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Wine List Confidential: Holm

23 September 2024 By Douglas Blyde

Douglas Blyde sojourns in Somerset to get a taste of Holm. From cider with Gazpacho to Grenache with a “double-decker” sandwich, he assesses whether the pairings are up to standard.

Housed within the honeyed stone walls of South Petherton’s Holm – where a NatWest ATM lingers as a vestige of the building’s past – lies a restaurant with rooms which feels like an Ercol catalogue come to life. With such “effortlessly chic, Scandi-inspired interiors,” it’s no surprise that Emma Henderson mused in The Independent, “I certainly wish my home looked as good as this.” As Condé Nast Traveller noted, the name itself hints at a desire to craft a sanctuary – a vision realised by Harrogate-born, Manchester-educated, and London-honed, Nicholas Balfe. Despite them having campaigned so robustly to “cancel the closure” of the erstwhile NatWest, the ambience seems to cast a spell on its patrons. As one Trip Advisor reviewer, Thomas D, observed, “the food was so good, it sent my wife into labour…”

Design

The design, envisioned by project coordinator, Decca Lang and architects, Gundry and Ducker – whose portfolio includes Forza Wine, Temper Covent Garden, and The Palomar – features a gleaming open kitchen and counter with a Cadillac of a coffee machine at its core, and in the dining room, a terrazzo floor where cashiers once handled deposits. Walls are artfully stripped back to bare plaster, illuminated by gallery-like spotlights. Curtains cloaking the rump of the cashpoint create the intriguing effect of a stage set for a performance. Reached via polished concrete treads, each bedroom bears the name of a British tree – Ash, Elm, Hornbeam, Juniper, Osier, Rowan, and Sessile – evoking the grace of ancient woodlands, inviting guests to rest beneath a metaphorical canopy of nature’s grandeur, although better window coverings would make for deeper slumber.

Additionally, a studio provides a tranquil space for yoga – as well as a couple of seemingly free to sip bottles or rum and rye. Outside, a terrace invites guests to gather by the fire. Supported by Highland Park distillery, this area serves as a bridge between Somerset’s gentle inclines and the rugged, remote, windswept vistas of Scotland – a place to feel the heartbeat of Orkney in every warming dram.

Drinks

A Scottish connection continues to the supervisor of the European wine selection, given it is overseen by by “sommelier by function, if not title,” Rachel Elner, who previously worked under the legendary Sumith Alahakoon, head sommelier at Trump Turnberry, Ayrshire. Bottles are racked in a passageway which previously held the bank vault. Options by the glass begin at a modest £5.75 for a 125ml glass of Abadia de Aribayos’s Joven Tempranillo, ascending to Sybille Kuntz’s orange Mosel Riesling at £11.75. A standout from closer to home is Castlewood Vineyards Musbury Brut NV, its bubbles a tribute to the ancient hill fort beneath which the vineyard nuzzles (£12.50).

For those seeking something more spirited, the fearless Holm Negroni is crafted with Cynar and Somerset Pomona, best sipped by the fireplace. Yet, the true treasures lie within the Cellar List, where one-off bottles and eccentric labels may be familiar to frequenters of the likes of Levan. Among the sparklers is the Smith & Evans Trilogy from Somerset limestone, combining the inaugural 2010 vintage with two subsequent harvests for £105. The Black Mountain Col Fondo, an organic, likely unique blend of Pinot Meunier, Solaris, and Siegerrebe from Herefordshire, also stands out at £82.

Still options include Frédéric Cossard’s 2020 Feel Good Savagnin (£89), Emidio Pepe’s 2015 Trebbiano d’Abruzzo (£145), and the 2015 white Beaucastel (£270). Gabrio Bini Serragghia Zibibbo 2021, a rust-coloured rendition from Pantelleria, is offered at £125 – a liquid embodiment of the volcanic island dubbed “La Perla Nera.” Reds include the venerable Vega Sicilia Alión 2013 (£145), while Luciano Sandrone’s Cannubi Boschis Barolo from 2001 may be accessed in both half-bottle (£55) and magnum (£410) formats, each offering a unique expression of the wine’s evolution.

And for a sweet finale, Domaine de Souch’s Marie Kattalin 2012 Jurançon (£115/75cl), or Kingsbury Ice Cider, framing over 100 apples per bottle, provide a decadent closing note to the Holm experience (£8.50/75ml).

Dishes

Dishes are by Nicholas Balfe, whose stints at St. John, Moro, and Rochelle Canteen, led him to the helm of the kitchen at Brunswick House. He subsequently sharpened his knives at the seminal Young Turks pop-up at The Ten Bells, before teaming up with Matthew Bushnell and Mark Gurney to launch Salon in Brixton, followed by Levan and Larry’s (RIP) in Peckham. Drawing from the vaults of experience, Balfe today operates Holm independently.

To the gentle rhythm of “Not Today Mate” by Yazmin Lacey, we began with a refreshing summer gazpacho of pickled cucumber and shallot, dressed with olive oil and topped with a mint leaf. Served in a chilled mug alongside well-made sourdough, it was, excepting the unexpected pieces of what we believe the Americans call Saran wrap encountered within, a light and wholesome start. Elner admitted that the pairing with the 6.6% Wilding Home Orchard cider 2022 wasn’t conventional – but it worked. With notes of wet walnut and rich barley sugar, the fetchingly bittersweet, naturally fermented, regeneratively farmed expression, is brought to you by the photogenic Sam and Beccy Leach who previously ran Bristol’s Birch restaurant (RIP).

Elner considered pairing a subsequent pasta dish with the vivid, greengage-scented 2022 Bacchus, raised in Tuscan amphorae and bottled in a similarly shaped flagon adorned with a pictogram of the events. However, she ultimately chose their Brut Reserve, its light effervescence and hint of white pepper cutting through a rich, buttery sauce. That sauce, enveloping perfectly cooked pasta parcels, featured spring onions, tomato, red pepper, and, at its base, an exceptional fig jam made from Holm’s own tree. Despite the dish’s expertly balanced flavours, the sauce’s richness bordered on excessive, making it both the highlight and the challenge of the tasting menu.

With Creedy Carver duck breast and tasty bonbon anchored on a swirl of rainbow chard, Elner went against her preference for Primitivo, instead pouring the malt of finish, L’Abrunet Frisach from Terra Alta. Beyond a label depicting Icarus, whose shirt was as pink as the duck, the co-fermented, concrete-raised Garnacha Fina and Carignan soared through, though it could have benefitted from being a few degrees cooler and served, like all of today’s wines, in smarter glassware. After enduring a parade of subpar restaurant stemware lately, we’ve come to appreciate why a wine merchant friend travels with his own glasses.

Onto cheese, and “on the list today for the first time,” Elner matched Domaine de Valcros’ Banyuls with a double-decker sandwich starring Tor, a young, pyramid-shaped goat’s cheese which presumably takes the name of Glastonbury’s famous tower on a hill. This was dressed with a very good plum jam, first encountered with an opening chicken liver parfait.

Last word

For those attuned to feng shui, the cashpoint – awkwardly occupying a spot which should cradle a focal banquette – might seem a glaring issue, as if siphoning the restaurant’s prosperity straight out onto the pavement. Yet, during our visit, any such concerns evaporated as the place buzzed with energy, clearly showing that Holm is anything but in decline.

It seems Balfe’s real genius lies not just in the kitchen, but in his ability to recruit a team which can expertly run the dining room – even on a packed night, with a critic in the house who did not keep quiet about the film in the soup – while he dined among the guests, cool as you like. We were particularly impressed by Elner, whose sharp palate and deft navigation through Balfe’s bold, often surprising combinations of humble ingredients added significant interest to the evening, raising it to a level which makes Holm a destination.