If you love top quality charcuterie meat and artisan cheeses and wine, you will find yourself truly at home
The food is as beautiful as an oil painting, but tastes far better(Image: Sofie Jackson – staff)
While there are a great many bars and restaurants in the Hull area, one thing we seemingly don’t have in abundance are intimate little wine-and-cheese places, like the famous Gordon’s in London.
I love food and drink best when it is joyful and convivial – something to be shared and experienced with another person. And what does this better than a charcuterie board, served under the soft glow of candelight?
Happily for me, about six months ago, Blok and Vine opened in 16 Dyer Lane, Beverley. I paid a visit one Friday night and, to say the least, found it was definitely worth the 15-minute journey from Hull Interchange.
It looked inviting from the outside and, inside, was even cosier with its stone floor and warm lighting. We found ourselves in a snug spot by the window and pored over the elaborate menu.
Not sure what to pick out of the almost overwhelming choice, we were glad when someone came along to help us out. The man who served our table was friendly and thoughtful with his suggestions.
When I mentioned I was avoiding soft cheeses and unpasteurised cheeses, he triple-checked for me and recommended a selection of pasteurised hard cheeses: smoked Wensleydale, Sheffield Forge, King Charles III, Eh Up Yorkshire Cheddar, and Northern Blue.
If you like your meaty options, there are charcuterie boards with Yorkshire-reared pork, such as air-dried ham, salami, and chorizo. There is also Yorkshire bresaola, a beef seasoned with rosemary and dry-cured for eight weeks.
There are some remarkable wines to pick from, with the very best only available by the bottle. I am normally a strictly red wine person, but was intrigued by the choice of ‘orange wines’ made from white wine grapes fermented with the skins on, resulting in a richer flavour and deep amber hue.
I wasn’t drinking, but made a mental note to return and explore all the different flavours at leisure, perhaps at one of the future wine tasting nights. About 10 minutes after we placed our order, the food arrived.
The cheese board was a visual delight, like a still life painting you’d ogle at an art gallery. It felt like it deserved its own little ceremony, with fanfare and bells, as it was delivered to our table.
As well as a basket of fresh ciabatta bread, it came with two preserves, artisan crackers, a very generous portion of honey, a bunch of grapes, and a pretty garnishing of watercress.
The bread was as heavenly as it smelled, but the crackers were a more unexpected delight. Ranging in colour from brown to charcoal, they had a superior flavour and texture to anything I’d had before.
Each cheese was beautiful in its own right. I loved experimenting by pairing each one with different chutneys – and the honey and grapes – to produce unique explosions of flavour in my mouth.
My absolute favourite was the smoked Wensleydale, however. I believe I mourned a little when the final white crumb of cheese disappeared.
This was one of the best dining experiences I’ve had in a long time. Without exaggerating, it felt very much like falling in love with food all over again and I can hardly wait to have the opportunity to return.
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