Experience #1
Friends In The Mix
Welcome to our first Experience: Friends In The Mix. This is where KCS started: friends in the kitchen, a chicken tagine on the stove, a bottle of Rioja open, and music mixed while the evening was still taking shape.
The menu is deliberately communal. A tagine gives people time to stand around the counter, pour a drink, talk, and let the room settle before dinner. It is simple, generous food, built for sharing rather than formal service.
The set for the evening was Welcome Home, mixed live around the cooking and the after-dinner mood rather than chosen as background music for the table. It sits with the same idea as the food: warm, open and made for friends who stay a little longer.
Menu
Chicken Tagine
Aromatic chicken tagine served on a bed of couscous
Wine Selection
If you can find a Moroccan Syrah, start there. Failing that, Rioja works very well with chicken tagine. The Campo Viejo Gran Reserva 2016 brings ripe black fruit, oak, tobacco and coffee notes that sit naturally with the spice and sweetness of the dish.
Its acidity keeps the tagine from feeling heavy, while the fruit has enough weight for the couscous, preserved lemon and warm spices. It is not a complicated pairing; it simply keeps the dish generous without overwhelming it.
Read the full Campo Viejo Rioja Gran Reserva 2016 review here.