By Neena Bhandari

Growers, producers, chefs and winemakers across South Australia are warming up for, what will henceforth be, the annual Tasting Australia [May 1-8] festival. Here are the top three not-to-be-missed events.

Dinner in the company of Mark Kurlansky: At home in New York, author Mark Kurlansky and his daughter, Talia, would spin the globe and design a recipe from the country where it would stop. Mark would research the food history and culture and weave the story around the recipes. The intimate five course dinner menu has been crafted from his book, International Night, which will bring the flavours of the world to the spread and provide diners the opportunity to hear Mark’s insights and stories behind his travels and tryst with food.

The recipes from the book have been picked around South Australian products and history by InterContinental Adelaide’s executive chef, Tony Hart. He says, “The first course To Pass [Cornwall Cornish pasties] has a close affiliation with Cornish miners who were sent to Moonta to set up the mines. Each miner’s wife would make them a pasty for lunch. Interestingly, the carry handle on it was designed to avoid soiling the pasty. Similarly, Sicily [Fennel salad with AMJ heirloom tomatoes] depicts the state’s strong connection to Italian immigrants. Most of the tomato growers are Italians”.

“The menu also features some of our boutique suppliers – Red Snapper from Cowell, the Barossa Valley milk-fed heritage pork, cider from Lenswood apples in the Adelaide Hills and Savannah lamb from Clare Valley”, informs Hart.

The finale is Talia’s favourite dish, Andalusia, [flan de naranja] is Mark’s take on the traditional Spanish Tart and Hart’s favourite Pralines and coffee from his time in New Orleans. Each dish is paired with wines from Paracombe winery in Adelaide Hills.

Before each course, he is going to talk about the recipes.

WHEN: InterContinental Riverside restaurant, Adelaide on Thursday, May 5 at 6pm

Loaves and Fishes: No gels, no foams, no silver service, but if you have the hunger to share a pure, basic meal of two traditional staples – bread and fish – on a communal table, then Loaves and Fishes is not-to-be-missed.

Some of the state’s finest artisan bakers will join American baking icons, Jeffey Hamelman and Josey Baker, in crafting a diverse range of breads to be broken with barbecued, smoked and baked fish fresh from the Port Adelaide docks.

Accompanied with beer and wine from devotees of the equally ancient art of fermentation, it is sure to enkindle animated conversations on the future of baking and fishing and why we must care for our land and oceans today, more than ever before.

Hosted under the lofty comfort of Harts Mill at Port Adelaide, it is a great event for adults and kids.

“We will even have The Timbers performing a fabulous old sea shanties and a lively panel discussing on the varied flavours of bread and fish”, says Nick Ryan, a wine writer and columnist, who will the host and presenter.

WHEN: Friday, May 6 at 7pm. COST: $70 a ticket & $170 for a family of 4.

Single Sites Dinner: Have you ever wondered why wines taste so specific to the place they originate from? Most of us purchase wine based on the region and variety, for example, Shiraz from Barossa, Grenache from McLaren Vale, Cabernet from Coonawarra, and Pinot Noir from Yarra Valley. So what is unique about each sub-region, right down to each individual block? Each site has its own characteristic taste and that influences the winemaking.

Stephen Pannell, one of South Australia’s seven award-winning winemakers says, “I often muse and think about what’s important about winemaking. Its one and truly unique character is that it tastes of where it comes from. Sense of place should be the ultimate driving factor in all winemaking, ensuring wine is grown not made. Initiatives such as McLaren Vale’s Scarce Earth are assisting to educate winemakers and consumers as to the different expressions of single sites.

“Grenache has been my passion for years, a medium bodied variety – making medium bodied wines. The core commonality with all our wines are that they are medium bodied, not over-oaked, or high in alcohol, but made in a style that suits our climate, the food we grow, make and eat. For this reason they are extremely versatile when it comes to food. We call our GST (Grenache Shiraz Touriga) our all-rounder.

Stephen will be at the dinner to present and speak about their distinct single vineyard wines, celebrating the unique landscape that has created these inimitable wines.

The degustation menu, created by seven well-known South Australian chefs, is designed to complement the flavour profiles of the wine, recognising it as a key ingredient and not only an accompaniment.

An explosion of creativity and skill, these one-off dishes will leave you curious, surprised and satisfied. It is a celebration of single vineyard wines matched with dishes of similar origin.

Hosted by Tasting Australia creative director Paul Henry, Single Sites Dinner at Adelaide Convention Centre is a rare opportunity to experience storytelling, esteemed company and true South Australian flavours.

WHEN: Thursday, May 5 at 7pm.

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