Last night, Travelletto was invited to a special one-off underground event at Credaro winery in Margaret River, Western Australia with food prepared by young-gun George Cooper of Food by the Chef.
Both Credaro and Cooper fly under the radar in the region which is rich with fantastic producers and restaurants. I don’t think that’ll be the case for much longer.
I learned that the Credaro family have been in the region since 1922, and like all good Italian immigrants, they planted a veggie garden and a plot of vines so they could make their own wine. So really, they could be considered one of the original private wineries in the region. Credaro began supplying established wineries with grapes in the 1980s and created their own label in 2009. Nowadays, the Credaro family manages 140 hectares of vines over seven separate vineyards across Margaret River in the sub-regions of Wilyabrup, Carbunup, Treeton, Yallingup and Wallcliffe. The cellar door on Caves Road in Yallingup opened five years ago. Downstairs, underground in the barrel room, is where 50 of us feasted on a six course dinner prepared by Food by the Chef with matched Credaro wines.
The underground cellar was set beautifully with two long wooden tables with greenery and candles running down the centre. The pass was at the front of the room, putting on a show as the team from Food by the Chef carefully plated, smoked and finished dishes. The atmosphere was intimate yet lively as evidenced by the acoustics. The cellar could do with some sound cushioning to absorb some noise. Cooper introduced each dish and Credaro wine maker Trent Kelly introduced each wine.
The Credaro Food by the Chef Menu:
Credaro sparkling 2017
Into the Woods – mushroom soup topped with parfait rolled in pine needles
‘Cromer Crab Sandwich’ – local crab, cucumber, sour cream paired with 5 Tales Pinot Gris
Marron, ‘kale risotto’, kohlrabi, and shallot paired with 2015 1000 Crowns Chardonnay
Native ravioli, Davidson plum, artichoke, watercress and smoke paired with a 2014 Kinship Fragola
Lamb neck, lilli pilly, macadamia and wild leek paired with 2009 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
‘Chocolate yogo’ plum pudding, paired with 2016 Kinship Shiraz
‘Norma’s fruit cake’ – white chocolate, marscapone and mandarin paired with a 2017 Gewurztraminer
I’ve not knowingly tried George Cooper’s food before although I’ve heard he’s worked at Wills Domain, Vasse Felix and at Cape Lodge; three of the region’s best restaurants. His food is that of a young ambitious chef, out to impress which he did last night, dish after dish. He even collected water from Geographe Bay to make his own salt. Yes, his own salt. Who does that? Someone passionate about every detail, that’s who.
Cooper’s flavour combinations were wonderful and he is passionate about using local ingredients including native ingredients and included wattle seed, salt bush and lilli pilly in his menu last night. The 29-year-old chef who trained in Birmingham is one to watch. Expect to see and hear more about George Cooper.
It was a fantastic night and I was super impressed with the not-yet-released and museum collection Credaro wines matched to each dish. Credaro’s Chardonnay scored 97 points from James Halliday and I’d have to say it was worthy. I loved the Fragola, a varietal I’ve not seen anywhere else in Margaret River. It’s a light easy drinking red wine that reminded me very much of the sort of house wine offered in a trattoria in Italy.
FACT FILE
Credaro
2715 Caves Road,
Yallingup WA 6282
+61 (08) 9756 6520
info@credarowines.com.au
Food by the Chef
Private dinners, weddings, events, cooking master classes – visit website for details