swine and wine

A couple of weeks ago we attended a Swine and Wine night at the Underdog Art Gallery, where we got to taste pork pies and terrines accompanied by matching wines. Quite an interesting concept, but I was very impressed by how well the wine complemented the pork. The night was hosted by D Vine Wine and Lardy Da, both of whom are dedicated to sourcing sustainable products. D Vine Wine only supplies wine that is organic, biodynamic or from sustainable sources. Lardy Da uses only free-range British pigs and ensures that as much of the animal is used as possible so that nothing goes to waste.

The Underdog Art Gallery is located under one of the railway arches in London Bridge, and the white brick, fantastic artwork, rumbling trains and candlelight created a great atmosphere for the 25 guests. The service was excellent. Greg (D Vine Wine) and Malika (Lardy Da) chatted to us about each wine and pork product while they served us, and it was clear that they are both very passionate about what they do.

The wine was delicious. We tried wine from all over the world, even an organic Sauvignon Blanc from Gladstone, New Zealand. I agreed with Greg and thought the Urlar Estate tasted different from other Sauvignon from home. It was very crisp and passionfruity, and lacked the characteristic body odour aroma of other NZ Sauvignon. The favourite wine of the night was Gran Cerdo, a very yummy biodynamic Rioja. The pork pies, with jelly made the traditional way, were very good, although they lacked a bit of flavour. I really liked the rich and creamy pork terrines though, which I smeared thickly on slices of bread. We were treated to a double bass player who played and sang for us all night. After six glasses of wine we were all singing along. It was a great end to a great night.