, comprising Chemmeen Urulakizhangu Dosa, Kanthari Chicken, Aatirachi Nei Pathal in the non-vegetarian options and Chuvannulli Inji Vada, Vazhapoo Kadala Parippu Cutlet for the vegetarians. Bursting with flavours, each of them were mouthwatering, but the highlight was the Chemmeen Urulakizhangu Dosa – an artistic genius of the chefs. This was washed down with Seafood Thengapaal Soup, a best-seller in the existing menu. Pineapple Rasam was the delightful alternative for vegetarians.

Seafood Thenga Paal Soup

The main course looked overwhelming with a plethora of appealing names. And sure enough, the arrival of the delicacies, preceded by their heavenly aroma was intoxicating. Opting for the non-vegetarian menu, we received Syrian Beef Koorka Roast, Mutton Kurumulagu Chaaps, Kuttanadan Tharaavu Varutharacha Curry, to be devoured with fresh, fluffy appams and Fish Biriyani.  Its vegetarian substitutes composed of Vellary Uppumanga Curry, Vazhapoo Vanpayar Kachiyathu, Koon Koorkka Peera Pattichathu, with Idiyappam, Appam, or Chef’s Special Paratha.

Main course

Dessert time was another brilliant showcasing of Executive Chef Kalesh and his team’s imaginative prowess. Vazhapoovu Ela Paayasam, Bebinca, and Ilaneer Pudding brought the night to a flourishing end. Yet again, the Ilaneer Pudding proved to be an ingenious creation and left the biggest impact upon us.

Dessert

The biggest highlight of the revamped menu at Trilogi is the sheer innovativeness and artistry of the dishes. Got to give it to Chef Kalesh and his team for the efforts that they put in for creating a truly one-of-a-kind spread that has not been seen before. The mastery of the team lies in the deft use of the indigenous Kerala ingredients to make stunningly exotic tastes that would be novel for even Malayalis. As Chef Kalesh says, “We put in months of research into each dish. There is a story behind every dish, and we have derived them from authentic Kerala recipes used by natives from different parts of the state.”

The restaurant’s name Trilogi, as chef explains, is deduced from the three regions of Kerala – Malabar, Cochin, and Travancore. The restaurant features exclusive dishes from each of the regions, sticking to the authentic recipes. “Our chefs are sent to the houses of natives to learn the indigenous recipes and they come back and recreate in our kitchens. We mostly stick to the original recipes as it is, but sometimes add our own twist to it.” This twist is perhaps what elevates the dishes at Trilogi to heavenly heights, bringing diners back again and again to savour the unforgettable tastes.

Continue Reading

Facebook

Trending