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I saw the mapping a couple of weeks ago but arrived too late to get a good vantage point for a video. Made it back for the final showing last night and went up to the new BOSTON cocktail bar to watch it again and make this. Happily did not drop iPhone off the balcony.
How do you think it compares to last year’s mapping? I kind of missed the “snow”.
Club Foodies is a new gastronomic space in El Arenal for cooking class and special events. Located on the third floor in a small side street off calle Antonia Díaz, it’s a bright and cosy space with a working fireplace surrounded by comfy sofas on one end of the room and the cooking space on the other. Large sliding doors open onto an ample terrace for either dining or having cocktails.
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We did the latter last Tuesday at the Club Foodie opening event which featured a tasty array of gourmet canapés, including some serious local talent…
Club Foodies is the brainchild of Ana Cardenas (far right in the lower right hand photo), a Galician who has made Sevilla her home for the past ten years. With a degree in art history and experience in organising fashion and art events around town, Ana has also been working on private Supper Clubs and other culinary experiences including music and poetry. With this new venture her future events will have a permanent home, in a space that can also be hired by others wishing to hold their own cooking classes or other gastronomy events.
Club Foodies Website
Gracia Fernández Palacios 3
Sevilla
tel. 955 223 520 / 667 620 278
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I was treated to a private wine tasting yesterday, along with friends Fiona @Seville_Writer and Amelia @TravelCuisine1, arranged for us by BurNarj @Burnarj, a young family-run winery in Palma del Rio, Córdoba. BurNarj – a pormanteau of “burbujas” (bubbles) and “naranja” (orange) – is the world’s first and only sparkling orange wine made from 100% orange juice. All other orange wines presently on the market are grape wines that have been infused with orange juice, zest, etc. BurNarj wines are made using the traditional méthode champenoise which, aside from champagne (obvs), is also used for making Spanish cava. There are four wines in the Burnarj range: Brut Nature (dry 11% alc), Brut (slightly sweet 11% alc), Semi-Seco (semi-sweet 11€ alc) and a Semi-Seco light (7% alc). It is recommended to drink these wines well-chilled between 1º – 3º C.
BurNarj general director Alfonso Diéguez arrived at Travel & Cuisine headquarters with a cooler full of wines and a lovely selection of snacks. We started off tasting the bone dry Brut Nature, which paired very well with the smoked salmon and jamón Ibérico (Alfonso also recommends it with Rio Frío caviar from the same region), and which ended up being everybody’s favourite. I found the Brut to be a “neither here nor there” wine and was surprised to find I liked the Semi-Seco light second best out of the four. At 7% alcohol it would be a perfect brunch wine, like a ready-made mimosa. Also great for picnics, come to think of it.
Alfonso talked us through the process and explained the different characteristics of each wine with obvious passion. I was surprised to learn that it takes 5 kilos of oranges (2 litres of fresh juice) to make just one bottle of wine. It was also interesting to find out more about the origins of the company and the labour-intensive méthode champenoise. Just two years old, the winery is already selling well in Japan, Poland, Mexico and the UK, as well as at home in Spain. At 11.90€ – 13-50€ retail this would probably be a special occasion wine for most people, but I do recommend giving these wines a try, especially the Brut Nature and the light Semi-Seco.
For more information and to visit the BurNarj online store…
BurNarj Website
Pol. Ind. El Garrotal, Calle E, parcela 5
Palma del Río, Córdoba
Tel. 957 644 059 / 672 289 105
In case you were wondering which monuments will and won’t be open – and when – during the upcoming long four-day long weekend, here ya go. Thanks to Turismo de Sevilla @sevillaciudad for the info.
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Up until recently the Christmas lights in Sevilla were turned on the night of the Inmaculada (December 8th) and turned off again for the season on the day of Los Reyes Magos (January 6th). I think it was about three years ago that the city council moved the date up to the last day of November because, at that time, there was a massive convention going on in town and apparently they wanted to create a festive atmosphere for the visitors. Since then the end of November has become the new “official” start of the Christmas season, moving it up about ten days, and each year more and more streets are being lit up.
I personally love the lights (well, except for the gaudy pink & purple display along Constitución) but I’m also glad to have a relatively short Christmas season here compared to the US, Canada and the UK. Makes it feel more special.
