In search of the perfect pie

Less than a week from now, the Australian public will know who the big winner is. No, it has nothing to do with sport, or a state lottery – on August 1, the nation will know who makes the best Aussie meat pie.

Organised by the popular That's Life magazine, which has a readership of more than a million around the country, there are ten finalists; voted by pie lovers from all around Australia.

If you’re shrugging your shoulders at all this, don’t forget that Australians eat more meat pies per head than any other nationality. Move over Tetsuya's in Sydney, stand back Vue de Monde in Melbourne -- when it comes to the finishing line, the Great Aussie Meat Pie is the country's signature dish, a cultural identity with a squirt of tomato sauce.

A popular variation is the pie floater, a meal served at pie carts in Adelaide and elsewhere in South Australia. It was once more widely available in other parts of Australia but its popularity has dipped over the years.

A true pie floater consists of the traditional Australian meat pie covered with tomato sauce (similar to ketchup), sitting, usually inverted, in a plate of thick green pea soup .

Believe it or not the pie floater was recognised as a South Australian Heritage icon by the National Trust of Australia in 2003.

Visitors to Sydney can tuck into a late night pie floater at Harry's Cafe de Wheels pie cart situated in Woolloomooloo, which is located not too far from Otto's, one of Sydney's leading celebrity eateries.

Harry's Cafe de Wheels is also listed on the National Trust Register as an historic icon, having started selling meat pies back in 1938. Although it was shut during the war years, it was re-opened in 1945 and has been serving pie floaters ever since.

As the years passed, Harry's Cafe de Wheels gained new fame as a tourist attraction. Indeed, at one stage in its history a visit to the Harry's became a 'must' for visiting celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Robert Mitchum and Marlene Dietrich.

In 1974, Colonel Sanders stopped at Harry's and found the food so finger-licking good that he got through three 'pies and peas' – which, in Sir Lunchalot's humble opinion, should have gained him honorary Australian citizenship.

In 1976 the Federation of Australian Pie Connoisseurs was formed, or so Sir Lunchalot has been informed, and it evidently adopted the following federation song (to be sung to the tune of Australia’s national anthem Advance Australia Fair:

When Englishmen go out to dine
Roast beef’s their staple dish
The Russians all eat caviar
And Eskimos chew fish.

The French, they say, are fond of frogs;
The Yanks - Kentucky fries.
But dinkum Aussies, one and all
Shout: 'Give us hot meat pies'
Yes, dinkum Aussies, one and all
Shout: 'Give us hot meat pies'

With that in mind, maybe the Aussie anthem should be renamed Advance Australia Fare.

Of the ten finalists in this year’s Australia’s Best Meat Pie competition, three contenders come from New South Wales, two each from Victoria and Western Australia, and one from Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory (Canberra) and South Australia.

Watch this space for news of the winner – if you can bear the suspense.

Melbourne for chocoholics

Having dinner with a rather rotund Belgian gourmet friend of mine not so long ago while in Brussels, the discussion somehow came around to chocolate. Yes, the Australians produced better seafood than Belgium, and Australian wines were often better than those from neighbouring France, he conceded. But when it comes to chocolate, Belgium wins hands down, or so he claimed.

I decided to put it to the test in Melbourne recently, and while that food-focussed city may not produce such diet-busting delights as Brussels, it does have some great addresses for those chocoholics amongst us.

Head for the historic Royal Arcade where Koko Black has been hand crafting exquisite chocolates for the past four years. It’s fascinating to watch as Koko Black chocolatiers work couverture into an incredible array of truffles, moulded pralines and bars, just as they did back in the ‘old country’.

While there, be tempted by a Koko Black Hot Chocolate, freshly brewed with dark Belgian chocolate - no powder. Other Koko Black stores can be found in the Melbourbe suburbs of Carlton, Camberwell and Chadstone and they have recently opened a second city store on Collins Street – so they must be getting it right.

Langham Hotel’s Aria Lounge on Southbank is another mecca for chocolate lovers. Enjoy a scandalous chocolate afternoon tea experience that includes a chocolate fountain, freshly made chocolates, and unlimited visits to the Chocolate Bar. This dark and decadent experience can be enjoyed every Saturday and Sunday afternoon.

On Little Collins Street, cocoa-le-art offers hand-made delicacies by Swiss chocolatier Silvano Widmer, who uses Belgian dark chocolate, made in a Swiss style with soft centre ganache fillings, and a decorative French presentation – now how European is that!

Monsieur Truffle is a stall in Prahran Market, where Thibault Fregoni, a softly spoken Frenchman who has a background as a pastry cook, offers chocolate creations that combine passionfruit, raspberry, native pepper, marzipan or orange truffle in intensely flavoured yet well balanced chocolates.

You will probably have to join a queue of faithful local customers to taste Thibault's selection of the week. Call it slow chocolate, but it's worth the wait.

If you have chocoholic clients looking for a chocoholic experience while in Melbourne, you might want to recommend Chocoholic Tours, who will help them discover the hidden chocolate charms of the city's streets, lanes and arcades, all in one tour.

Founder Suzie Wharton and her team have been running tours for the past 12 years, with one Friday afternoon departure and up to five different tours on Saturdays; they take place throughout the year, in all weather conditions.

New for Coonawarra

Sir Lunchalot has always enjoyed his trips to Coonawarra in South Australia, an area that produces some of Australia's finest wines.

With its terra rossa soil and passionate winemakers, the Coonawarra region can't help but make fine wine. With Cabernet Sauvignon the undoubted star, the region is renowned for the production of some of Australia's greatest red wines.

A 'must do' on any Melbourne-Adelaide self-drive trip (and that's the one that takes in the spectacular Great Ocean Road and the Coorong National Park), Coonawarra always reminds me of the Las Vegas strip back in the 60s -- with wineries lined up along both sides of the road rather than casinos.

Now a new attraction is on its way: Foster's (who have a burgeoning wine interest these days) is about to introduce a classic collection at the Coonawarra Wine Gallery, which is set to open in November.

Some of Coonawarra's best known wine names will come together to offer visitors who enjoy the good life some excellent wine tasting opportunities at the new gallery, which will be located on the main highway just north of Penola.

Wine lovers' favourites such as Rouge Homme, Jamieson's Run, Robertson's Well and Mildara, along with the Coonawarra wines of Lindemans, Penfolds and Rosemount Estate will all be there.

The Cellar Door will be situated in beautiful open grounds that include a barbecue area and picnic grounds -- an ideal reason for self-drive visitors to stop by,

Acccolades for top wine lists

The Terrace Restaurant at the Country Club Tasmania in Launceston has just been recognised as having one of the most outstanding wine lists in the world, being awarded two coveted goblets in the international Wine Spectator magazine’s annual wine list awards.

The Terrace is one of only seven restaurants in Australia to receive two goblets, known as the Best of Award of Excellence -- and only 748 two goblet awards were given world-wide.

Amongst the many other the bottles featured on The Terrace's wine list is a large range of iconic Australian Shiraz, including Penfolds Grange dating back to 1971, Greenock Creek Roenfeldt Road Shiraz, Grant Burge Meshach and Jim Barry’s The Armagh 98.

If that has got you licking your lips, you might be interested to know that The Terrace has got a couple of great events coming up soon that will showcase some of the finest wines in Australia.

On August 16, Penfolds Grange winemaker Peter Gago will host a dinner featuring premium Penfolds wines matched to an outstanding degustation menu.

And on September 27, Stephen Henschke, will host the final in The Terrace’s wine dinner series for the year. The Henschke family is one of the longest-established names in South Australia’s Barossa region.

Another Australian Best of Awards of Excellence for 2007 accolade went to the Charcoal Grill on the Hill, which is located in the Melbourne suburb of Kew. The steak is good at Charcoal Grill on the Hill, but the wine list is fantastic: with more than 700 well priced offerings, this is a restaurant with a passionate commitment to wine.

Other Melbourne winners were Circa, a popular hangout for foodies in St Kilda; Southbank's Number 8 Restaurant & Wine Bar in the Crown complex on the Yarra River, boasting a wine list numbering 888 choices (something to suit everyone’s taste and budget); and Vin in Prahan.

The Lake House at Daylesford, a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of The World group in Victoria’s spa region, was also a winner, along with Marylands Country House, a charming 1920’s property in the Yarra Valley.

Peppers' French touch in Deloraine

A true foodie highlight of any trip to Tasmania has to be a night or two at Peppers Calstock, which is located just outside of Deloraine, and a little less than an hour’s drive west of Launceston.

Marketed under the Stella Group’s Peppers’ brand, it’s a very special boutique experience (only seven rooms) run by Frenchman Daniel Tourancheau and his Australian wife Linda.

Daniel was classically trained at the Michelin-starred La Bonne Auberge in France and has also worked at leading restaurants in London and the United States, as well as the popular Mecca Bah in Canberra.

As French as frogs’ legs and escargot, which is very much reflected in his accent and the European flair of his dishes. Daniel’s talents are now being used exclusively to serve up delicious dishes for the in-house guests of Pepper’s Calstock.

Set on 81 hectares, Calstock has a long tree-lined drive that leads to the magnificent 19th century white-washed mansion. This was once one of the grandest homes in Tasmania, and in its early days Calstock's stables were home to a couple of famous Melbourne Cup winners.

The first was Malua, winner of the 1884 race. The second was Sheet Anchor, who won in 1885. Malua has been rated as one of the top five Melbourne cup winners of all time.

Daniel Tourancheau’s French country food is refined, using only the best of the superb local Tassie produce. It is only available to guests and you must let them know you are staying for dinner, at least 24 hours in advance.

Calstock also boasts an outstanding wine cellar – which among other great offerings, boasts no less than a dozen tantalizing Tasmanian pinots noir .

While there recently, Sir Lunchalot and his companion enjoyed succulent lemongrass marinated Tasmania scallops, served with crisp julienne vegetable stir-fry and a light chilli and soy dressing -- and that was only for starters.

We then went on to excellent local venison rolled in a thin slice of prosciutto on a bed of King Island blue cheese as a main course. The main came with a caramelised onion tart, grilled asparagus, rosemary potatoes batonnets and a balsamic jus.

Calstock may have turned out winning racehorses in its glorious past: now the winning touch is to be found in its kitchen and Daniel Tourancheau’s magic in making the the Peppers' property Tasmania’s very own bonne auberge!

New bar tour for Melbourne

As we all know, Melbourne is famous (or should that be infamous?)for its eclectic bar scene. But how do you find them, hidden as they are down hidden stairwells, laneways and behind those ubiquitous velvet curtains?

Hidden Bars of Melbourne has the answer, or at least we think they do.

Locals Gath Adams and Kym Anderson are now taking groups of party animals (the nicer types, of course) through Melbourne’s labyrinth of alleys and laneways to uncover some of the city’s most exclusive and elusive bars.

Their Hidden Bars of Melbourne walking tours run every Thursday night, winding through the city streets to the hottest new drinking dens, where punters can drink and snack as they go.

The bars on the tour change weekly, and are chosen from a rotating list of up to a dozen different locations. They include places like Eurotrash and Toff of the Town, both popular with the local bar crowd.

The tour costs a very reasonable AUD 35 per person, which includes two complimentary drinks and tapas. Officially, the tour lasts around four hours and finishes at 23.00 (Cinderellas are safe) though they have been known to kick on to the early hours of the morning.

Tours meet at the corner of Bourke and Swanston streets at The Three Men statue at 19.00 every Thursday.