It’s news to no one that food traceability is becoming increasingly important in Ireland. Consumers want to know exactly where ingredients come from. This concept is perfectly illustrated on restaurant menus across the country, where, for example, the farm on which the beef was reared is named. Waiters also will often point out that this farm is only three miles over the road.
.
The use of local produce is not a uniquely Irish phenomenon by any stretch of the imagination. On a recent trip to Austria, Irish Country Living was able to draw many parallels between how both the Austrians and the Irish place a huge emphasis on local produce. Staying in Sölden in the state of Tyrol, early one morning we took a gondola into the Ötztal Mountains. We then hiked for 40 minutes to where we had our breakfast in a little mountain restaurant called Gampe Thaya.
It’s clear almost immediately that this place has a lot of farming links. “Gampe” is the name of the area and “Thaya” refers to a hut in which animals and humans lived together.
The breakfast menu is simple but delicious, consisting mainly of cheese and cooked meat, yoghurt and fruit, omelettes and pancakes. The cheese and selection of cold meats is first brought to the table, an early-morning meal is more common on the continent than in Ireland.
We are informed quite causally by one of our guides that the Tyrolean Grey cows grazing on the mountain around us are milked here on site to provide milk and cheese for the restaurant. Agri senses tingling and I’m off to find the parlour.
No less than 20 metres from where we sit is a two-unit milking station and also a cheese-making cabin. As is customary in the Austria Alps, the cows wear bells so they can be easily located, but I’m told this small herd usually brings themselves in for milking. During the winter, they’re taken down into the valley to the farmyard.
Breakfast at Gampe Thaya costs €17. Booking is advised between 8.30am and 11.30am. Lunch is served until 3pm and is offered on a walk-in basis. For more information, see www.gampethaya.com
Foraging and fish
Tyrol is in the west of the country, just above Italy. In this area, foraging for both mushrooms and cranberries is a tradition passed down through the generations. Foragers sell their bounty to restaurants.
The day to pick cranberries is always after the first frosty night following summer. In terms of mushrooms, there is great competition between the Austrians and Italians. Locals I speak with allege that the Italians come over to collect their mushrooms and now use GPS to locate the best spots year after year.
Despite this friendly rivalry, chefs and hoteliers are extremely grateful for this process. It allows the people with local knowledge to supply them with the food they need. At Das Central, the five-star hotel in Sölden Irish Country Living is a guest of during this trip, general manager Michael Waschl says that, where possible, they buy all local produce.
Over dinner in the hotel’s traditional Austrian restaurant – they also have another with a broader offering – Michael explains the origin of each ingredient. The fish is sourced from a fisherman in Längenfeld, the next town over in the valley.
“The reason I buy this fish is because I know it’s the best you can get. No preservatives, nothing. The water is clean flowing down from the mountains.”
Wine not?
And, what would good food be if not accompanied by a little wine? Unlike the food stakes however, Ireland and Austria differ when it comes to wine. Ireland of course not being known for its grape varieties, but look, you can’t have it all I’m afraid!
I must prefix this overview of the Austrian wine I drank by stating that my knowledge on the topic of wine is scant, bar that in general I enjoy both red and white. Unhelpful I know, but one bottle in particular did capture my attention.
In 2011 Das Central pioneered its own wine, Pino 3,000. Named as such because it’s matured in wooden casks in the Ötztal Mountains at 3,048 metres above sea level. I’m informed as I taste the red wine that the pinot noir grape is one of the most sensitive to work with, but when you get it right, it’s also one of the most rewarding.
Due to the lower pressure on the mountain summit, the wine has to mature for longer. This pressure factor coupled with the cooler temperatures plays a part in the aromas in the glass coming into their own – or so I’m informed!
There are three different pinot noir vines used in the wine. One each from Germany, Austria and Italy. The Austrian wine maker, Paul Achs, has a 25-hectare red wine vineyard. His pinot noir vines are up to 23-years-old and grow on chalky, stony ground facing west or north.
For more on Das Central and Pino 3,000, see www.central-soelden.com/en/.
Read more
Watch: Living on the wild side in Austria
It’s news to no one that food traceability is becoming increasingly important in Ireland. Consumers want to know exactly where ingredients come from. This concept is perfectly illustrated on restaurant menus across the country, where, for example, the farm on which the beef was reared is named. Waiters also will often point out that this farm is only three miles over the road.
.
The use of local produce is not a uniquely Irish phenomenon by any stretch of the imagination. On a recent trip to Austria, Irish Country Living was able to draw many parallels between how both the Austrians and the Irish place a huge emphasis on local produce. Staying in Sölden in the state of Tyrol, early one morning we took a gondola into the Ötztal Mountains. We then hiked for 40 minutes to where we had our breakfast in a little mountain restaurant called Gampe Thaya.
It’s clear almost immediately that this place has a lot of farming links. “Gampe” is the name of the area and “Thaya” refers to a hut in which animals and humans lived together.
The breakfast menu is simple but delicious, consisting mainly of cheese and cooked meat, yoghurt and fruit, omelettes and pancakes. The cheese and selection of cold meats is first brought to the table, an early-morning meal is more common on the continent than in Ireland.
We are informed quite causally by one of our guides that the Tyrolean Grey cows grazing on the mountain around us are milked here on site to provide milk and cheese for the restaurant. Agri senses tingling and I’m off to find the parlour.
No less than 20 metres from where we sit is a two-unit milking station and also a cheese-making cabin. As is customary in the Austria Alps, the cows wear bells so they can be easily located, but I’m told this small herd usually brings themselves in for milking. During the winter, they’re taken down into the valley to the farmyard.
Breakfast at Gampe Thaya costs €17. Booking is advised between 8.30am and 11.30am. Lunch is served until 3pm and is offered on a walk-in basis. For more information, see www.gampethaya.com
Foraging and fish
Tyrol is in the west of the country, just above Italy. In this area, foraging for both mushrooms and cranberries is a tradition passed down through the generations. Foragers sell their bounty to restaurants.
The day to pick cranberries is always after the first frosty night following summer. In terms of mushrooms, there is great competition between the Austrians and Italians. Locals I speak with allege that the Italians come over to collect their mushrooms and now use GPS to locate the best spots year after year.
Despite this friendly rivalry, chefs and hoteliers are extremely grateful for this process. It allows the people with local knowledge to supply them with the food they need. At Das Central, the five-star hotel in Sölden Irish Country Living is a guest of during this trip, general manager Michael Waschl says that, where possible, they buy all local produce.
Over dinner in the hotel’s traditional Austrian restaurant – they also have another with a broader offering – Michael explains the origin of each ingredient. The fish is sourced from a fisherman in Längenfeld, the next town over in the valley.
“The reason I buy this fish is because I know it’s the best you can get. No preservatives, nothing. The water is clean flowing down from the mountains.”
Wine not?
And, what would good food be if not accompanied by a little wine? Unlike the food stakes however, Ireland and Austria differ when it comes to wine. Ireland of course not being known for its grape varieties, but look, you can’t have it all I’m afraid!
I must prefix this overview of the Austrian wine I drank by stating that my knowledge on the topic of wine is scant, bar that in general I enjoy both red and white. Unhelpful I know, but one bottle in particular did capture my attention.
In 2011 Das Central pioneered its own wine, Pino 3,000. Named as such because it’s matured in wooden casks in the Ötztal Mountains at 3,048 metres above sea level. I’m informed as I taste the red wine that the pinot noir grape is one of the most sensitive to work with, but when you get it right, it’s also one of the most rewarding.
Due to the lower pressure on the mountain summit, the wine has to mature for longer. This pressure factor coupled with the cooler temperatures plays a part in the aromas in the glass coming into their own – or so I’m informed!
There are three different pinot noir vines used in the wine. One each from Germany, Austria and Italy. The Austrian wine maker, Paul Achs, has a 25-hectare red wine vineyard. His pinot noir vines are up to 23-years-old and grow on chalky, stony ground facing west or north.
For more on Das Central and Pino 3,000, see www.central-soelden.com/en/.
Read more
Watch: Living on the wild side in Austria
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