Here are our top suggestions for food and drink to try in Cambridge over summer, from wine-tasting punt tours to a midsummer feast!
Image: Saffron Grange
Fizz and Float
Saffron Grange and Rutherford’s Punting join forces for the ultimate punting and wine-tasting experience on the last Friday of every month until October. Each session takes around one hour, allowing guests to taste three of Saffron Grange’s latest premium-quality sparkling wines, including the vineyard’s bestselling Classic Cuvée, packed full of summer aromas like freshly picked white flowers, orange peel and brioche. Tickets cost £40 and can be booked via rutherfordspunting.com and saffrongrange.com
Something to Raise Your Spritz
A treat for summer, De Luca has added an aperitivo offer to its line-up of midweek deals, allowing you to enjoy two cocktails for £10 on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 5-7pm, from 1 June. Hailing from Italy, aperitivo is thought to date back to the 19th century, when King Vittorio Emanuele II got into the habit of enjoying a drink of vermouth to ‘open up’ his stomach before dinner (the term stems from Italian verb aprire, meaning ‘to open’). De Luca’s Pasta Wednesdays and Pizza Thursdays provide the perfect opportunity to do as the Italians do, and enjoy a delicious meal after your aperitivo.
Tipple Tastings
Join Cambridge Wine Merchants for a summer Bordeaux tasting event on 2 June in the spectacular grounds of Peterhouse College, the oldest college in Cambridge. On 15 June, the King’s Parade branch plays host to a whisky tasting led by Hugh Barron from James Eadie distillery, where you’ll sample six of its finest. On 29 June, Cambridge Wine Merchants teams up with Rutherford’s Punting for the ultimate experience – a Provence punting party on the River Cam at sunset. Take in views of Cambridge’s most iconic colleges with a glass of Provence rosé and grazing board. For more information and ticket prices, head to cambridgewine.com
The Carpenters Arms
The Carpenters Arms has reopened its doors, ready to welcome you to its newly refurbished eatery, boasting bold, modern designs and exposed beams that nod to the pub’s 250-year-old heritage. Additionally, the old stable block has been converted into a new kitchen, which opens out into the restaurant for extra atmosphere. The spring menu champions modern British dishes made with seasonal produce and the best ingredients. Highlights include the roast chicken waldorf sharing dish – a standout guest favourite – as well as pleasing puds such as the Tosier chocolate torte with Fen Farm mascarpone.
Market House
Following the legacy left behind by the greatly missed Don Pasquale restaurant, the recently opened Market House hopes to bring a new lease of life to the market square. Spread over the Grade II listed building’s five floors, it promises to be a unique meeting space and foodie haven – with an all-day cafe, separate and more formal restaurant, alfresco dining, food lab and evening wine bar. Stay tuned for more updates in the next issue!
Flourish on Fire
Local produce grower Flourish invites you to its On Fire feast on 25 June, to celebrate midsummer – the time of year when crops begin to ripen and farmers find brief respite between the frenzy of spring planting and autumn harvest. Seated at long banquet tables and surrounded by birdsong, you’ll be treated to four courses by Steak & Honour and The Modern Table, who’ll be cooking up a feast over fire using seasonal produce from the farm. Wylde Sky Brewing provides plenty of refreshment and there will be cheese and wine from Meadows, too. On arrival, you’ll be greeted with a welcome drink, specially created by Sam Adams using botanicals from the farm. A guest DJ will supply plenty of tunes to fuel the merriment well into the night. Tickets cost £65 per person.
A Regal Bunch
Toast the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with wine made in the UK, says Grape Britannia’s Matt Hodgson
White Castle Vineyard Regent 2019, £24.99
Welsh red wine specialist White Castle has delivered another substantial vintage with rich tannins, ripe blackcurrant and red plum flavours. Pairs perfectly with roast beef and all the trimmings!
Balfour Hush Heath This Septered Isle 2018, £39.99
This Kentish cracker blends the seven grape varieties of champagne – but in a still wine! Custard, ripe apple, lemon curd and peach notes are all at play.
Hattingley Valley Kings Cuveé 2014, £79.99
Vibrant citrus zest layered with honey and nuts, all smoothly integrated with creamy oak, baked apples and marzipan. Heavenly Hampshire bubbly from a fabulous year.
All wines listed above can be purchased from Grape Britannia on Arbury Road.
