The Aristologist

The Aristologist New Zealand home cook, writer, researcher publishes a food history journal “The Aristologist.”

Chicken roasted on a bed of garlic scapes and marjoram with potatoes. Grava - Bl anco (Spain) 🌞Garlic scapes and marjora...
29/12/2025

Chicken roasted on a bed of garlic scapes and marjoram with potatoes. Grava - Bl anco (Spain)
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Garlic scapes and marjoram on the bottom of the air frier. Brined half chicken sat snugly on top and previously boiled potatoes around. A good glug of olive oil, a good dollop of crème fraiche and a good splash of white wine over. 170C for abt 40min.
Excellent, chicken perfect, sauce from the crème fraiche, wine, garlic and chicken juices delicious.
🍷🍇Grava - 100% Godello - Made in Spain and imported by Grava of Martinborough. Deliciously fresh mineral with a bit of citrus zest - a lively sharpness that would pair well with oysters. We followed it with a French chardonnay that was made to feel, in contrast, a bit frumpy. Highly recommended. .nz

A pre-Christmas vineyard post. Two meter deep band of flowers surrounds three sides the vineyard area. Constantly buzzin...
24/12/2025

A pre-Christmas vineyard post. Two meter deep band of flowers surrounds three sides the vineyard area. Constantly buzzing with honey and bumble bees.
The vines racing upwards - Cabernet franc winning at the moment (29.47cm in 2 weeks - yes they are all measured), then Carmenere (26.97cm), with Cabernet Sauvignon at 25.67 and petit Verdot as befits its name 23.5cm). Have been experimenting with various teas to find which gives good early growth, hence exact measurements.
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A kind vigneron in Australia Michael (author of preposterously good wines) sent me a beret by Boinas Elosegui to ensure my brain was never to be influenced by conservative, boring, winemaking. (The exact antithesis of a maga cap). Created during the Spanish civil war. Not only is it working and my viticulture continues to be odd - but it is brilliant when out in the vineyard — the nor-westerlies would normally guarantee ordinary hats and caps would fly off - not so the beret! And in 30degree temperatures the air space keeps the head cool. Remarkable!

Prawns, black pudding, broad beans: Kumeu River Crément.🌞A riff on my favourite Catalan dish. Fried a chopped onion with...
20/12/2025

Prawns, black pudding, broad beans: Kumeu River Crément.
🌞A riff on my favourite Catalan dish.
Fried a chopped onion with lardons, added paprika - smoked and sweet, then about 2cm chopped black pudding, after a few mins, broad beans and chicken stock. Cooked for 5-10 mins until stock reducing to perfection. Added a handful of prawn tails. Fried thick slices of black pudding separately. All into air frier and finished off there at 180C for 5-10 mins. Plated - and despite your opinion about black pudding bloody delicious!
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Kumeu River Crémant. I was intrigued to know what this was like. The various Kumeu chardonnays are brilliant, but how do they go with a fizz. Well it was lovely - refreshing, quaffable, no brioche of huge note and the bubbles quite coarse. Any slight disappointment I felt was only by my placing this in contrast to the single vineyard chardonnays from Kumeu - which was dumb on my part. Something to drink on a summers day rather than intellectualise over. Don’t expect the finesse of champagne or Vilaura.

Pork scotch fillet, turnips and caramelised fig: Gustave Lorentz Crémant de Alsace. 🌞I had bought the pork before going ...
20/12/2025

Pork scotch fillet, turnips and caramelised fig: Gustave Lorentz Crémant de Alsace.
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I had bought the pork before going to but seeing the white orby turnips with perfect tops I thought why not pork and turnips. But then seeing the most enormous figs of local origin (from a Greek or Italian gentleman’s garden) I thought why not again - so bought them too.
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Turnips boiled in chicken stock and butter reducing until a thin sauce-like buttery juice remained.
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Pork pan fried until almost done and set aside in a warm air fryer. Put a tbs of sugar and another of butter into the pork pan and made a caramel. Fig halved and fried in the caramel on both sides. Removed to warm plates. Added the turnip juices and the pork and reduced until a good sauce-like consistency. Plated - complex mix of flavours that were in whole and part delicious.
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Lorentz Crémant de Alsace - fizz. Lovely fine mousse, creamy and refreshing and not overly assertive in the pH department. No bitterness. Worked nicely with the pork and turnips.
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Lovely sun drenched dinner.

Exploring the wild grapevines of the Ngaruroro river with their discoverer Nicholas Drinnan, along with ampelographer Ra...
18/12/2025

Exploring the wild grapevines of the Ngaruroro river with their discoverer Nicholas Drinnan, along with ampelographer Raquel Kallas of
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With temperatures nudging 29C and trampling through blackberry thorns and cyclone slash the intrepid explorers mapped out a dozen or more vines of dubious parentage. Almost certainly the grape seeds carried by birds, from nearby vineyards settled in fertile soil and grew, and grew, and grew! Some vines are sufficiently old to be surrounded by their own seedlings. Each potentially a new variety, and each potentially a new wine. An exciting departure from the conservative Hawkes Bay Chard and Syrah ethos.
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Despite the heat and thorns a brilliantly inspiring day!

NWA (Napier wine association) Christmas dinner at the weekend - a medley of delicious plates and booze, in good company....
17/12/2025

NWA (Napier wine association) Christmas dinner at the weekend - a medley of delicious plates and booze, in good company. Monthly (-ish) meetings for the last 18months - this one hosted by and -
Charcuterie, delectable arancini balls of immense dimensions, lamb balls by Ollie, perfect savoury and sweet tarts, beef fillet with horseradish, lovely home made dips with Pita, and (remarkably good) truffle infused sous vide cheerios.
Too many wines to describe - enjoyed the tart French Picpoul, a minerally rather than tropical Portuguese Albariño ( ), a particularly good Chardonnay from the far north , the ever good chard from , the Lanvin of course - and an intriguing Block 1 Craggy Pinot Noir from Te Muna Road.
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Until next month …..

Fillet, potato and cucumber. Maison Sichel (Bordeaux) 1889. 🌞Well peppered fillet of beef, quickly pan fried and basted ...
12/12/2025

Fillet, potato and cucumber. Maison Sichel (Bordeaux) 1889.
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Well peppered fillet of beef, quickly pan fried and basted in thyme butter. Potato scored, oiled and into air frier at 200C for about 20mins (until ready). Little cucumbers halved, sauteed in butter with thyme, garlic scape, pepper, and a smidge of maple syrup and cider vinegar.
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Sichel 1889. 100% Merlot, (no sulphites - but tbh I don’t care). A classic Merlot - mercurial textured, plums, cherries with fine, ripe, gentle, tannins and unassertive acidity. Not a rocket scientist but would please any palate about to devour a piece of boeuf. Really quite delicious in a simple sort of way.
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Lovely summer evening dinner, beef excellent ( ), cucumber, perfectly delicious with an agrodulce edge, all in good company with the Merlot ( ).

Radburnd chardonnay 2024 at Kate and Penelope Radburnd Christmas celebration Hastings. 🍷Treated to four shamelessly ele...
11/12/2025

Radburnd chardonnay 2024 at Kate and Penelope Radburnd Christmas celebration Hastings.
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Treated to four shamelessly elegant Radburnd bottles. Penelope’s 2025 Rosé pretty, petite and deliciously elegant - a perfect drop for summer al fresco luncheons.
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2024 Chardonnay - arresting nose and a tumble of crisp fruit - marmalade, gooseberries, clean, delicious and lingering. Complex, with an acidity that builds for longevity. Memorable now but probably magical once its youthful enthusiasm has waned.
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Syrah and Merlot/Cabernet 2020 could only have been improved upon by a fillet of beef - sublime.
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Faultlessly consistent wines from

Dr Rose Isobel Webster Galletly has the proudest of parents.
10/12/2025

Dr Rose Isobel Webster Galletly has the proudest of parents.

Fermented stinging nettle tea. Cut down my nettles and covered with water spent three weeks in a 20L barrel - strained t...
06/12/2025

Fermented stinging nettle tea. Cut down my nettles and covered with water spent three weeks in a 20L barrel - strained then the liquid went under the vines in a 1:20 dilution with seaw**d. The remaining solids go around the irrigation nodes and covered by aged compost. I could have made ordinary solid compost but i think the young vines benefit from the immediate boost, followed by the long slow effect of the crud+compost. It also means I don’t have to turn a compost heap, and any w**d seeds are likely killed by fermentation. Next batch underway uses vegetable garden w**ds. A bit smelly …..
🐾 Rupert and Bistort.

Lamb rump, crushed potato, peas and garlic scapes: Domaine de Val Lamartinien 2024 Bourgogne.🌞30 deg C day. Too hot to s...
06/12/2025

Lamb rump, crushed potato, peas and garlic scapes: Domaine de Val Lamartinien 2024 Bourgogne.
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30 deg C day. Too hot to spray vines, so a morning of w**ding and that’s enough. Scapes coiling over the garlic looked lovely and there was lamb in the fridge, sounded like a good combination.
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Lamb rump scored and placed initially in a cold pan to slowly render and crisp up. Turned to brown all sides. Set aside.
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Potatoes diced, covered in water and added the rendered lamb fat. Sautéed the scapes in butter and poured off the butter into the potato water.
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Lamb into air frier at 200C for 12 mins then rested for 10min. Meanwhile potatoes boiled until softening and lamb/butter goo sauce-like. Gently crushed. Added frozen peas and served over the gently warmed scapes.
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Eaten in the shade of a cooling evening. Simple, delicious.
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Domaine de Val Lamartinien 2024 Bourgogne. Garnet, cherries, and, on the tongue, sylph-like, its gentleness took me by surprise as the complex, deep earthy liquid gave way to fine mature tannins and lingering finish. A wine seemingly of aged maturity despite its paediatric 2024. Classic burgundy with none of the frivolous fruit - just pure emotion. Perfect with the lamb and garlic. Affordable and highly recommended.

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