Posted in Wine Fairs on October 30, 2009| 1 Comment »
Wine Festival is a good way to explore wines you will seldom buy and be a bit adventurous in tasting wines from different parts of the world.
The Wine Festival at Cyberport ran for 3 days from Oct 25th. There were around 20+ companies showcasing their wines. (more…)
Posted in Restaurants, tagged Caprice, Four Seasons Hotel, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Restaurants on October 26, 2009| Leave a Comment »
A wine lover’s passion for the good life – today is a good expression of what that meant.
It was all by impulse, I have a gift certificate for the Four Season Spa for a long time, and it is about to expire. So I booked a 2 hour body treatment for today, a good escape for a day off from work.
Posted in Bordeaux, French Red, tagged Bordeaux, Château Gruaud-Larose, red wine, Saint Julien, wine on October 25, 2009| Leave a Comment »
My husband loves cooking and we would always try food wine matching on the weekends. One of our close friends, who enjoyed my husband’s cooking, suggested one day that he will bring along a bottle of 1990 Chateau Gruaud Larose if my husband will prepare the dish to match the wine. The wine was retail at HK$ 1,200, so not a difficult decision to make! (more…)
Posted in Wine Makers, Wine Tour, tagged Napa Valley, Robert Mondavi on October 21, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Robert Mondavi, a legend in Napa Valley. There was no doubt that he put Napa Valley on the wine map and shocked the wine world in the famous 1976 Paris Tastings. In my opinion, in some ways, made wine more approachable to ordinary people like us.
My husband and I took a vacation in the west coast of US last summer. It was July 2008 and we stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco. There was a copy of Wine Spectator in the room; on the cover was Robert Mondavi, who had just passed away in May. (more…)
Posted in Bordeaux, French Red, tagged pichon lalande, reserve de la comtesse, stinky tofu, wine on October 19, 2009| 2 Comments »
Source: http://www.charleskaufman.com / Artist: Charles Kaufman
These days, it seems like the topic of WINE will easily break the ice in gatherings. For me, the company is more important than the wine itself. Sharing a few bottles with friends is a perfect way to spend an evening.
After the completion of the first Wine Appreciation Course, the instructor arranged a dinner as a graduation dinner in celebration of completing the course. About twenty people joined, and from that day onwards, we had continued to meet on a regular basis for over two years now! (more…)
Posted in Bordeaux, Sweet Wine, tagged D'yquem, Sauternes, wine on October 19, 2009| Leave a Comment »
This is the most expensive Sauternes – the renowned sweet wine region in France – and I had the honor to taste a bottle with my friends some time ago. A half bottle costs over HK$1,000. So is it worth it?
When I was taking the Wine Assessment program in Open University three years ago, the Advanced Course was quite tough and I took a day off from work to prepare for the final exam. I was very frustrated as I kept forgetting what I had studied already. There is only one cure for me to ease off my pressure – I went to Pacific Place and shopped. (more…)
Posted in Bordeaux, French Red, Wine Makers, Wine Tour, tagged barrel tasting, Bordeaux, Clos de Sarpe, St Emilion, wine on October 19, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Have you ever tried barrel tasting? It’s the tasting of wine straight from the oak barrel. It was a wonderful experience, not because of the tasting, but because you feel the passion from the winemaker!
This summer I visited Bordeaux with my husband. Through my work contact, I happened to have the opportunity to visit Chateau Clos De Sarpe, a Grand Cru vineyard in St Emilion. It was a private tour arranged just for me and my husband. The day of the visit was National Day, so I was very lucky that the Chateau owner also the winemaker was in town and hosted the tour. (more…)
Posted in Bordeaux, French White, Italian Red, tagged vertical tasting, wine, Wine appreciation on October 11, 2009| 2 Comments »
I always love wine, and if you ask me how long I’ve been enjoying the fermented grape juice? Well, I had enjoyed it for more than 20 years!
Amongst my friends and the people that I work with, I am quite well known to be a wine lover. So I do get quite a number of invitations to wine-tasting dinner or events.
About 3 years ago, a very good friend of mine asked me to join a Vertical Wine Tasting at his friend’s place. My husband and I, along with 10 people, attended the event. There was a Bordeaux wine, and we tasted probably 5 vintages. Most of the time, people will find it quite hard to stop me talking, but on that night….. I was unusually quiet. They were all sharing their comments on the nose and palate of the wine, but I wasn’t able to smell or taste a single damn thing they described. (more…)
Posted in Bordeaux, French White, Wine Makers, Wine Tour, tagged Blanc de Talbot, Bordeaux, Caillou Blanc de Chateau Talbot, Chateau Pontet-Canet, Chateau Talbot, Château Desmirail, Château Gruaud-Larose on October 11, 2009| Leave a Comment »
This summer, my husband and I spent a week in shopping in Paris and wine tasting in Bordeaux: my kind of vacation!
As a wine lover, it is pure ecstasy just the thought of visiting Bordeaux. Standing at the vineyard, smelling the fresh air with the backdrop of blue sky felt like home. It was so amazing.
We visited a total of 6 vineyards in the 3 days we stayed at Bordeaux. We went with a wine tour organized by the Bordeaux Tourism Board, visiting Château Desmirail, Château Pontet Canet and Château Gruaud-Larose. (more…)
Posted in Italian Red, tagged barolo, Monprivato Barolo 1998, Nebbiolo, Piedmont, red italian, wine on October 3, 2009| Leave a Comment »
In April 2007, I walked into a Wine Appreciation class, and that opened my heart to the world of WINE and started my journey in understanding wine. I was known as the Madam in class. Somehow the instructor and the people that attended the class thought I was a police officer, which is also known as Madam in Hong Kong. I loved the name because it sounded very authoritative!
I always enjoy wine but understanding the old world wine is always difficult. When I walked into a wine shop and stood in front of the France session, there are the different regions – Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone and so on. And then there are various towns within the region, but I still couldn’t figure out the grape varieties or if the price tag is reasonable. And then there is Italy, Spain… forget it! (more…)
Grape Wine Journey 
