* This is a collaborative post with Kettler GB

On a sunny, but chilly April day I attended the launch of the 4K Outdoor Oven from Everdure by Heston Blumenthal, which has been 4000 years in the making. It only seemed right for it to be put to the test, and for me to sample the food cooked on the latest addition to his hi-tech range - well, it would have been rude not to!

Although all future barbecues will have a lot to live up to from now on, the food, as you’d expect was a little out of the ordinary. By looking at it you’d think it was produced in a usual kitchen, but it wasn’t.

PASTRAMI ON MARMITE EGGY BREAD WITH CHIP STICKS

I was glad that MOH wasn’t with me, while he would have found it as fascinating and informative as me, I’ve a feeling that it would have got quite expensive pretty quickly as there was an impressive range of barbecues on show, and something for everyone I’m sure.

What was refreshing to see was that there wasn’t any “charcoal snobbery” from the Kettler GB team. They recognised that charcoal doesn’t work for everyone, and while they think it tastes better they acknowledge that the convenience of gas for many has its advantages.

I think they’re right, there’s nothing quite like the charcoal taste, but waiting for a charcoal barbecue to heat up after a day at work is likely to mean that we wouldn’t cook outside quite so much during the week when the weather is warm. I’m impatient enough anyway, but don’t make me wait for food!

But that’s about to be challenged, as you can see from the image below the charcoal is ready to cook in 10 minutes, which kind of changes things

And if you’re wondering about why it’s 4000 years in the making, it’s been inspired by the 4000 year tradition of Kamado-style and man-made ceramic clay cooking, which merges the taste of charcoal with 21st century technology.

Accessories and portable/table top barbecues too

The 4K doesn’t look like you’d expect it to look either, I suspect that’s why it’s called an outdoor oven. As well as the fast flame charcoal ignition there’s probes which control meat and air temperatures, it’s exterior is cool-to touch and it even has Bluetooth connectivity.

I know. I told you it had 21st century technology. It also cooks food!

It looks versatile too, whether you want to grill a steak, roast a turkey (don’t laugh - that almost happened to us on our first Christmas in this house, when the oven played up on Christmas Day!), smoke meat or bake a pizza the 4K will tell you how to cook it and prepare it, advising on temperature control, charcoal management and even the recipes. I’m pretty sure it’ll do a mean banger too.

And in case you were in any doubt, the food was excellent and didn’t hang around for long. There was also scallops, which I avoided, and there was also a baked Alaska on a stick, which I did everything but avoid. Only Heston would even contemplate ice cream on a barbecue, and it isn’t something that we’ll be trying at home, however tasty it was.

And I couldn’t end this post without sharing a photo with Heston himself, could I?

He was a really nice man and while it was only a short chat, we did have a chat about his journey to Canary Wharf and of course, about the Everdure range. I left the event knowing much more about barbecues, enjoying some great food and pleased that Heston didn’t shatter my illusions of his TV self.

* Thanks to Kettler GB for the invitation to the event and their hospitality.

Last Sunday we had a busy day in the garden, but I was determined that for once - and on what was the warmest day of the year - that we'd also find time to just be, and sit in our garden and enjoy it. Sometimes it's just too hot for working in the garden isn't it? So after spending a fair bit of time cleaning the greenhouse so it sparkled and cleaning the barbecue so it was clean enough, well to cook off, we did just that.

And I had a masterplan up my sleeveless top. That was to use two of my recent blog deliveries, as in preparation I'd already bought some ice. That's not something I usually do, but when you need large quantities it's the easiest way, although in hindsight I didn't buy anywhere near as much as I needed to fill my new Wham Flexi-Square carry all. But with three bags of ice and, although I say it myself, some clever use of bubble wrap it worked - note to self, I'll need a lot more ice, or a lot more bottles(!) to make this work - but it'll be ideal for a party. In fact just like the party we're having in June to celebrate our 110th.

prosecco by premier estate wines on ice in my new flexi-square trug

I'm a big fan of these plastic trugs and regularly use them for gardening, we currently have four at home - bright pink, boring green, zingy red and vibrant yellow - plus another bright pink one on the allotment, but I didn't fancy using any of these for this.

Those are all round, this one's obviously square and a great lime green colour; so much more subtle than any I already had. It's the larger size, which has a capacity of 25L - so it'll take a lot of ice and more importantly store a party amount of bottles too.

The ice bucket cum flexi-square trug is a good size

The best things about barbecues are that I don't have to do anything. Actually, scratch that. For barbecues in our house I become the Sous Chef, prepping everything in advance and handing over to the Chef de Partie (MOH) for the manly barbecue cooking ritual. Which is actually fine, as it means I can sit and direct operations. And with a view like this, that's often a good thing.

A barbecue with prosecco on ice is a great way to end the warmest day of the year (so far)

sitting back and admiring the hard day's work in the garden while MOH tends the BBQ

On this occasion I made use of my "free" time to take a closer look at the Premier Estates Prosecco which I'd been sent to try. I know, sometimes it's a tough gig, hey? I wasn't sure about why, or if, a small 20cl bottle would be a good idea, but actually it turned out well as I made a couple of apertifs to whet our appetite, and it was just the right amount.

Trying the 20cl bottle of prosecco from premier estates wine

I added a splash of elderflower liqueur to the bottom of the glass along with some frozen raspberries which we'd grown on the allotment last year and topped the glasses up with the small bottle of prosecco. I wasn't expecting it to be a screw top (that's just the smaller bottle) and that makes it more useable, but not that I needed to put the top back on...

Enjoying an aperitif - prosecco from premier estates wine, elderflower liqueur and frozen raspberries grown on our allotment

Meanwhile, the manly cooking was going quicker than expected - I think he needs a bit more practice, but to be fair it's early in the barbecue season isn't it?

the barbecue's well underway - the first of the year

With dinner cooked it was time to open the rosè. If I get a choice of normal or pink champagne I'd opt for the pin everytime so I was looking forward to this. And with MOH back in his sommelier role, all was good. I bet you want to know what it tastes like, don't you? Well, it was good and very drinkable. The alcoholic volume was low at 11%, but more importantly it was a dry prosecco and so not too sweet. I think this is why it's so drinkable. And at £7.99 a bottle it's reasonably priced and I'd consider buying for a celebration. Actually it'd be great for those sunny afternoons in the garden, when the celebration is that it's sunny. You have those too right?