Taste Portugal Press Party – The Speeches

TASTE PORTUGAL 2014/15’s team, represented by Project Manager, Justin Ultee, was joined by Managing Director of Grifco PR, Claire Griffin; Host Chef at the Notting Hill Kitchen, Luís Baena; António Padeira from the Portuguese Tourism Board and João de Vallera, the Portuguese Ambassador, at the international press party held this week to launch the season of events that will make up the festival’s fabulous six-month-long programme.

Speaking to an excited audience of around 100 British journalists, who filled the four rooms of Notting Hill Kitchen’s Georgian townhouse, Ultee made it clear that he wouldn’t distract guests from the enjoyment of the delicious food and wine for too long. ‘It’s all about the experience,’ he said. He was also keen to emphasise the international nature of the project, catered for tonight by Lisbon-born, well-travelled, Japanese-influenced Baena. Ultee, himself Dutch, explained: ‘We are all ambassadors for Portugal.’ Certainly, by the end of the evening, I’d wager there were a few more of us out there.

Baena was keen to emphasise how much of a joint effort everything is. ‘The kitchen is all about teamwork,’ he said, thanking his colleagues for their efforts. Certainly, the staff on hand tonight were all enthusiastic and attentive, and that was just the front-of-house set. Those backstage had been working hard for hours, also stepping in to cover for Taste Portugal’s Executive Sommelier, Arnaud Vallet, who was taken ill last minute and thus unable to attend.

De Vallera, who pulled out his copy of a 2013 article by leading wine critic Jancis Robinson, which placed Portuguese red wines at number one, spoke of his pride at this positioning and of his desire to promote gastronomy, oenology and tourism. ‘I would like to wish every success to this promising initiative,’ he said of Taste Portugal. Padeira echoed these sentiments, saying that food and wine is what he and his colleagues most want people to visit Portugal for. The British journalists in attendance tonight were certainly all keen to find out more about the press trip later this month, and, once Taste Portugal 2014/15’s events arrive in town, this fever is bound to spread.