When the wine flows...

It has been a busy old week with Sams parents arriving to stay with us, which of course I took as the perfect opportunity to get out my little black book of things to do and see. Now whilst I love a good old walk in the mountains, a wander around another beautiful Mallorcan village, or even a gallery or museum, the reality is I like nothing more than seeking out another foodie experience. You know what you like and let’s be honest, amongst our friends, I am known for it 😂

So what a wonderful coincidence that the Pollença Wine Festival just so happened to be taking place on the weekend that John, my father in law and fellow lover of the fermented grape, arrived in town. It’s a great event that this year returned to the beautiful surroundings of the Cloisters. What luck that I could combine my indulgence of fabulous wine with a bit of local culture! So on the Saturday just as the newly crowned King Charles lll took his oath, John and I pledged to Sam that we would not visit all 39 producers!!

We are very lucky to have some excellent wine producers on our doorstep, many of which are small but with a real focus on organic production of very high quality. Not every wine we tasted we liked but that’s as much about personal taste and not a reflection of the wine. A wonderful afternoon was spent at the Cloisters and I am pleased to say we managed to visit quite a few producers but unlike Charles we didn’t end up on our knees.

So what next on our gastronomic adventure…some fabulous highlights. The legendary chef Franc at Celler El Moli featuring their menu del dia, the sweetest juicy prawns from Soller, a visit to the very slick El Camino tapas restaurant in Palma, but no journey through the Mallorcan food scene would be complete without a plate of the best Calamares you’ll ever taste made by our wonderful friend Maraglida. It’s a little bit of happiness on Sundays as we come back from the market and call in at Can Magraner for Margalidas perfectly seasoned, hot crispy rings of delight…she still hasn’t shared her recipe with me though!

On Friday we did have a very special treat at Miceli in Selva. Wow this was a lunch to remember with cooking at the highest level, an outstanding selection of dishes on the tasting menu, all delivered by a team who just seem to do everything just right. It’s not always about the giddy heights of Michelin star dining but I think the food that Miceli serves is as good as, if not better, than some of those that boast the accolade.

Now I don’t want you to think that the week was completely dominated by my constant pursuit of gastromic pleasure, there was also a few rounds of dominoes as well…I know, it’s a glitzy life we lead in Pollença. The real joy was to spend a lovely few days with two people who are very dear to us. We always manage to have a laugh along the way, share some old memories and make plenty of new ones. So as we waved goodbye and my liver starts to recover you’ll be pleased to know that my little black book already has a few new entries for the next trip…