11 Monday Feb 2019
Posted in food & drink, sevilla
Orujo – also known as aguardiente – is a digestive similar to Italian grappa, distilled from the “leftovers” of the grape pressing process. The sweet version on the left, orujo de hierbas, is infused with herbs. On the right, orujo blanco… pure firewater! I much prefer the white orujo. No matter how intense a meal you’ve had that stuff will cut right through it like nobody’s business. And, as you would expect, a little is all it takes. Do you have a favourite digestive?
09 Saturday Feb 2019
Posted in sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, wine
The wonderful Julie & Steven (AKA Julia & Esteban) are back in Sevilla to celebrate Steven’s 75th birthday, which is next Tuesday. We got Birthday Week off to a rip-roaring start with an (ahem) 8 hour lunch (!!), which may or may not be a personal record. Started off at Manolo Cateca for a cheeky sherry before having a super delicious lunch at Palo Cortao, along with Julie’s friend Susan, who just happened to be in town for a weekend getaway.
Of course after our leisurely lunch we had to go for a Penúltima and we chose the rooftop of the Gourmet Experience as Susan was really wanting to sit in the sun. Unfortunately, by the time we got there the sun was too low to reach us, but we enjoyed a lovely bottle of cava, and then Susan had to leave us to meet friends for a Flamenco show. By that time we were starting to feel a bit peckish again and Julie remembered how much she loved the pavía de bacalao at Palo Santo, so we strolled over there only to find out that the kitchen still wasn’t open. Undeterred, we decided to have a little pulpo ensaladilla along with yet another penúlitma, but then Eslava’s honey ribs started to sound like a good idea, so we popped over there for a snack while we waited. An hour or so later we were back at Palo Santo for our final snack of the day.
Then it was back home to Netflix with the cats. Looks like it’s going to be a crazy week. The actual birthday dinner will be at Eslava Restaurante on Tuesday, with a few other Sevilla activities between now and then. And then on Thursday I’ll head off to Cádiz with Julie and Steve to spend a couple of days there before they head back to Málaga on Saturday to catch their flight home. Phew!
07 Thursday Feb 2019
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Sweet or salty?
06 Wednesday Feb 2019
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I am often asked about the difference between sherry and port on my tapas tours and I’ve always had to confess that I really don’t know much about port, other than it is also a fortified wine. So when I was invited to a Sherry vs Port tasting it seemed like an ideal opportunity to learn something about port!
The event took place at the splendid Portuguese Consulate, and the wines were from Bodegas Sandeman, which produces both sherry and port wines. It was an interesting event, finishing with port and sherry cocktails. And now I want to go to Oporto! 🙂
05 Tuesday Feb 2019
Posted in casa azahar, cats, home, sevilla
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Morcilla has turned into a serious snuggler, which makes me very happy. She especially likes cuddling when I am in my “comfy chair” watching TV, and also when I am working at my desk. Her favourite thing is to jump onto my shoulder, then curl around and make herself comfortable, using my “rack” as a shelf, and then commence to purring and nudging her little nose against my cheek.
This photo of Morcilla I took today reminded my of one of my favourite photos ever, taken back in 2010, of me and Azar all cosy in bed – Azar was definitely a bed snuggler. I can still feel how I felt in that photo, and how he felt in my arms, remembering everything and bringing up a whole tangle of emotions. I’ve never got over losing that lovely little guy, nor do I want to. But I feel very lucky that Morcilla came into my life.
