Mosmans Restaurant – Travel Through Italy Wine Dinner

Mosmans Restaurant must have one of the best locations in Perth. It sits on a jetty on the banks of the Swan River and until last week, it was a gem I was yet to discover. Last Thursday night I was super excited to be invited to their recent ‘Travel Through Italy Wine Dinner’. I am also a massive fan of Italian wine and food so I knew it’d be right up my alley. If I ever get back to Europe, revisiting Italy will definitely be at top of my list alongside going back the Champagne region in France.
Firstly a big thank you to the team at Mosmans Restaurant! The lovely @nomief and myself had a fabulous night and it’s safe to say I was absolutely wowed by the quality of the food and how well they paired the wines.

It was actually very refreshing to attend a wine dinner where the chefs and wine distributor (David Mullen Wines) had actually thought about what will be the best dishes to match each wine. I think Dave mentioned they’d sat down 6 weeks prior to the dinner to taste the wines and start working on the menu. It’s always a good sign when the menu is designed and created based on the wines and their flavours. Unfortunately I’ve been to many a dinners where the menu is designed in a hope that the selected wines will match.

The dinner ran from about 7/7:30pm until 10pm. I found it well paced and I think the portion sizes were spot on. I definitely left with a happy tummy and I must admit, I didn’t quite finish both the last 2 dishes as I was quite full. For $99 per person, I can definitely say it’s value for money. Actually, I think it’s a bit of a bargain with such high quality food like that!

We were all sat at our individual group tables which makes a night like this great for date night or catching up with friends or family. The night was introduced by James the General Manager of Mosmans. Dave popped up to speak a couple of times during the night to tell us a bit more about what was in our glasses alongside sharing his extensive knowledge of all things Italian. We also had the option to purchase wines at the end – it was good that this part wasn’t pushy or salesy.
 Alongside the order form, our menus and tasting notes on the wines, there was also a map of Italy on the handouts that we could take home. I loved this little touch as when Dave was talking and we were drinking each of the wines we could take a look at where exactly they’re from.
 Anyway enough of my blabbing – you came to see the drool-worthy pictures right? Well here you go…

Course 1:

Prosciutto crudo, pickled pear, compressed rock & honeydew melon with citrus emulsion matched with a glass of Borgoluce NV Prosecco ‘Lampo’ DOC Extra Dry from Veneto. This Italian fizz retails for approximately $25 at Old Bridge Cellars in North Fremantle.

This was a fabulous way to start off the night – nice and light. Plus a very generous portion of prosciutto – which always go down well with me.

Fun fact:

There are four categories of Prosecco to indicate the amount of residual sugar in the wine (aka the degree of dryness or sweetness of the wine). These are from driest to sweetest: Brut, Extra Dry, Dry and Demi-Sec.

Course 2:

Squid linguini, sweet corn custard, braised fennel, prawn mousse and salsa verde matched with a glass of Cantina del Vermentino ‘Monti’ 2016 Nord Est Vermentino from the island of Sardinia. $22 from Old Bridge Cellars.

It’s a tough statement to make but I think this was my favourite course of the night. If you follow my adventures regularly then you’ll already know I love my wines made from the Vermentino grape variety. This wine teamed with this absolutely delicious, not to mention stunningly beautiful dish – really ticked all the boxes for me.

Fun fact:

Unlike Australia and the new world, many European regions including those in Italy cannot adjust acidity levels in their wine due to winemaking laws. You’ll find for the above Vermentino that it has lovely soft natural acidity in the glass.

Course 3:

Orecchiette, sous vide chicken, asparagus, truffle and brodo di pollo (which I found out is a chicken broth of sorts which is poured on the dish by the staff when it arrives at the table) matched with a glass of Coffele 2016 ‘Castel Cerino’ Soave Classico from Veneto. $27 from Old Bridge Cellars.

One of the biggest reasons I love Italian wine is that it’s made for food. Winemakers produce wine in Italy based on the fact that people will be drinking their wine while eating. This match was absolutely heavenly and alongside course 2 this was definitely a winner in my books. The chicken was so succulent and tender and matched this white wine with fine acidity so beautifully.

Fun fact:

Soave is Italy’s leafing white wine. The predominant grape in Soave is Garganega however Trebbiano di Soave and Chardonnay are also permitted.

Course 4:

Ossobuco, gremolata on a bed of risotto alla milanese matched with a glass of Ghisolfi 2013 Langhe Nebbiolo from Piedmont. $45 a bottle from Old Bridge Cellars.

Oh my, it was rich, tender, meaty and cheesy. What a dish! I loved every scoop of it and matched to the king of Italian grapes, Nebbiolo, it was perfect! This is definitely when I started to wish I’d worn a more stretchy outfit!<

Fun fact:

It’s said the name ‘Nebbiolo’ is derived from the Italian word, nebbia, which means ‘fog’ in English. Apparently the Langhe region in particular experiences a lot of fog around harvest time.

Course 5:

Grana padano, cherry jam, tuile and parmesan foam matched with a glass of Monte Schiavo Rosso Piceno 2013 Sangiovese Montepulciano from Le Marche. $24 a bottle from Old Bridge Cellars.

This has to be the most unique cheese board I’ve ever seen or experienced. What a way to end such an incredible meal. Who knew you could serve up cheese in so many different ways. Simply incredible!

Fun fact:

The Montepulciano grape is typically blended with Sangiovese to soften it.
Just writing this post makes me experience wine and food envy – I wish I could enjoy this night all over again!

Again a huge thanks to the Mosmans team for taking us on such an incredible journey through Italy – you guys truly put together one heck of a tasty night. I can’t wait to visit again with Mr. Spittoon as I have no doubt it’ll be another fab meal. See you soon Mosmans!