Event: Making Mussels at Cheval Blanc, Moseley

A warm bowl of steaming hot mussels is a rare treat, especially in landlocked Birmingham, where seafood is a speciality rarely enjoyed.

But wait! Cheval Blanc in Moseley invited myself and Emily from Good Girl Gone Brum to learn how to make this delicious delicacy.

A weekly addition to the menu, mussels can be enjoyed at Cheval Blanc every Saturday and Sunday in a variety of forms for just £5. Served with crusty sourdough bread, it can also be matched to a delicious wine for an additional fiver.

Prior to the hard work commencing, we were able to sit at the bar and enjoy a tipple or two. Despite Cheval Blanc being a wine bar, I decided on a G&T instead whilst Emily went for a more traditional approach and enjoyed a glass of wine.

Back to our lesson. We were invited into the kitchen with Cyd to learn how to tempt these fleshy morsels to flavour greatness. At the back of the Moseley restaurant is the kitchen where Cyd whips up dishes such as venison carpaccio, pate and arancini. 

Here, Cyd went through the process of showing us how to make a beautiful bowl of Curry Madras Mussels. 

(Serves two)

500g mussels per person

15g finely chopped shallots

15g grated carrots

1tbsp chopped chives

2 tsp curry madras powder

10cl white wine

10cl double cream

Method:

Warm up 1tbsp clarified butter in a pan. Raise the heat to 220 degrees, add shallots and carrots followed by curry madras. Add white wine, let it reduce, add double cream and let it reduce until almost dry. Cook for a few minutes. Add a sprinkle of chives and voila!

The lesson was filmed for the Cheval Blanc website and the link to the video is here if you'd like to see Cyd in action and hear me talk about the evening.

Of course, we had to taste test the final product and I can definitely say that I will be back for another serving of these delicious delights.

*With thanks to Cheval Blanc Moseley for the cookery class and complimentary mussels.

Event: Cheval Blanc Moseley Press Dinner and Wine Tasting

Moseley is known for drawing crowds of young, trendy, types to the suburbs with its mix of eclectic bars and international restaurants.

Popping up next to The Dark Horse, is Cheval Blanc. A classy, elegant venue, Cheval Blanc is an upmarket bar with a real thirst for wine.

Its undoubted USP's include the hand-painted mural of a white horse and a spiral underground wine cellar which can hold up to 1,500 of the best wines, retailing at between £15-£1,000.

I was drawn in on a Sunday evening for a Press Launch with the lure of tasting ten wines as well as plates of nibbles created by French chef Cyd.

An intimate space, the main restaurant is small, with room for up to 25 diners. Dominated by the glass topped wine cellar and accompanying spiral lamp feature above, the room is cleverly divided with booths, soft seating and wooden tables.

So dedicated are the owners to wine, that they have brought in sommelier Abigail Connolly to manage the venue.

Onto the evening itself, a champagne reception on a Sunday night does not bode well for Monday morning, but it would be rude to pass on such a welcome.

Following an introduction from owner Keith Marsden, the owner of The Dark Horse and The Prince of Wales, we got stuck into the wine tasting.

Sailing through a Gardet, Blanc de Blancs (£60, Champagne), Chateau Montaud Rose (£27, Rose), Eschenhof Holzer, Wagram Gruner Veltliner (£20, White, Crisp and Dry) and Domaine De Le Chauveniere, Muscat Sevre et Maine (£20.50, White, Crisp and Dry), we were taken on a tour of wines from £20 to £40 and over in this relaxed and unpretentious environment.

Giving us just a taste of what it felt like to taste 180 wines, which is exactly what the team did to put together the wine list, we continued to try a further six wines. These were: La Monasesca, Verdicchio di Matelica (£33, White, Fruit Forward), BLANKBottle, Nothing to Declare (£38.50, White, Rich and Rounded), Eschenhof Holzer, Wagram Bauer Zweigelt (£20, Red, Light and Fresh), Domaine Foillard, Morgan Classique (£43.50, Red, Light and Fresh), Nitida, Calligraphy (£38, Red, Classic Blend) and Juan Gil, 12 Meses (£35, Red, Big and Bold).

Some of the highlights for me included the Verdicchio, with flavours of honey and pears, this was my favourite. Nothing to Declare, described as a Rich and Rounded White, had hints of pear and marzipan and was again a treat.

In amongst the wine, there were a few small plates to enjoy too. Featuring highlights from the main menu, we tried a fish plate, a meat plate, a cheese plate and the white wine and vanilla poached pear, creme chiboust and shortbread dessert.

The food menu ranges from £4 for olives to £12 for a meat or cheese sharing board, and the dishes are small but full of flavour; perfect accompaniments to the extensive wine list.

Cyd is a French chef who pays attention to detail and flavour, and the produce he selects has got to be perfect before he'll let it anywhere near the menu, In particular, I couldn't fault the tea smoked duck breast with flavours of orange and black cardamon, the hearty pieces of poached lobster, the rich cheeses served alongside quince paste and the dill cured salmon.

In amongst the bars, pubs and restaurants, Moseley has finally found itself a grown-up wine bar.