In the middle of the asparagus season, WINELIFE visits Noord-Brabant, the province that together with Limburg is known for asparagus cultivation. Journalist Katja Brokke meets the inspired grower Gilbert Sweep, flamboyant catering entrepreneur Roland Peijnenburg, SVH Meesterkok Léon Ribbens, top sommelier Adriaan Visser and patron-cuisinier Niek van Lieverloo, owner of the best asparagus restaurant of 2019. Text Katja Brokke.
Tears roll down his cheeks. His hand holds his friend's. 'Gee, how nice that you're here,' Gilbert Sweep says in an unsteady voice. His friend recently lost his wife and this is the first time they have seen each other again. That friend has also been Gilbert's customer for 30 years, who owns wine and asparagus farm De Santspuy just outside Etten-Leur with his wife Loes. How he deals with his customers is typical of Gilbert. He always has time for a chat, especially now that a fall from a pallet has left him tied to his father's mobility scooter.
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