First up today was a stroll through Södermalm, the neighborhood directly south of Gamla Stan. We picked up takeout lattes at a local coffee chain, Wayne’s Coffee, then headed out along a cliffside trail Jeff and I recalled from our last visit. We were treated to an amazing view Gamla Stan and Stockholm city center. Other than a few locals walking dogs, we had the lookouts to ourselves.

Continuing east in Södermalm, we came to Högalidskyrkan, a fairly new church (1923) by Swedish architect Ivar Tengbom. Interesting details in the brick work. Where’s a conspiracy theorist when you need one?

Still only 9:45am, we hiked our way back to the main shopping street knowing we needed to kill some time before the retail establishments open for the day.

After a snack of street food hotdogs and pita, the guys went on to a record store and I went to do some shopping of my own.

First up was a little textile shop in Gamla Stan, HildaHilda. All the fabrics are made of organic cotton and linen, woven in Sweden and fashioned into a variety of housewares and small accessories.

So cozy to be surrounded by whimsical housewares –
can I take them all home?

Nordiska Kompaniet (aka NK Stockholm) is a swanky department store downtown. Comprised of what I would consider mini-boutiques, it has all things luxury – clothes, accessories, shoes, housewares, food, etc.   There is also a cafe on every floor.

I love the Scandinavian fascination with all things home so I went straight for the home store in the basement. Oh, the gourmet grocery and a variety of specialty kiosks are down there too. Chocolate, anyone?   🙂

Mårten Trotzige Grund, the narrowest street in Stockholm, is in Gamla Stan.  It has 36 steps along its length starting at Västerlånggatan (l) and tapers down to 35in at the top where it  meets Prästgatan (r). It’s named after a merchant who owned properties along the alley in the late 1500s.

If pictures and ramblings about food and wine are not your thing, we’ll see you tomorrow.
For the rest of you, read on!

Peter started us with a Manzanilla, a sherry, paired with a fresh broccoli salad to share; a feature of the seven course menu. The bulk of the salad was shaved broccoli, fresh from a local plot still harvesting from outdoors, laid over a pumpkin and cheese emulsion and topped with roasted seeds. Amazing!

Next up, the chef delivered bowls of celeriac with shaved, pickled celeriac in a smoky, creamy hazelnut broth topped with hazelnut and sage.  The wine paring was a white, Tokaji furmint, from Budaházy.

The wines came just ahead of the food pairing which gave us a chance to try it on its own, then with food. Excellent way to really experience the nuances of the pairings.

Staying with white wines, next up was Villányi Hárslevelü from Vineyard Hummel. The winery was founded in the mid-90s by a German who walked away from a successful law career to start the winery.

This wine was paired with vendance roe, topped with crispy, grated potato and sliced onion layered over a bed of pureed potato and leek, and finally drizzled with crème fraiche.

We had an interesting discussion about pinot noir (our experience being primarily Oregon producers) as the next wine by Etyeki Kúria was pouring into our glasses in preparation for the red meat course. Unlike what we’re accustomed to, this wine smelled like a strawberry, still slightly covered in damp soil. Its flavor was mild, more like a beaujolais nouveau.  It was perfectly paired with sliced roe deer (a local “nuisance” according to Peter), blanched beetroot and spinach, loganberries and cream.

Last we were presented with Szent Tamás, again from  Budaházy.  This was a sweeter, late harvest white that was fantastic on it own. Then dessert arrived: sea buckthorn puree, sorbet of sour milk and sea buckthorn wafers. This was shockingly good, but what was really interesting was the affect  on the taste of the wine – now it was smoother, and almost mango-like in this situation. Outstanding!

And finally, coffee.  Dinner was an amazing experience and perfect for our final night in Stockholm. Many thanks to Peter, Elias and the crew for the wonderful, educational evening and overall amazing hospitality!