Wine & Dine: Top Picks of the Pyrmont Festival

OUT & ABOUT
If you haven’t yet taken up the chance to enjoy the sensory delights of the first week of the Fifth Annual Pyrmont Food & Wine Festival, it’s not too late. From a POP UP party to delectable degustations, go where the Mudgee wine flows! Here are our top event picks for the remainder of the festival:

HUB CLUB POP UP PARTY
Enjoy Mudgee wine and Pyrmont food at this POP UP event in support of Sydney’s local media and the push for additional open space in Pyrmont, Pyrmont Festival. Wine has been donated by the Mudgee Grape Growers Association with all proceeds going to the City Hub’s crowd funding campaign. Support Sydney’s last independent community newspaper and learn about a new community campaign to champion much needed additional open space in Pyrmont at Ballaarat Park.
Thursday 21 May 2015, 6pm-9pm, Signorelli Gastronomia, Ground Floor of Accenture/Google Building,Trouton Place, Pyrmont, free entry.

HARBOURSIDE PROGRESSIVE DINNER SAFARI
This eclectic fieldtrip for your tastebuds starts with pre-dinner drinks at Cohibar accompanied by a selection of fine cheeses before moving on to the two-hatted Zaaffran, where Chef Vikrant Kapoor serves up beautifully presented Indian delights.  The evening then progresses on to Criniti’s for contemporary takes on popular Southern Italian pasta dishes and wood-fired pizzas paired with Mudgee wines, and finishes with a decadent dessert at Cyren, overlooking stunning views of Darling Harbour. Hosted by Harbourside Shopping Centre, all proceeds from this event will go to supporting Barnardos Australia with their valuable work in child protection.
Thursday 21 May 2015, First seating: 6.30pm, Second seating: 7.30pm, $100pp, Bookings: http://www.thesydneyconnection.com.au/bookings/ or call Maree Sheehan on 0435 050 367.

FLYING FISH DEGUSTATION
Flying Fish Restaurant & Bar invites you along to enjoy a four-course degustation menu carefully paired with Huntington Estate wines from the Mudgee region. Set over two levels at the very end of Pyrmont’s historic Jones Bay Wharf, the restaurant boasts spectacular harbour views, a coveted Chef’s Hat and a rustic interior that celebrates the site’s industrial-maritime heritage, Flying Fish is headed up by Stephen Seckold, who delivers an innovative menu that flows with the seasons and constantly surprises the palate.
Friday 22 May 2015, Jones Bay Wharf, 19/21 Pirrama Road, Pyrmont. $120pp. Bookings essential: 02 9518 6677

BLUE EYE DRAGON BANQUET
Pyrmont’s award winning Blue Eye Dragon restaurant invites you along for an extraordinary 10 course Taiwanese banquet paired with wine matches from Mudgee’s Gooree Park Wines. It’s about time you experienced the longstanding tradition of Taiwanese hospitality with a distinct personal touch by restauranteur Muriel Chen at Pyrmont’s ‘hidden gem’. Their pork and chive dumplings are to die for.
Saturday 23 May 2015, 37 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont, $80pp, Bookings essential: 02 9518 9955 or SMS: 0488 765 555

LuMi DEGUSTATION
Quickly establishing itself as one of Sydney’s most stunning dining experiences since opening late last year, LuMi Bar & Dining invites you along to a Sunday long lunch like no other. Choose between the five and eight course degustation menus, featuring their signature Italian dishes served up with Japanese influences, and matching wines from esteemed Mudgee wine maker David Lowe. Described a ‘light box’, the restaurant features 180 degree sliding glass doors opening up to an absolute waterfront location.
Sunday 24 May 2015, 56 Pirrama Road, Pyrmont, 5 courses: $130pp, 8 courses: $175pp, Bookings essential: 02 9571 1999

EDIBLE ICONS
See iconic pop culture figures as you’ve never seen them before: in edible form… Exploring the unique concept of food mapping, this exhibition features impressive 3D portraits of icons, from Amy Winehouse to Jimi Hendrix, created from food. Six masterpieces have been created from 25 ingredients, for you to discover along the Broadway Shopping Centre.
Until May 24 2015, Broadway Sydney, 1 Bay Street, FREE, pick up guide in-centre. 

BEST BUYS
If you made it along to the two-day headlining event of the Pyrmont Festival down at Pirrama Park on the weekend you would have surely enjoyed delights for all the senses with a sip or two (or twelve) of fine quality wines from Mudgee winemakers promoting their goods, delicious food stalls representing all corners of Pyrmont’s dining scene sizzling and steaming delightful scents across the park, and art and entertainment for all the family to enjoy.

But if you didn’t get the chance, Alternative Media have done the hard work for you, sipping and nibbling our way through the culinary delights on offer to bring you our top picks. (It’s a strenuous task, but someone had to do it, right?) Without further ado, here are our top picks from the Pyrmont Festival Market:

SPARKLING Huntington Estate Wines take the cake with their NV Sparkling Chardonnay. With a 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes picked fairly green at their vineyard, this sparkling is not too bitter, not too sweet and could easily be sipped on all afternoon long.
WHITE Chardonnay may have been pushed out of the lime light in recent years, with the bitter taste of cheap impostors pushing would-be drinkers over to milder Sauvignon Blanc territory, but Moothi Estate’s 2012 Chardonnay arguably showcases the peak features of a fine ‘Chardy’. Slightly wooded with a creamy oak texture and the aroma of toasted almonds and pear on the nose.
RED Family owned, single vineyard producers Yeates Wines have lovingly rejuvenated one of Mudgee’s first established vineyards, recently releasing their first vintage of boutique red wines, which includes their stunning 2011 vintage Gatekeeper’s Reserve Shiraz & Cabernet Blend. This easy drinking red has a complex structure yet is surprisingly smooth with subtle oaky overtones and undercurrents of blackberry and eucalypt.
PORT Not for all palates, port is a tricky beverage that Pieter van Gent Winery & Vineyard have mastered in their devilishly sweet, limited edition Botrytis Durif. With a velvety mouth feel and essences of apricot, raisins and a hint of brandy – sipping on this beverage feels like drinking the nectar of some kind of magical flower.
SCHNAPPS The absolute euphoria that overcomes one’s senses upon the first sip of Butterscotch Schnapps from Baker Williams Distillery is difficult to put into words. Mudgee may be renowned for it’s cellar doors, but this independently owned and operated distillery is creating some truly spectacular drops. Starting from their very own butterscotch base and gently blended with spirit, their Butterscotch Schnapps has a velvety mouth feel and is a dessert in it’s own right.
FOOD There was an overwhelming variety of food to choose from at the markets; the line for German sausages stretched as far as the eye could see, giant fry pans piled with Chicken Pad Thai and Italian Paella billowed out streams of delectable scents. But the stall from Pyrmont gem Blue Eye Dragon with their humble $5 tasting plates was a real stand out. With just one bite of their fragrant Pork & Chive Dumplings, you can see why they’ve earned a reputation for pumping out the best dumplings in Sydney. (AM)