Dom Pérignon and chef Liam Dillon to host champagne pairing dinner at The Boat in Lichfield

Champagne house Dom Pérignon is partnering with The Boat, a micro-farm and restaurant run by chef Liam Dillon in Lichfield, Staffordshire, to host a one-night-only tasting dinner on Wednesday 23^rd July. The event will feature a multi-course menu paired with four Dom Pérignon vintages, offering guests an opportunity to explore food and champagne pairings in a curated setting.

The dinner will begin at 6pm, with tickets priced at £300 per person to include a full tasting menu alongside champagne pairings. Dom Pérignon representatives Sarah Randall (senior brand manager) and Oliver Smith (private client director at Moët Hennessy UK) will lead the evening, guiding guests through the tasting experience and sharing insights into each champagne vintage and its pairing rationale.

The tasting will start on the terrace with Dom Pérignon Vintage 2012 Magnum, served alongside canapés such as aged beef tartare croustade, cod roe pillow, Packington fried chicken thigh with Sturia caviar and a beer-soaked spelt loaf with chicken butter, liver parfait and garden pickles. This will be followed by Vintage 2015, described as having a complex aromatic profile with roasted and cocoa notes, paired with a dressed Porthilly oyster, garden vegetables and horseradish.

Main courses will include fillet of Gigha halibut with St Austell mussel and stuffed courgette flower, and roast poussin chicken with braised and stuffed leg, sweetcorn and chicken sauce. These will be accompanied by Vintage 2004, Plénitude 2, with cocoa, mocha and honey characteristics.

Desserts will be paired with Rosé Vintage 2009, which features aromas of rose, saffron and cassis. The sweet course includes a Lichfield raspberry, black cardamom and sweet cicely dish, followed by an Amalfi lemon parfait with cucumber and honey from The Boat’s own hives.

The restaurant focuses on sustainability, with an on-site micro-farm that supports year-round vegetable production, livestock and beekeeping. Chef Liam Dillon has trained in several acclaimed kitchens, including Noma in Copenhagen and Eleven Madison Park in New York, and has returned to his hometown to lead The Boat, which is lauded in the Michelin Guide and the Estrella Damm Top Gastropubs list.

Food Desk

The Dom Pérignon champagne pairing dinner takes place at The Boat, Walsall Rd, Summerhill, Muckley Corner, Lichfield WS14 0BU, on 23^rd July 2025. For further information or to book tickets, visit the restaurant’s website here.