Jannettas Gelateria are bringing a unique experience to Edinburgh hotel The Balmoral
This fun experience is inspired by a new food pairing trend
Egg and chips, cheese and tomato, salt and sauce.
There are many iconic foodie pairings.
One of my favourites is the classic vino and cheese combo, but that would be too hackneyed for the team at Bar Prince at five-star hotel The Balmoral in Edinburgh.
They’re mixing it up, with a special wine and gelato pairing menu, which is available from now until the last dregs of summer - September 7, and maybe longer, if it proves popular and stays as sunny as it has been.
According to them, this type of pairing is popular in New York, Paris and London, where there is a particularly popular new spot in Islington called The Dreamery.
As a sugar lover, I don’t need convincing, especially since, to create this offering, they teamed up with the family-run Jannettas Gelataria. They’ve been around for an incredible 117 years and their main parlour is on South Street in St Andrews, with a second venue near the V&A in Dundee.
This independent business is currently run by fifth generation brothers, Lewis and Ross Hazel.
“We’re thrilled to be teaming up with Jannettas. Lots of us have fond memories of visiting their shop in St Andrews, and as a family-run business with Italian roots, it feels like the perfect fit,” says Stefano Pinna, assistant bar manager at Bar Prince. “It’s been such fun exploring how these unusual pairings bring out new flavours in both the gelato and the wine. Each one has been expertly paired to create a truly experiential tasting, and has been great fun, challenging our expertise into something so playful.”
It’s been a while since I tried their ice-cream, mainly because there’s always a massive queue outside, whenever I’m in their home town.
Anyway, this collaboration has been timed perfectly for them, as it’s taking place in the summer holidays, while students have gone home and they’re marginally quieter.
Tonight, there will be no waiting in line.
We’re at a preview event, at the ground floor Bar Prince, with its floral wallpaper and fireplace, to try all four of the pairings.
The experience will cost £50, for all four of the matched wines and ice-creams, which sounds like a good alternative to afternoon tea in Palm Court. Alternatively, you can also order the duos individually, at the end of a meal, say, in lieu of the usual pud course.
First up is the pistachio pairing, which is £26.50 on its own. We have a glass of Charles Heidieck Champagne, which was chosen by bar manager Giovanni Cassino and Pinna because of its buttery brioche flavour that’s reminiscent of cannoli. You can take a bite of ice-cream, then a sip of the drink, to see how well they match. Or, just neck them both. Someone mentions Coke floats, and I get the urge to add the ice-cream to the glass, but I will stay classy.
The pale green gelato, which is made from Sicilian pistachios, and served in a metal sundae dish, is decadently lush. The creamy and spoon-coating texture is definitely highlighted by a swig of champers. I go from one, to the other, then vice versa. I’ve always been a fan of fizz with a bag of salty chips, but this is another level.
Pairing number two is £28.50 and involves a glass of Charles Heidsieck Rose Champagne, which we’re told has strawberry and redcurrant notes, and a hot pink tayberry gelato. This fruit, which is grown at Pittormie Fruit Farm in Dairsie, is a raspberry and blackberry hybrid.
As Lewis Hazel says, “It has a unique sweet profile that works beautifully with certain wines and it comes from berries grown by a family friend just down the road.”
They also look very bonnie together.
The gelato is extremely zingy and fruity. It wakes me up, like snuff. I imagine that it’s packed with free radicals and vitamin C, though probably not. This is still ice-cream, not a health tonic.
The third ice-cream pairing is £24.50 and is a Jannettas exclusive for the collaboration. The pale beige tahini gelato is an absolute stunner, with a savoury edge thanks to the toasted sesame paste ingredient. The smokiness is gorgeous, along with a glass of peachy clean Sancerre. I’m sad that this ice-cream is a one-off, as I want a two-litre tub to keep in my freezer for Bridget Jones style emotional emergencies.
At this point, we’re all on a booze-fuelled sugar high, of the sort you might get after an espresso martini, so it’s just as well that there is just one to go.
Ultimately, chocolate ice-cream is always my first choice, so I’m glad that it makes an appearance on this menu, as part of the £21.50 pairing. However, this is something a bit more sophisticated than a tub of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food. This dark chocolate sorbet is rich and indulgent, but light, too. According to Lewis Hazel, they wanted to include something for those that are avoiding lactose, and this fits the bill. It’s been teamed with a fruity and spicy glass of Valpolicella.
Four ice-creams down, and I’m sold on this whole experience. I feel like my insides are a tie-dye swirl of pastel colours and bubbles.
It might not be the new salt and sauce, but it’s definitely a fun way to see out the last of summer.
No queues, either.
The full tasting menu, £50 per person, can be booked via the website for Bar Prince (The Balmoral, 1 Princes Street, Edinburgh, 0131-556 2414, www.roccofortehotels.com).
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