FACES AT GREY LYNN FARMERS MARKET

FACES @ GREY LYNN FARMERS MARKET

Matilda Lee is often at the Grey Lynn Farmers Market selling her signature brioche donuts and cinny buns.

Where did you grow up? West Auckland - my family moved here from Singapore when I was two years old. I’m a Kiwi at heart but I am so lucky to be surrounded by such a diverse background - my family has Singaporean, Chinese, Indian and Portuguese heritage.

How has that affected your culinary experiences? I always believe that food creates a memorable experience especially when it's shared with others. A lot of our items are created in honour of specific past times and flavours that I enjoyed with my friends and family both here in Auckland and back in Singapore.

What sort of experiences? I love summer, especially with outdoor activities such as picnics, beaches, and sunsets. My friends and I love just hanging out, or surfing at Muriwai. So many fond memories are shared over sandy fish and chips, fresh strawberry ice cream, or dips and fresh bread from Zekis. I always believe in good food and great people.

Food seems to feature strongly in your life. Yes – food is everything to me because it brings people together. I studied culinary arts at AUT and always knew that I would work with food. I believe in the importance of food culture and being hospitable to others.

Tell us about some of your food jobs. I started working as a dishwasher before I got a commis chef role that got me started. Recently, I worked for a church out in Mount Eden, focusing on giving back to people by teaching them hospitality skills, cooking for events, or in community soup kitchens. I started baking for close friends and families - word got around and my reputation led to supplying a café.

Is that how Butter Baby started? Yes – my donuts and cinnamon rolls proved to be very popular, so the logical step was to turn it into a business. I’m enjoying being at the market. I’m looking forward to opening a store out in Westgate and I have surrounded myself with people who are keeping me focussed on my goals.

Tell me about the flavours of your donuts. I sell the traditional flavours like Boston cream with chocolate glaze, and raspberry and cream. But I also have some new flavours that some of my friends requested me to make. My best seller is the pandan and sago donut which usually sells out by 10am. The contrast between the white glaze and the bright green filling surprises people. Pandan is bright green because it is extracted from pandan leaves. We also have ube, a bright purple donut, originating from the Filipino flavour made from purple yam. At the start, both these flavours were hard to sell at the start because they were so different. But now they are easily our best sellers.

What has surprised you most about being at the market? I’m normally very shy, so I was wondering how people would react to me and to the products that I had poured so much love into. I’ve been delighted to find that people are very welcoming and positive. Instead of being a scary experience, it’s been a lot of fun and I look forward to being at the markets every weekend.  PN

butterbaby.co.nz

GREY LYNN FARMERS MARKET @ the Grey Lynn Community Centre, 510 Richmond Road, www.greylynnfarmersmarket.co.nz

WINE TASTING TIPS!

Our instore tastings and paid tastings are back.

Our tastings are presented in an informal way; everyone’s welcome. For those wanting a little info on how to taste before you come along, here goes.

Tasting wine is using the senses of sight, smell and taste to consciously assess a wine’s quality. Mostly what we regard as our sense of taste is actually what we smell, with most of us capable of recognising around 10,000 different aromas.

When tasting wine the first sense to use is sight. Hold the glass up to a white background and look at the clarity - is the wine bright or dull? Look at the colour - is it the same all over or different around the edges? Swirl the wine around your glass and look at the legs or tears (this is the wine running down the glass). This shows you how viscous the wine is and gives you an idea of the alcohol level – the slower the legs come down, the more viscous.

Next, smell the wine. To do this, swirl the wine around the glass. Have a good sniff (you’ll need to get your nose right into the glass). Your first impression will be the most important. Don’t think too hard or over analysis it. What do you smell? What does it remind you of?

Now it’s time to taste the wine. When you taste, you’ll sense different things in the various parts of your mouth - sweetness on the top of the tongue, acidity around the sides, bitterness on the very back of the palate, astringency and tannins around the edge of the mouth and gums. And when you taste the wine, make sure you roll it around your mouth to ensure it touches every surface - try to suck some air through the wine as you draw it into your mouth.

The hardest bit is then translating your thoughts of the wine and what you’ve tasted into words; this takes time and practice. The important thing to remember is that you can never be wrong. The whole process is a very personal thing, and what you think of the wine, what you like and appreciate, is all that matters.

We look forward to seeing you instore during September. You’ll find a full list of instore tastings up online here.

www.glengarry.co.nz/events

Instore Tastings

Pop on in!

WWW.GLENGARRY.CO.NZ P: 0800 733 505 E: SALES@GLENGARRY.CO.NZ

Every Friday & Saturday

Dan Ford – Owner/Operator, Night'n Day

NIGHT ‘N DAY COVENIENCE STORE OPENS IN GREY LYNN

Night 'n Day has opened on the corner of Great North Road and Tuarangi Road in the heart of Grey Lynn. You may have noticed their blue and yellow branding.

Please tell us a bit about the story behind the business. Some history? Night 'n Day was originally founded in Dunedin by Denise and Andrew Lane. As their number of small grocery stores expanded they moved to a franchise model. It was whilst studying at Otago university that I became aware of Night 'n Day and their great food offer.

I went on my way working in the grocery industry after finishing my BSc, eventually realising that I wanted to own and operate a grocery business in particular. After much research I settled on Night 'n Day, as I thought there was nothing like it in the Auckland area, and I really liked the strong family values that they were founded on. Not to mention it’s 100% New Zealand owned and operated.

We hear being community minded is important to your business. Do you have any plans? It’s super important to me to be a hub for the community. We have started reaching out to organisations and sponsoring them where possible. We helped provide the snacks for the local school's fundraiser, gifted player of the day certificates, sports bags and drink bottles to a couple of the local sports clubs, and are keen to do more where we can. I am always open to ideas and suggestions!

Opening hours? What can people expect to see inside the store? The local supermarket across the road closed during Covid-19 and we offer a smaller range of the groceries alongside the range of hot and cold food to eat now - hopefully providing a convenient option to our local community.

We are open from 6am until 11pm and have amazing coffee and milkshakes (my two favourite products) on offer. We really do have a little bit of everything; whether you want hot chips and a pie, a milkshake or need to pick up some tinned beans on the way home for dinner it’s likely we will stock it.

What sort of feedback have you had so far? People love the clean, fresh look and feel of the store. We have a bright facade and amazing staff who are doing their best to help out our customers. Everyone seems to love the milkshakes, slushies and wedges!

Is it a franchise business? Yes, we are a franchise. The franchise was founded in New Zealand and is still owned by the original founders in Dunedin, Denise and Andrew Lane. Their son Matt is now the general manager of the franchise and they have been a huge support in helping me live my dream of opening a small local grocery store.

Anything else you’d like to tell us? Thanks to all of our lovely customers who have come in so far. It has been awesome to get to know you and hopefully we will see many more of you over time. It has also been great to be welcomed to the area by so many other great retailers. My partner Stef and I are really grateful for all the support.

SAPPHIRE LANE @ PONSONBY CENTRAL

Bombay Sapphire and Ponsonby Central have joined forces to create an immersive experience this spring. Taking shelter from the traditionally rainy season, our laneways will be draped with decorative umbrellas and at night, lights will offer a vibrant glow.

Pops of neon and colourful tones give a throwback vibe as soon as you step through the entrance. Let yourself be transported with both new and existing laneways joining in on the festivities.

Being a part of this experience doesn’t stop with the visual elements. Your other senses are in for a treat too, with many bars, restaurants, and eateries of Ponsonby Central offering limited-edition Bombay Sapphire cocktails. The global flavours of each venue will be paired with a delicious gin cocktail available throughout the month. Come for the sights, sounds and tastes of the Sapphire Lane this September.

Sapphire Lane is a non-ticketed free event that runs from Saturday 1 September – 2 October at Ponsonby Central in partnership with Bombay Sapphire.

www.ponsonbycentral.co.nz

EAT, DRINK + BE MERRY PHIL PARKER: PITY THE WINE WRITER

Feast or famine, flood or drought - such is the life and times of a wine writer - just four wines for review this month.

It’s a funny old thing being a wine writer, but I do love doing it. And yes, the great part is that you get ‘free’ wine sent to you from PR companies and wineries. Being at the very modest end of the scale of New Zealand wine writers, I don’t get a huge amount of trade samples shipped to me. But those that are sent for review – I do my best to include in this column, or online in webzines such as Witchdoctor.

I have always enjoyed writing. In fact, I believe that I communicate and think way better in print. And for over 30 years I have had a rollercoaster ride in freelance journalism as a part-time job, kicking off in the mid-1980s with feature articles for Metro, North & South, the New Zealand Listener, the Herald and many others.

I did sell the odd feature story over the next 20 years, but things got leaner and meaner – and then we all got totally clobbered by the Global Financial Crisis in 2007. But in the meantime, I had left my chosen profession of physiotherapy to launch a wine tour company. So, I figured: I have qualifications in wine education, I run a wine tour business, I drink a reasonable amount of wine. Why not be a wine writer? I drink therefore I am.

This time of year is always a slow patch when we wait for the current vintage releases of this year’s white wines, so I often seek out a few interesting wines from local retailers at my own expense. Then between September and Christmas, a tsunami of sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, rosé and some aged releases start arriving with increasing regularity from producers – all keen to get their products some exposure, especially before the summer holiday season.

It would be nice to say – “thanks very much, I’ll pop them in the cellar and review them next year”, but that’s not how it works. So, they are generally photographed, opened and sampled in short order. I know enough about sauvignon blanc to recognise a good one, but it’s not my favourite variety, so my next-door neighbour is very happy to accept a bottle or two with about 100ml missing for tasting purposes. Anyway, here are four fabbo wines that caught my eye (and my palate) this month.

Thornbury Waipara Pinot Gris 2021 - $13 Delivers bang for buck, with juicy ripe Packham pear, lemon squash, pineapple and a hint of baking spice. Off-dry to medium style. Match with Asian foods, scallops, or slow cooked rich pork dishes. Available: widely.

Millton Les Trois Enfants Gisborne 2017 - $24 This biodynamic wine is a co-fermented blend of gewürztraminer, riesling and muscat. All of which would tend to make you anticipate a sweet or medium style, but no. This is a 14% alcohol, bone dry wine with a complex palate of honey, marmalade, canned peach and crème brulee. Dry and crisp with a complex palate and lengthy finish. Great match for antipasto, or as an aperitif. Available: Pt. Chev Organic Wines, millton.co.nz

Palliser Estate ‘The Luminary’ Martinborough Pinot Noir 2020 - $25 A bargain price for a classic Burgundian take on pinot noir, with a slightly funky ‘barnyardy’ nose. Light bodied but oozing smoky flavours of cherry, savoury umami soy and truffle, red berry fruits and medium tannins. Food match: pasta with truffle and mushroom sauce. Available: Countdown.

Pegasus Bay North Canterbury Prima Donna Pinot Noir 2021 - $100 Fragrant and spicy with silky tannins. Pegasus Bay’s premium pinot noir nails it again with this iconic north Canterbury wine. Cherry, poached tamarillo, dark chocolate and umami soy all play on the palate – with a soft and lengthy finish. Food match: venison or rabbit. Veg option – pasta with truffle and mushroom sauce. Available: Caros, pegasusbay.com (PHIL PARKER)

FINE WINE & FOOD TOURS

“No. 2 Auckland Wine Tour” – TripAdvisor

Your host, Phil Parker wine writer.

Affordable tours for small and large groups.

E: phil.parker@xtra.co.nz www.finewinetours.co.nz