On a cold December evening 49 members and their guests came to the Restaurant De Lage Vuursche through the Christmas tree-lit streets of the village of the same name. Lage Vuursche is situated near Soest in the province of Utrecht.

The participants were received musically outside by the Eemland hunting horn group, which played the various signals during a hunt - a quite appropriate performance given the focus of the menu on “wild” dishes.

At the reception a delicious Crémant de Loire ‘La Finesse d'Ines’ was accompanied by three varieties of blinis:
- smoked salmon and sour cream
- smoked duck breast with quince compote
- glazed pork belly with atjar (an Indonesian sweet and sour spicy pickle).

We were then invited to take our places in the atmospheric restaurant beautifully decorated for Christmas.

MENU

Pastrami of venison
candied chanterelles, truffle gravy
Bourgogne Tonnerre ‘Chevalier d’Eon’ 2016
Domaine Dampft

Risotto with beetroot and scallops
Parmesan chip, wild spinach
Chardonnay Réserve 2016
Dumanet, Languedoc

Bonbon of sparkling wine
with caramelized white chocolate and apple gel

Pheasant stuffed with plums and wrapped in bacon
duck liver sauce, Alsatian sauerkraut, chipolata sausage
Pinot Noir ‘Sepia’ 2016
Vista Mar, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Crêpes Suzette
Moscato Brisa 2014
Vista Mar, Central Valley, Chile

During the evening we had the pleasant surprise of a special performance by three young musicians from the Residentie Orchestra. They played excerpts from Max Bruch, Bach, Liszt and because it was Christmas, as an encore at my request “We’re walking in the air” from The Snowman. For me it was a moment of emotional nostalgia.

Particularly suitable for a cold December evening, the courses were served in large “Burgundian” portions. In a village famous for its pancakes, the traditional “Crêpes Suzette” was an obvious choice!

The wines were evaluated by Albert de Vink and the dinner by Dame de la Chaîne Tonnie Westerhoft. Both had only positive words about this fantastic Festive Season dinner.

In view of the great success of the evening, the Bailliage Certificate of Appreciation presented to the kitchen and service brigades was very well deserved.

Jan Wever
Bailli