Brazil, the wine country...

Miolo's sparkling wine

When I think of a good bottle of wine, I imagine the country of origin to be France or Italy; Argentina or New Zealand. But Brazil? No, that's caipirinha country, surely. That was certainly my reaction this week when I accepted a glass of sparkling wine from a waiter at Brazilian restaurant Cabana in central London. It was less sweet than Prosecco and a little heavier than champagne; it was very good and I happily accepted numerous offers of a re-fill. The company behind the wine is Miolo and Cabana's reason for shouting about it is to show people that Brazil is more than just "beaches and bundas", according to Cabana boss David Ponte. I'll leave you to look up "bunda".
Each time I see David, I'm reminded of his passion for and pride in Brazil; he really does care about promoting all that's good about the country and is keen to use Cabana as a hub for Brazilian businesses in the UK to get together. On Tuesday night, as well as Miolo, he gave the charity Action for Brazil's Children Trust (ABC) a platform to talk about their work and projects, and travel writer Jane Egginton the chance to publicise her new book on Brazil. The event was well-attended and I met Virgilio Guimaraes from the Brazilian Embassy, who told me, amongst other things (we did discuss important stuff, too), that Brazil produces very good wines but the cost price prevents the wines from being competitive. Apparently, most vineyards are small, family-run businesses who struggle to compete with the volumes of Chilean wines. I did some digging and found other Brazilian wines that are supposed to be very good: Lidio Carraro and Casa Valduga.

Brazilian sushi comes to London with Yoobi

Until I was 21, I didn't eat fish. Then, I moved to France for a year and realized that, as a vegetarian, I'd have to survive on brie and bread unless I broadened my tastes. So, I started introducing fish gradually into my diet. Now, I think it's delicious, as were the temaki rolls at Yoobi, a new Brazilian temakeria in Soho, whose launch party I was invited to this week. Temaki is very similar to sushi, which is hugely popular in Brazil, particularly in Sao Paulo - it has the highest Japanese population outside Japan. At Yoobi, the temaki is hand-rolled to order, right in front of you. The technique, coupled with fresh ingredients, really makes Yoobi's offer stand out from pre-packaged sushi you get on the high street which, whilst perfectly fine to eat, can often taste a bit stodgy. Yoobi's temaki are beautifully light, fresh and melt-in-your-mouth.Yoobi is very much focused on the busy, lunchtime crowd - it closes by 9pm. Given the type of food served, it's probably the right move. Temaki rolls aren't the type of food to enjoy over a three-hour long dinner, or even an hour's lunch. But as a quick, healthy, delicious bite, it's one I'd recommend.

Happy birthday Santos Football Club

  

  

Santos Football Club – the home of Pelé  – is 100 years old and to celebrate this milestone, the club commissioned artist Paulo Consentino to overhaul the outside of club’s wall, in a suitably arty manner. The result was unveiled this week and looks rather impressive. It’s a mural marking 100 different people or moments associated with CT Rei Pelé (the official name of the club) over the last 100 years. What I particularly like about the project is the community aspect behind it. Consentino worked with 30 volunteers to create the wall and it looks like it was loads of fun – take a look at the video. Wish I’d been there.