Two offerings from the legendary Loire Valley vigneron Henri Bourgeois: 2007 Pouilly-Fume and Sancerre Les Baronnes.
This is about as classic as food and wine pairings gets; blatantly simply nonetheless, as any professional chef will tell you, the most satisfying gastronomic pleasures are an invariably a combination of the very best seasonal fresh produce and minimal cooking technique. Ironically, such purity and wholesomeness is frustratingly illusive.
Australia and New Zealand both produce first class pinot noir but Curtis Marsh is swayed by a Wellington street party in its honor.
Having recently listed the merits of pinot noir from Victoria, Australia’s stronghold of the variety, it would be remiss not to address the antipodean challenger of New World pinot greatness, New Zealand.
Despite mutual British ancestry and a Commonwealth bond, the two countries are culturally disassociated and intense rivals. To quote the late New Zealand prime minister David Lange “The best thing between New Zealand and Australia is the Tasman Sea.”
Curtis Marsh featured as “Personality of the Week” on Life & Style Magazine.
Curtis Marsh is one of the most assiduous and erudite, truly independent wine writers, commentators and presenters in Asia. With nearly 30 years experience in the hospitality, wine and media industries, he has travelled extensively throughout the vineyard regions of the world and the Asia region, with food, travel and culture featuring equally in his commentary.
There was a time and not that long ago; Singaporeans ate nothing but firm, meaty and flavoursome Kampung chicken. That is the French breed of chicken acquiring the name Kampung, with its orange feathers and black head, commonplace roaming around Malay villages – a true free-range, happy chook.
The Kampung chicken is still around although highly unlikely to be free-range in the Singapore supply chain and presumably a cellmate with the more common battery-reared white feathered hen.
Taste testing the best 2003 Bordeaux at Vinexpo had its pain and its pleasures… Curtis Marsh confesses all.
I recently spent three grueling days tasting at the world’s largest and most significant wine show, Vinexpo, with leading vintners from all over the globe massed at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Vinexpo has been held bi- annually in Bordeaux since 1981, with overseas exhibitions in the Asia-Pacific region organized in alternate years.
Back on the chardonnay crusade however, a diversion from the new world to the old world, and to a region that many wine enthusiasts believe is the purest, most pristine expression of the chardonnay grape and par example of terroir – Chablis.
Indeed, it almost impossible to mistake Chablis as anything else, such is the redolence of the soil in the wine; an infusion of minerals and chalkiness drawn through vines roots reaching deep into an ancient limestone seabed, and imparting an unmistakable sense of place.
At the other end of the discounted and oversupplied wine market are undiscovered bargains made from old vines.
Having written on the subject of inexpensive wines in this column recently, I highlighted that price-to-quality rapport will always be subjective. There are many facets and arguments to what determines good value, although for most consumers discounts strongly influence the sense of a bargain.
Vine cuttings can be matched to various soils and regional characteristics of other countries, enhancing the complexity and finish of a wine.
With practically every significant pinot noir producer in New Zealand available in Hong Kong, my advice is to be adventurous in your selection, as you will not come across a bad wine, with quality high across the board. Rather, it is a question of budget or regional style and above all, what appeals to your taste.
Choosing the best out of Bordeaux from 2003.
Continuing with my 2003 Bordeaux inquisition the following days tasting held by the Union de Grands Crus de Bordeaux here at Vinexpo was a more comprehensive representation of the Bordeaux communes with an impressive turnout from the northern Medoc appellation St- Julien.
Rose champagne is enjoying high demand and not just because of Valentine’s Day.
Rose Champagne, or Pink Champagne as it is more commonly known, if not a little mincing, has become increasingly vogue over the last few years. Indications are that its popularity is becoming more entrenched and it is easy to see why, with an appealing bouquet of fresh strawberries, added dimensions of flavor and complexity and more allure than normal (white) Champagne.
