There are tasting menus and then there are Tasting Menus. I expect a tasting menu to be a showcase of the chef’s art and so this proved to be at 1851 Restaurant at Peckforton Castle. Intriguingly, a glance at the nine-course menu seemed to showcase some humble ingredients. Carrot and bread starring as the main ingredient of a dish is brave indeed but I was about to be stunned by these swashbuckling courses.
The food descriptions are perfectly deadpan. I loved the spare, laconic, factual descriptions; understatement always wins the day with me. Our first course was an example of the art of the kitchen and how a simple taco could be transformed by drama and elevated into culinary artistry. It was helped by the spectacle of swirling dry ice, and the presentation by the delightful staff who explained each dish to us as it arrived. The tacos set the mood for what was to come as our taste buds started to tingle from the subtle combination of crunchy sweet shell and blend of savoury black bean and feta with a piquant touch of lime and red onion pickle.
Kames Bay trout sourced from a loch just south of Oban, high up in the Scottish Highlands, was a statement of intent. Brian Hughson is a chef prepared to search high and low in his quest for the most exciting ingredients. This was the most delicate of fish, very lightly smoked and cleverly wrapped with nori to imitate the appearance of fish skin. The brown butter and miso mousseline was sublime and the decorative splash of tarragon topped with alyssum lent a hint of onion and contrast of flavour.
A wine pairing is a matter of trust and the sommelier at Peckforton Castle matches wine to people or food at each serving. So it seemed like a good choice to follow his selection of wine for our meal. The champagne, Blanc de Blanc – Joseph Perrier – Cuvée Royal Brut was a wonderful choice to start. Pétillant and in harmony with the dishes it is paired with.
The next course was the sand carrot mentioned earlier, dusted with a hint of tandoori and a swede purée. It elevated the humble carrot to a thing of beauty and it tasted wonderful. The sand carrot comes from Normandy and has an incomparable flavour, enhanced here by the lightest touches of curry.
Melon and cucumber was the unassuming title of the next dish. A feast for the eye, this combination of pressed and lightly pickled honeydew melon was accompanied by sculpted slices of cucumber, each topped with a daisy-shaped piece of mint and scattered with slivers of chilli with hints of gooseberry and apple. The pressing and light pickling intensified the flavour of the honeydew melon and my tongue thought it had gone to heaven. This was accompanied by a Rosé d’Anjou – Douce Évasion – Loire, an old-fashioned example of the Loire wines, sweet and full of flavour.
Then came the milk bread and what an understatement for possibly the most stunning course of all. This came in two parts, the first rich, golden-hued and glossy, with its origins in the Japanese style – soft and delicious. We greedily tore apart the dome to reveal the softest, most flavoursome bread to mop up the cultured spring onion butter. For textural contrast, we had the thinnest of thin breads, crispy and delicious, designed to scoop up the whipped olive oil at the bottom of the dish. What an unexpected treat.
Then on to the most delicious scallop, simple yet complex in its presentation and taste. The gentle sweetness of the scallop was complemented by a sweetcorn sauce, sharpened by yuzu and vadauvan, giving it a smoky and aromatic take on Indian curry powder. This was accompanied by a Tasmanian Pipers Brook Pinot Gris. I found this wine was slightly overwhelming given the subtlety of the scallop, but my husband, John, loved its robustness and strength.
The drama heightened with the arrival of our beef fillet covered with a glass cloche, lifted with a flourish to reveal just enough smoke to hint at the taste of the most meltingly tender fillet. I asked the chef how he achieved the perfect medium rare and he explained that it is cooked sous vide, then pan-fried to finish. Beautifully sour kumquat was presented alongside in a crisp tart, contrasting with the sweet hint of nectarine. The sauce is slightly smoky with a hint of guanciale and I have to confess, I wanted to lick the plate. With this, we drank a wine from Piedmont. Silky rich, aromatic and one of the most delicious red wines it has been my pleasure to taste. The nose of La Caplana Rubis Barbera was almost overwhelming, with a taste living up to its promise.
Then to the two dessert courses. Firstly, a stunning re-presentation of the Eton mess. But this was a cheesecake version and all the better for it. The slight sourness of the base was wonderfully refreshing, the shards of crisp meringue and the mélange of redcurrants, gooseberries, lemon and elderflower an imaginative contrast to the sweetness of the meringue. With this course, we enjoyed a superb Riesling Spätlese – Otto Görgen – Mosel.
At this point, one would imagine, indeed expect, that a breather between dishes would have been the norm. But this meal was perfectly judged and we greeted the final course with enthusiasm. Banana bread pain perdu and ginger custard was the triumphant finale.
Pain perdu is the traditional French version of French toast made by soaking brioche in a custard mixture of eggs, milk and sugar. How the kitchen includes banana in the mix is its secret but it works perfectly.
Brian Hughson has worked with and been trained by the best chefs in the country.
A particular favourite of his was the late lamented Gary Rhodes. He told us he learned all he knew about sauces from Gary… and it shows.
Brian runs three restaurants at Peckforton Castle with authority, having had a stellar career in the top hotels in the country, such as the Dorchester and the Savoy and going on to work with Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White.
He says he learned the most from Henri Brosi, who was at the helm of cuisine at the Dorchester for two decades. A mentor such as this means that all this experience is brought to bear in running three kitchens and designing menus that will stay in the memory of the diner for a very long time. Brian is carving a reputation for imaginative fine dining in Cheshire, and I recommend that food-lovers tread a path to the 1851 restaurant at Peckforton Castle..
Open Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday, Saturday and Sunday
Tasting menu £80 per person
Wine pairing £55 per person
1851 Restaurant at Peckforton Castle
Peckforton, near Tarporley CW6 9TN
01829 260930, peckfortoncastle.co.uk/restaurant/fine-dining-1851-restaurant
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