Ah, Scorpio. Dear Scorpios are keenly observant, extremely independent, intense individuals, who are known to be loyal, passionate and persistent, dynamic and resourceful.  They exhibit a calm exterior, and are usually in a position of power, with lots going on below the surface.

My wonderful, generous, loyal Scorpio friends love intense (even bitter) extreme flavours and spicy foods. Their go-to comfort foods are beef cheeks and lamb shanks, more winter weather foods, so for our Bloodwood Scorpio Dinner Party we lightened things up a bit to suit this really warm spring weather we are already having.

Our zesty Scorpio menu melds fish, mushrooms, venison, citrusy cheeses, light vegetables and bright juicy fruits with plenty of succulent flavours to create a delightfully fresh dinner, perfect for a warm Scorpio spring evening.

À votre santé.

Pauvre Paris.

I'd love to serve crab here but unfortunately I am allergic to shellfish. Anyway, it doesn't hurt to have some vegetarian food on the menu.

(I have to eat mine on rice crackers).

Serve with Bloodwood 2009 Chirac 

Spring is the best time to use our tender green grape vine leaves that add an alluring lemony herbal flavour.

Serve with Bloodwood 2012 Riesling

Our Riesling is just made for fish and almost acts as a squeeze of lemon juice over the fish, while cleansing your palate.                  

It's all about flavour if you want to curry favour with Scorpios...

Serve this dish with Bloodwood 2013 Chardonnay

The ripe fruitiness of this Chardonnay handles the strong flavours of the Thai dressing well.

Peppered steak never goes out of fashion.

Serve with Bloodwood 2012 Pinot Noir or 2014 Cabernet Franc * both new releases.

Yes, our Pinot at this early stage has some tannins, which can easily handle the pepperiness of this dish.

A beautiful cheese, one of the best.

The rind is usually a dusty-brown colour, and the internal pâte is a pale creamy yellow. The texture is relatively hard and flexible, and the taste is strong and slightly sweet.

Delicious served with Bloodwood 2009 Maurice.

After all this food, dessert needs to be something miniscule and light, and it couldn't get much simpler than this.

Serve with Bloodwood 2015 Silk Purse * new release

Being young, fresh and light our new dessert wine is best with fresh fruit, such as strawberries, raspberries, mangos, passionfruit and stone fruits when they appear ~ great for summer and for Christmas time too!

Cheeses that work with it now are also required to be young and fresh, e.g. goat’s curd, or quark and ricotta with some lemon rind mixed through.

Added sugar in desserts can easily overpower this wine at this stage in its development. It's a keeper and will get richer bodied as it ages, when you'll be very well rewarded for your patience.

My efforts to make nougat have all failed, the mixture tastes great but they've all ended up sticky.

There are many versions in the shops, so it's far easier to outsource.

Shortcuts:

• Buy nougat.