Trüffelschwein A Trio Wins Over

From the warmly lit bar right by the entrance, we’re being lead to our table and quickly decide to start into the evening with a little sparkle. Neither Prosecco, nor Cremant - no. The staff at Trüffelschwein, German for truffle pig, served us an outstanding pinot gris from ‘Weingut am Stein’.

A preliminary amuse-gueule was announced - instead, a triple ‘Hooray!’ followed: crunchy wontons filled with scallop, celery and carrot. Freshly baked rolls, still warm, were served with olive oil, truffle butter and a confit of shallots that made my dinner companion sigh out loud. The third ‘Hooray!’: a zesty oxtail praline, creamy mash of blue potatoes, paper-thin slivers of beetroot and slightly sour quince.

What is humbly mentioned as ‘Quail, Mango, Pepper’ on the menu, actually makes your tongue dance the Cha-cha: lightly smoked, pink quail breast, a slice of quail galantine and a delicate burger with grilled quail liver. Along come mango chutney, pieces and puree of mango, as well as a foam and a chip of pepper. The matching wine was a beautifully fruity, rich yellow Emil Bauer muscatel. A daring yet very smooth fish creation followed: a rustic stockfish brandade topped with a juicy piece of Norwegian cod, adorned with a silky potato-truffle espuma. All of that topped with leek flambé, truffle shavings and potato crunch. This course was completed with a mineral Domäne Wachau’s Grüner Veltliner ‘Federspiel’. We sat there silently, with a big smile on our face. The staff was happy that we were happy and diligently continued working, serving up the following course in a svelte porcelain bowl.

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Juicy lobster, tiny tapioca pearls and fresh cilantro, finished à table with a flawless jus of lemongrass and coco. The wine: pinot blanc and chardonnay ‘Von der Insel’ from the Rheingau region - full-bodied with fruity notes. A mind-blowing palatal tabula rasa follows in form of incredibly fresh, highly concentrated whisky sour granité with passion fruit espuma.

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And while we’re in the process of taking in the wholeheartedness of a juicy ‘Yllera’ tempranillo, spiritually beamed into the sun of Spain, they were already serving the next course. Texture variations of carrot, parsley, broccoli: cubes, crunch, jelly, cake or just plain cooked. The fabulous highlight was the slow-cooked, unbelievably tender beef shoulder. I closed my eyes, took another sip of Spanish summer and was happy.

Finale: a fresh trio of green apple sorbet, white nougat ganache and matcha biscuit. Along comes an exquisite Esterházy Beerenauslese.

Jana Husemann and Lisa Müller have managed to combine courtesy, warmth and a lot of smiling, and have brought out the best in service. Something that’s reflected in their notably rich wine list, focussed on German wines. Together with chef de cuisine Kirill Kinfelt, who studied unter Louis C. Jacob among others, they’re a well attuned group of owners, whose motto has proven itself: ‘Whatever we do, we do it with reason, and even more passion.’

Eliane Muller

Guest Author Hamburg