Opus revels in la dolce vita
A BIRMINGHAM restaurant has helped to promote the city on the world’s culinary stage by successfully staging a series of internationally flavoured events.
The climax of Opus Restaurant’s special dinner evenings comes tonight when it hosts a winemaking family from northern Italy who have been producing for four generations.
The Cigliuti family vineyards are located in the heart of the Langhe area of Piedmont, where 73-year-old Renato Cigliuti still tends the vines by hand with the help of his daughters Claudia and Silvia.
Claudia will be using the dinner to showcase several different wines produced at their estate.
The restaurant first began hosting the special evenings five years ago to showcase the produce of independent farmers, fishermen and wine producers.
The events have proved very successful and the restaurant is currently working on next year’s programme.
“What we felt would be perhaps of specialist, maybe limited interest to customers has grown into an event which is not only eagerly anticipated by customers, but brings in new customers intrigued with the opportunity. We now have to close the restaurant exclusively for these evenings, such is the demand,” said Ann Tonks, managing director of the restaurant.
David Colcombe, chef director at Opus Restaurant, added: “We take great care sourcing our produce sustainably, including our wines. The winemaking ethos of the Cigliuti family is a traditional one which respects the environment, keeping yields low to help ensure superlative quality fruit.
“Their Dolcetto d’Alba 2010 has been on our list for a while now and demonstrates the ripe cherry fruit flavour and elegant finish that is typical of northern Italian wines. We will pair a number of their wines with a four-course dinner which will showcase some fantastic seasonal food such as a roasted veal sweetbread, white bean and smoked bacon cassoulet, and a ceps risotto. It will be robust Autumnal menu which will pair perfectly with the great reds which the Cigliuti’s produce.”
