Food and drink

Toer de Geuze in Flanders, Belgium

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Food and drink
A lambic beer undergoes spontaneous fermentation in a vast open tanks known as a coelship. To an untrained eye a coelship looks much like a shallow swimming pool filled with wort prepared by the brewers of the Pajottenland.Translated from Flemish into English, Toer de Geuze means 'Tour of Gueuze'. Typically held over one weekend every two years, the event is a celebration of gueuze beer presenting aficionados with opportunities to visit lambic breweries and gueuze blenderies.

An introduction to mezcal and tequila

Food and drink
Maybe I’ve simply tasted the wrong type of tequila? Flavours of alcoholic drinks such as wine, whisky and beer vary according to the brand and label. It stands to reason that the tequila I downed as student wasn’t premium quality. Perhaps it’s time to give tequila another chance and simultaneously sample mezcal.

Beer at home as virtual tourism

Food and drink
The lockdown has resulted in a surge of interest for virtual tours of the world's leading museums and art galleries. By contrast, the UK's Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) has reported that, on average, sales of its members beers dipped by 82 per cent. The majority of SIBA's members offer free local deliveries. I've placed orders with two outstanding local breweries during the lockdown. Alpha Delta Brewing and Two by Two Brewing both delivered beer to my door.

Easy Christmas pizza recipe

Food and drink
As this is a Christmas use-up meal you can make use of pretty much any leftover that you have available in your fridge. Simply chop it and chuck it on top of the base! My experiments included using Brussel sprouts, bacon and walnuts; they all turned out to be tasty.

Quick and easy croque monsieur recipe

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Food and drink
Many of the croque monsieur recipes which I’ve viewed feature béchamel sauce. Béchamel sauce – sometimes known simply as white sauce – is by no means tricky to make. However, preparing a sauce before I’ve sipped my first coffee of the morning simply isn’t something I’m willing to do.

Pizza Punks Newcastle restaurant

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Food and drink
The space now has a hip, contemporary feel. It’s very much decor of the moment. Picture brickwork walls, a concrete floor plus industrial-style metal piping on the ceiling. The restaurant’s white pillars bear Pizza Punks’ anarchist-style logo; a ringed, hand-drawn capital ‘A’. There's more elaborate graffiti-style artwork at the back of the room, near the steps down to the toilets. It is the company’s first restaurant in England, following openings in Glasgow and Belfast.

Poutine in Montreal and Quebecois life

Food and drink
“Where's it from really doesn't matter because what you want is the authentic poutine from a food truck or shack on the side of the road as you're road-tripping through Quebec. That's how you should have your poutine when you're not drunk,” says Martine who likes the cheese curds on her poutine to be squeaky.