Booster Wine Group

Sileni Estates Reserve Cabernet Franc Merlot 2018 2018

Award
Winner Blue Gold Medium Bodied Dry Red Wines
Grape Varieties
Cabernet Franc (100%) Hawkes Bay, New Zealand
Country of Origin
New Zealand
Alcohol Content
13% Alcohol by Volume
Wine Type and Oak Treatment
Still Red with Oak Treatment
Recommended Retail Price
RRP AU $18.00
Buy This Wine
  • Booster Wine Group
    2016 Maraekakaho Road
    RD1
    Hastings, Hawkes Bay
    New Zealand 4171
  • Marie Weber, Executive Assistant
  • Phone (64) 6 879 8768
    Website

“Slightly shy bouquet. Redcurrant and red plum aromas with a savoury earthy edge. The tannins are firm and drying lending length and persistence. When paired with food the wine appears drier and less generous.”

“A wine with excellent balance and composure. The bright fruit is balanced by gentle savouriness, and the acidity and tannin are balanced and appropriate. The wine pairs well with the food due to its harmony.”

“Wood chip and graphite on the nose with red plum fruit. Fine firm tannins and crisp acidity. A sturdy wine that would need sturdy food. The earthy flavours of the duck and parsnips work with the earthy flavours of this wine.”

“A lovely spicey slightly herbal nose through to the palate. Hints of earthy chalky notes are evident with ripe fruit tannins. Lovely savoury flavours are evident on the finish. Works well with this dish as elegance of fruit flavours come out.”

“Medium red with crimson, pyrazine, herbal, crushed leaf, faint berry, medium bodied quite sappy and green tannins.”

“Perfumed and uplifted black fruits, ripe and rich,nice firm tannins, but well balanced, dry, a touch herbal, but not drying.”

The Medium Bodied Dry Red Wines were judged with

Duck breast, Parsnip Puree and Radicchio

Presented by chef Marcell Kustos

Ingredients

  • 1 Duck breast/person, sous-vide at 57C
  • 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 bag English breakfast tea
Parsnip puree, serves 4:
  • 500 g parsnip, roasted at 180C for 15 min and cooked in 300 mL soy milk (reserve 200 mL cooking soy milk)
  • 50 g peanut butter
  • Salt
  • ½ tsp garam masala
Radicchio, serves 4:
  • 1 radicchio, quartered, white (bitter) part removed, thinly sliced
  • 300 mL pomegranate juice + sous-vide duck broth, reduced to half
  • Add 1 Tbsp oyster sauce, ½ tsp Xanthan gum and mix with stick mixer
  • Cook radicchio in reduced pomegranate syrup until the radicchio is wilted
Served with chive oil:
  • 1 bunch of chive, thinly cut
  • 50 ml olive oil, warm in microwave 10 s

Method

  1. Score duck breast and render fat in a pan with skin-side down on low fire. Bag up the breast with maple syrup, oyster sauce and tea and sous-vide.
  2. Cut the parsnip into 2-3cm pieces and roast until golden brown. Transfer the parsnips into a pot and cook them soy in soy milk. In a food processor, mix all ingredients for the puree. The result should be creamy, slightly nutty, slightly spicy and slightly salty.
  3. Reduce the pomegranate juice with the cooking juices of the duck. Add xanthan and oyster sauce and blend it smooth (velvety) with a stick mixer. The result should be liquid, but thick enough to cover the back of a spoon. Add sliced radicchio and warm them until cooked/wilted.