Yesterday we ran our fifth tasting event since starting the venture Insects & Wine. Insects & Wine is a non-profit venture run by Chris Kaplonski (Anthroenology) and I, with the help of Charlotte Milbank and Danielle Bradford. We aim to show people the stories behind sustainable insects and wines, while giving an all-round enjoyable sensory experience tasting them!
Last night we were hosted by the University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute (UCCRI), Cambridge Global Food Security (CGFS) and Thirsty Cambridge, as part of the Cambridge Science Festival.
Here's our team (right to left: Danielle Bradford, Jacqueline Garget from CGFS, Chris Kaplonski, me, Charlotte Milbank and Hawa Siddique from UCCRI; image from @GlobalFood_Camb):
Last night we were hosted by the University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute (UCCRI), Cambridge Global Food Security (CGFS) and Thirsty Cambridge, as part of the Cambridge Science Festival.
Here's our team (right to left: Danielle Bradford, Jacqueline Garget from CGFS, Chris Kaplonski, me, Charlotte Milbank and Hawa Siddique from UCCRI; image from @GlobalFood_Camb):
Last night we launched a brand new menu! We took grasshoppers and crickets - two closely related species of insect - from three very different parts of the world: Japan, Canada and Mexico. These were from Tsukahara Chinmi, Eat Grub and Merci Mercado. We also had a bonus course of after-dinner mealworms courtesy of Minus Farm in France. The latter two (Merci Mercado and MinusFarm) are EntoTrust certified - so they've been subject to an evaluation of the quality fo their products in terms of food safety, and the sustainability of their business in terms of having a low environmental footprint and fair employment practices, and have gained certification on this basis.
For the three courses, we created recipes that we hope reflected some of the flavour combinations popular in their countries of origin. We paired them with low-intervention organic wines. Here are some photos of the insect menu:
For the three courses, we created recipes that we hope reflected some of the flavour combinations popular in their countries of origin. We paired them with low-intervention organic wines. Here are some photos of the insect menu:
Of course, the really memorable thing about the evening was the atmosphere - it was very vibrant, & I had a lot of fun. One of the most enjoyable things about these events, for us, is meeting everyone who comes along. We tend to get a crowd that is fairly diverse in ages and nationalities, and people tend to be open-minded and optimistic. I feel like I always come away with lots of new ideas.
If you were one of last night's guests, thank you, & I hope it was a good evening for you as well. As we said last night - all feedback/comments are more than welcome, both good and bad!
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