Monocle Weekend
Edition: Sunday

Hosting a seasonal soirée? Our Japanese recipe writer has a dish to die for. Then we head to a micro-bakery in Zürich, drop by A Kind of Guise’s Munich flagship to get a sense of the community feeling its bringing to the city’s retail scene and find out which wines you should add to your cellar this December. Before the festivities get under way, here’s Tyler Brûlé with an update from around the world of Monocle.

As it’s Sunday and it’s been a light travel week (only Paris and Lisbon), let’s spin the globe to see what else has been happening in the world of Monocle and beyond. We’ll start in Asia.

Hong Kong
For the past few weeks locals and visitors to Wan Chai have been greeted by a huge Monocle hoarding bearing a “We’ll be reopening very soon” sign. I’m happy to report that as of yesterday the shop doors were thrown open once again and we’re back in business with an expanded space featuring more room for our collections of bags, sharp garments and, of course, our ever-expanding offer of magazines, newspapers and books. Harry and the team are on hand to welcome you for all your Christmas needs and special requests.

Cannes
A sizeable Monocle delegation was in Cannes for the better part of the week for ILTM, the International Luxury Travel Market. On Monday eve I did a quick twirl on the stage for opening night, offering up a checklist of recommendations for the industry focusing on getting back to basics. As you’re a regular to this column, the calls to action were quite familiar – buttons and switches instead of glass screens, no iPads for check-in registration, no QR codes in place of actual menus and staff in proper uniforms rather than having one dressing down and another dressing as though they’re a Loro Piana-clad guest. On Tuesday morning we unveiled the new Monocle Hotel Collections. No, no, this is not an array of properties just yet. Rather, it’s a collection of bags, print and design items on offer to hotels, airlines and cruise companies looking to add some decent content for their guests. If you’d like to learn more, please get in touch with Philippa Cooper in our Zürich office at pc@monocle.com.

Zürich
It’s Christmas market weekend here (Tokyo and Toronto shops too) and it’s absolutely blowing and bucketing down. Never mind. The Weihnachten vibes are in full swing, the atmosphere is superb and people are in a very cheery mood across Monocle and our brother company, Trunk. Juliet Linley has been on the mic for radio check-ins with Midori House, Brenda Tuohy is over from London with her collection of vintage jewellery, Mover from Lausanne is offering up its merino performance gear for various winter activities and there are about 15 other companies on hand to ensure everyone will have something chic waiting for them under the tree. The market is on all day in Zürich and Toronto as well. For those passing by our HQ on Dufourstrasse, Monocle on Sunday will be broadcasting live from 10.00. Do join us.

Paris
The dream (circa two months ago) was to host a Christmas market in Paris but I was rather too optimistic with the construction schedule. Thankfully, the works at our new space on rue Bachaumont are moving at a decent clip and my spot-check revealed a set-up which is going to rival – and likely surpass – Zürich for flagship status. We’ll keep you up to date on developments but at this point it’s looking like February for the proper launch – including a special “Made in France” collection that will be available only in Paris.

London
Our café fans will be happy to hear that we’ve now reopened on Chiltern Street following several weeks of renovation. We’re not 100% there yet with the full fit-out (some tables are currently in a container in the Port of Beirut) but the space is more open for easier traffic flow, there are some new branded items on sale in our mini-boutique at the back and we’ve created a cosier space for late-afternoon drinks or to hire for intimate evenings. From Wednesday our correspondents will be in London for our year-end summit and many will also be dropping into our Christmas market at Midori House on Saturday and Sunday. Santa is waiting for you! So are we.

Munich fashion label A Kind of Guise (AKOG) has opened a new flagship boutique on Amiraplatz (writes Jack Simpson). The shop, clad in dark Spanish marble and Swiss pearwood, features a Baz Luhrmann-inspired aquarium and is just a short walk from the Rosewood Munich hotel, signalling the brand’s luxury ambitions.“When we started, I was still studying and we only had 25 products,” says AKOG’s co-founder, Yasar Ceviker. “Today we need space for more than 300 products and somewhere to host people.”

Hosting and personalised service have always been priorities for Ceviker. “For us, the community is the reason that we do the work,” he tells The Monocle Weekend Edition. “Making new and long-term customers feel comfortable is where success lies.” It has been a busy year for the company. Ceviker hosted an event at the Villa Arnica in South Tyrol for sister agency AKOG Hotel Group, developed a wine label and set up a sports apparel brand, Societas, with Mirko Borsche and Nils Unterharnscheidt. The common thread? “Growing our community,” says Ceviker, who explains that regulars can drop by the new shop for a glass of wine or a coffee.

“People are coming four times a week for a drink and a chat, and to look at the clothing too.” So what’s next? Revamping the label’s Berlin outpost and scouring Europe for another location.
akindofguise.com

The Lumen Museum of Mountain Photography is perched on the edge of the summit plateau of Mount Kronplatz (Plan de Corones) in the Italian Dolomites. Curated by Bolzano-born artistic director Manfred Schweigkofler, the former mountain station showcases photography of the peaks, surrounded by dramatic Alpine scenery. Here, Schweigkofler tells us about his favourite lake for a cold-water plunge, the red wine that he’ll be drinking this season and winter’s fondue rituals.

Where do we find you this weekend?
You won’t find me in a queue at the ski lift or at one of the many Christmas markets. South Tyrol is so crowded right now that it’s best to take in its beauty on weekdays. You might find me at the Montiggl Lakes, where I swim all winter.

What’s your ideal way to begin a Sunday – a gentle start or a jolt?
Both. First a jolt, then a gentle transition. I need coffee, coffee and more coffee. Without it, I’m like a zombie and not a functional one. Then some rye bread with butter and jam. Please, nothing healthy, no fruit, no muesli, none of that.

A Sunday soundtrack?
Gospel. That’s the ultimate energy boost.

Sunday culture must?
I’ll go to Basis Vinschgau Venosta, an important cultural hub that looks at how urbanism can speak to rural Alpine regions.

News or not?
Rai 1 is a great Italian channel. For the rest, I tune in to the UK’s Virgin Radio.

What’s on the menu this festive season?
Italian salad, which is oddly called insalata russa in Italy, prepared by my mother. It’s phenomenal: think buffalo mozzarella, gorgonzola and a variety of salumi. Then fondue, as always. There are always incredible shenanigans around the fondue pot, including the stealing of forks.

Festive tipple of choice?
Good wines. I love lagrein, a grape native to our region. Mulled wine is terrible, it’s a barbaric drink.

Do you lay out an outfit for Monday?
Monday? What is Monday? There is no Monday!

All I want for Christmas is…
Benessere, being well. Fewer ego-systems and more healthy eco-systems.

The naffest present I've received is…
Can’t remember. I’ve thrown them all away.

Hosting season is upon us and this week our Japanese recipe writer Aya Nishimura whips up some canapés to impress your guests. This spin on the classic Eastern European pancake incorporates trout roe and a sprig of dill.

Makes 16 blinis

Ingredients
40g buckwheat flour
60g strong white flour
A pinch of salt
½ tsp fast-action yeast
100ml whole milk
65ml sour cream
1 medium free-range egg, separated
Vegetable oil (for frying)
220ml sour cream (for topping)
85g trout roe
Small bunch of dill (for garnish)

Method

1
Prepare the batter by mixing the flours, salt and yeast in a bowl. Make a well in the centre.

2
Heat the milk gently (don’t let it get too hot) and pour into the well, whisking to combine with the flour. In another bowl, mix the sour cream and egg yolk, then add to the dough. Cover with some plastic wrap and let stand for between 30 and 40 minutes until bubbly.

3
Whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form, then gently fold into the batter.

4
Now focus on the blinis. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Drop 1 tbsp of batter into the pan per blini and cook for 2 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.

5
Spoon 1 tsp of sour cream onto each blini, top with ½ tsp of trout roe and garnish with a sprig of dill.

For more recipes to add to your culinary arsenal, pick up a copy of Monocle’sDecember/January issue.

Tokyo-born Jinny Watanabe learned to knead dough in the US, Denmark and Sweden, before setting up her micro-bakery in Zürich (writes Claudia Jacob). Tsugi combines her love for Japan’s umami flavours with ancient leavening techniques, creating crowd-pleasers such as the salty seaweed croissant, nutty miso Knäckebrot (rye crispbreads) and tamago (egg) sandos.

At 05.30, Watanabe and her team start preparing dough that has been proving for 24 hours in a separate location outside the city; the bread is then biked to her bakery on Molkenstrasse. Most popular are the fluffy shokupan milk bread and wholegrain sourdough, made from stone-ground organic Vollkorn wheat milled in the nearby Glarus canton. “It’s a tradition that preserves the wheat’s nutritional integrity,” says Watanabe, who learned her careful attention to provenance when growing up in Japan and South Korea.
tsugi.ch

Thirsty? Zürich-based wine writer Chandra Kurt presents her picks of the bottles to uncork, share or add to your cellar this December. From champagne and reds to pét-nats and orange wines, there’s a little something for every palate.

Cepparello, Isole e Olena, Toscana
Pure sangiovese from the best terroir. Cepparello is the name of a troubled character from The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio. This red is rather friendlier.

Chenin Blanc, Scions of Sinai, Stellenbosch
A South African chenin blanc, this grape has the fresh taste of lemon zest. The white wine is aged in a large, egg-shaped concrete vat for nine months on fermented fine lees. The result is a concentrated delight.

Sancerre Blanc Auksinis, Domaine Sébastien Riffault, Loire
A vinified biodynamic offering from Domaine Sébastien Riffault, which lets the wine age for three years before releasing it. The result is a tender, delicate and aromatic white with notes of honey, chamomile and apricot, and a tart-sweet finish.

Champagne Chavost, Blanc de Chardonnay, Brut Nature
Made with no added sulphites, every bottle is a delight. This champagne from a clever non-interventionist winemaker seduces with its strong personality.

For more top bottles to collect or take the edge off, pick up a copy of‘The Forecast’, Monocle’s look at the year ahead.

There’s an art to a well-executed social gathering. From the tablecloth and playlist to the lighting and pre-dinner tipple, every detail will affect the outcome of your seasonal soirée. This week in our hospitality series, we’re guests of painter Jonny Gent, who co-founded the Sessions Art Club in London’s Clerkenwell and owns the Boath House hotel in the Scottish Highlands.

What are your rules of thumb when it comes to hosting?
Candlelight will let you get away with murder. Plus, hard liquor for guests on arrival to loosen tongues. You want gossip, laughter and joyful tears.

What dish says “winter” to you?
I feel a deep love for my raclette machine. I like to serve it with bacon, sausages and mushrooms cooked on the grill. There’ll also be piles of pickles and crudités served with a secret Swiss dip. My wife stole the recipe while growing up in Geneva.

Who’s coming to dinner and – who’s not?
A simple rule is that you must adore their company and crave it. The room should feel like a last supper without the doom-laden vibe of imminent death.

Apéritif or digestif? Both?
Dirty martinis to start and some strong Irish coffee afterwards. I’m talking 100ml of Jameson, stove-top coffee and whipped cream topped with dark-brown sugar.

Any intolerances (food or otherwise)?
Any dish cooked from an Instagram post that isn’t by an actual chef. Oh, and any light bulb that’s more than 1.5 watts.

When it comes to setting the table, what do you include?
The whitest of linen tablecloths because I love to see it filthy at the end of the dinner. I also love an old napkin bought from Auldearn Antiques in the Highlands and embroidered with the initials of somebody’s dead aunt from Dundee.

What’s the naffest holiday tradition?
The King’s Speech.

For more hosting tips, top tables and seasonal shopping guides, pick up a copy of Monocle’s bumperDecember/January issue, on newsstands now. Or better still,subscribeto always have your finger on the pulse. Have a super Sunday.