Gordo rides the Pampas: horse collapses

Michele Hart, one of the good girls of PR, invited Gordo to a ‘ceviche and beef master class’ at one of the Manchester critics' favourite restaurants, Gaucho Grill. Not one to be missed.

Ryan invited me to taste the beef raw. It was amazing, enabling us to appreciate the difference in taste and texture between, for example, fillet (not much) to rump (dark, beefy, hint of liver). The beef was then grilled over Gaucho’s charcoal pits...and bloody good it was too. Literally.

The last one Michele organised at The Lowry was hugely successful, a tasting of ‘new wave Bordeaux’ which was novel, interesting and copious, with a dinner put on by Mark and Ollie, restaurant manger and chef respectively which was simply fabulous.

The Gaucho is one of the city’s alpha restaurants, standards are always high and the wine list, Argentinean, is quite possibly the finest of its kind around. On this occasion the tasting was hosted by the Zuccardi family, owners of one of Argentina’s most prestigious wineries, headed up by José Alberto Zuccardi, a man with a proper smile who distinguished himself as a very gracious host. Clearly he wasn’t aware of Gordo’s drinking capacity.

First off a sparkling Chardonnay, Vida Organica 2007 (£32.50 – all prices in this article refer to those in the Gaucho) which was a delightful glassful of soft tiny bubbles and digestive biscuits with none of the metallic finish at the back of the mouth with, for example, the Spanish Cava’s.

Stand-out wines during the course of the evening included Vida Organica Torrontés 2008; white, unusual and reminding Gordo of his Gran’s violet sweets which he disliked as a child but loved in this glassful (go to www.alliancewine.co.uk).

A rosé showed very strongly, Zuccardi ‘Serie A Malbec, 2008. One hundred percent Malbec grapes, the wine rewards a highly professional team of winemakers, including José’s two sons, one of whom, Sebastian, was showing his own wine, Zuccardi Alma 4 Sparkling Bonarda (£48.25) at the end of the meal, which wasn’t to Gordo’s taste.

Previously we had tasted four reds, two of which were outsanding, a Zuccardi Q Malbec 2006 (£51.50) a big beefy bruiser of a wine and Zuccardi Zeta 2006, (see www.alliancewine.co.uk again) a very silky finishing drink with a much better nose and a big mouthful of spices and old fruit.

The food side of the evening was no less impressive, with the Gaucho’s executive chef, Ryan Hattingh giving a master class in how to make ceviche. Gordo thinks that Ryan used to be a double glazing salesman: he certainly could chat.

Demonstrating three different ceviches, tuna, gambas and lobster. We were shown the four main steak offerings, fillet, rump, sirloin and rib-eye. All the beef is from Aberdeen Angus stock, out of the Pampas in Argentina.

The cattle don’t wear themselves out on the rolling plains eating a grass that is soft and easy to chew and digest; they aren’t intensely fed at the end of their lives as are the ‘USDA’ cattle (United States Department of Agriculture) where they are encouraged to eat corn based feed to produce excessive marbling.

The cattle are relatively close to the abattoir, which results in less stress so the fellas’ hearts aren’t pumping a mass of adrenalin into the meat which leads to toughness. Then, the beef is hung for only one to two days, and then cut down and vacuum packed with the ‘wet ageing’ process for up to fifty days.

Ryan invited me to taste the beef raw. It was amazing, enabling us to appreciate the difference in taste and texture between, for example, fillet (not much) to rump (dark, beefy, hint of liver). The beef was then grilled over Gaucho’s charcoal pits...and bloody good it was too.

Gordo has loaded the press notes so that you, dear reader, can have a nosey. Of particular note are the three recipes for the ceviches, try them, they are a revelation.

Click here for the PDF.

Happy Trails
Gordo

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Gaucho Grill
2a St Mary’s Street
Manchester M3 2LB
0161 833 0888

Familia Zuccardi Winery
Familia Zuccardi, Ruta Prov. N33 KM 7,5 (M5531)
Maipu, Mendoza, Rep. Argentina
www.familiazuccardi.com