Don’t ask me how or why she does it, but Jacquie seemed set on the idea of a seasonal herring fest again this year, despite her (and latterly us) being away for the regular season and despite the stupendous effort that must be involved.
Eight of us gathered for dinner at Jacquie’s place; Josh, Melody, Sonia, Michael, Hils, me and Janie.
We spent the early part of the evening – some would even call it late afternoon – drinking, chatting and (in some cases) getting to know each other. For me and Janie, this was the first time we’d met Sonia (Jacquie’s friend) and Melody (Josh’s girlfriend). Everyone else we’ve known for yonkers.
By coincidence, a couple of days earlier, I had been doing a retro-blogging trawl from exactly 30 years ago and realised that I had visited Jacquie (and in those days Len) almost exactly 30 years ago to the day:
After plenty of drinks and chat – downstairs for the herring fest and more chat.
The herring awards tradition is described in the following piece from 2016 – click here or below:
Pickled Herring Of The Year Competition and Other Delights, 12 October 2016
In truth, to call the meal a herring fest is a bit of a misnomer – or more specifically an understatement – as the culinary delights on show go way beyond herring; smoked salmon, poached salmon, gefilte fish balls, egg-and-onion, cheeses…
…I could go on and very often I do go on.
Talking of which, the talking is as much a central part of the evening as the eating. The conversation covered all manner of subjects, ranging from topical politics, to new media and Cheryl Cole. I must admit I was very weak on the latter subject. I blame The Economist, which seems to pay that pivotal icon of our times ridiculously little regard. I should consider cancelling my subscription.
But I digress.
Jacquie and Hilary set about a concerted lobbying campaign on behalf of the schmaltz herring, in a flagrant attempt to influence the judging.
“Mmmm, the Schmaltz Herring is especially yummy this year, don’t you think?
…and…
The Bismark Herring is very good, but not like the Schmaltz
…and…
The Sweet Herring is not quite a subtle as last time, is it?
…and…
The Swedish you say, Melody? Do you really think so? Nice, but a little bland, no?
You get the picture. My bloody-mindedness gene, which easily comes to the fore in such circumstances (it’s family, I can talk about this openly) was straining to award the coveted prize to anything other than the Schmaltz Herring.
The problem was, though, that this year the Schmaltz Herring really was exceptional in my opinion too. The Swedish, a new entrant this time, perhaps by dint of the event taking place late in the year, was extremely, indeed unexpectedly good – a very well-rounded flavour of herring – but not quite as exceptional.
So, after explaining the rules to the uninitiated (delicacies such as chopped herring and herring in sour cream have lifetime achievement awards, as does Jacquie herself of course, but it is only the unadulterated herrings that get judged in competition) – the results:
- Highly Commended: Swedish Herring – superb effort from a new entrant
- International Herring Award: Schmaltz Herring – utterly exceptional this time
- Winners: everyone who attended – it was a lovely evening, as always.
Many, many thanks, Jacquie.
And finally, one more (weirdly-shaped) picture of the smörgåsbord, courtesy of Hils. Thanks Hils.
