Chaîne des Rôtisseurs

2019 08 - Summer Chapitre Bornholm

On August 23^rd – 24^th 2019, Chaine de Danemark had its Summer Chapitre on the scenic Island of Bornholm. Bornholm is the sunniest place in Denmark, to a degree where certain crops can only be grown here - like figs and durum wheat. Also, crops from this island are of the country’s highest quality.

Early Friday morning in bright sunshine, the Gastronomy Tour took its beginning at the North tip of the island. The first visit was Lehnsgaard oil mill, producer of many high-quality oils and mustards. The flagship product “olive oil of the north” was a virgin rapeseed oil with a naturally high content of omega 3 made from the germ of the rapeseeds, giving a smooth round taste.

Next stop on the tour was Hallegaard, a local slaughterhouse and butcher shop where animal welfare is a top priority, as well as the quality. After the tour was a small tasting of their products, before heading to the brewery Svaneke Bryghus. After a tour of their production site, the lunch was at nearby brewery restaurant, where the party had a beer tasting followed by lunch: traditional Danish smørrebrød.

The afternoon was dedicated to the small picturesque city of Svaneke. It is known for its many locally produced sweets - ice cream, caramels, hard candy, chocolate, etc.

During the tour of the island, the bus driver would point out historic sites and tell tales from the Island.

The Welcome Dinner of the Chapitre was at the prize-winning inn Christianshøjkroen, located in the small village of Aakirkeby. Head chef Troels Madsen and restaurant manager Niels Brandt Grønbech were the hosts. Troels Madsen has together with Daniel Kruse (Chef of the year 2012, long-time member of DK National Chef Team, Bronze medal winner in 2016) been developing Christianhøjkroen as a top gastronomic restaurant – and was awarded the best lunch restaurant in Denmark in 2015.

Menu

Canapés
Bouilly Lapierre, Pinot Noir, Cremant de Bourgone, NV

Salmon - Clam – Green
2012 Riesling Von Muschelkalk, Patrick Schürlaubl, Pfalz, Germany

White Fish - Cauliflower - Garlic
2015 Ribollo Galla, FruiLi, Dario Coos, Italy

Celery - Beetroot – Havgus (a Cheese) – Herbs
2015 Spätburgunder, Trocken, Konrad Salwey, Baden, Germany

Chicken - Corn - Chanterelles - Hearts - Smoking cheese
2017 Bourgogne, Pinot Noir, Lou Doumont, Beaune/Gevrey Chambertrine, France

Chocolate - Blackberries – Vanilla
Homemade Blackberry Wine
Made with Bitter, Blackberry juice, Citrus, forest berries
Dry Sauvignon Blanc, sugar and honey

Coffee/tea

(+ a couple of extra surprises in between)

Chancelier & Grand Officier Maître Rôtisseur Thorbjørn Moy and Echanson du Danemark and Sommelier Jens Steffen Hansen gave their appreciation after the dinner for the assembled brigades. Both were very pleased with the entire team’s performance.  The food had really been top quality, and Thorbjørn pointed out some of the highlights from the dinner that he saw as being proof of good craftsmanship. The kitchen had dared to challenge the menu with some quite advanced dishes, not just something mainstream – for instance, one of the “Surprises”, not on the menu, was an onion dish that really got the guests talking. Jens praised the wines which he found was well selected, and some pairing that you would not naturally think would work but did so very well. The service brigade was praised for their service, so with pleasure Bailli Délégué Jørgen Krenk awarded the staff the Danish Chaine service staff pins, for their first-class service.

Saturday was the second part of Gastronomy Tour, with the first visit at a sheep farmer. Here, 800 sheep were used for nature preservation, and the meat was sold at a corporative shop together with several other farmers. The farmer made a demonstration on how to use sheepdogs to move the herd. Next stop on the Tour was a traditional smokehouse, in use for more than 100 years. In the early 1900s, Bornholm had a golden age for their smoked herrings - silver-colored herrings went into the smoke oven and came out gold colored.

Lunch was served at the smokehouse with among other courses the traditional “Sun over Gudhjem”. This dish is a smoked herring on rye bread, served with egg yolk, chives and slices of radishes. Last stop was the Farmers Market in Rønne. The various stalls were visited, along with the local distillery with a tasting of rhubarb gin and oak cask akvavit.

The Intronisation Ceremony took place in the largest of the island's 4 round churches, Østerlars Kirke, where members from both the Danish Bailliage and from abroad received ribbons and insignia. The local priest told about the story of the church, and a small choir gave the event a solemn mood.

The Chapitre Gala Dinner took place at Restaurant Pony at Nordlandet - the sister restaurant to the Michelin start Restaurant Kadeau - located with the most spectacular view over the sea.

Sparkling wine and canapés were served outside before moving inside for the dinner.

Menu

Ceviche of hake, horseradish cream, pickled fennel and dill
2018 Riesling S, Seehof, Rheinhessen

Veal tartar, local tomatoes, pepper emulsion and cress
2018 Pinot Noir 'Nature', Rieffel, Alsace (FR)

Long-cooked pork neck, onions, sticks, mizuna and browned butter
2016 Gigondas, Dom. Gour de Chaulé, Rhône (FR)

Baked plums and blackberries, tonga parfait and hazelnut
NV Late Harvest Chardonnay, Norton, Mendoza (AR)

Coffee with Sweets

After the dinner, Bailli Délégué Jørgen Krenk praised the assembled brigades for their commitment and professionalism and awarded them the Danish Chaine service staff pins, for their first-class service.