Percebes & Blanco

Tags

barnacles, fresh direct, percebes, quince eatery & bar, wine garage

Extreme Galician seafood with glass Atlantic white

The extreme weather along the Atlantic coast almost cancelled this event, but thanks to Fresh Direct a first barnacle tasting in Bangkok was made possible.

Saline and juicy, this creature from the rock is really unique. After a quick boil, it can be devoured by itself or dipped in roasted garlic aioli as Quince’s Chef Blair suggested.

aka goose barnacles

Pairing regional food with a local wine makes sense, and the Albarino, despite being richer than normal, added the extra flair. Balanced, well rounded, with lemony aromas and good fruit, this made for a fun experience.

Paza de Barrantes

Guests at each table immersed themselves to try stay clean from squirting juice. Delicious.

Delicate eating

 

Gabriel Glass from Austria

Tags

machine wash, rene gabriel wine glass, universal wine glass, wine glass

The Rene Gabriel wine glass

A good wine glass will certainly improve your wine experience, whether from Spiegelau, Schott Zwiesel, Riedel or the ultimate Zalto (also from Austria).

I have always preferred to drink sparkling wine, especially grower Champagne from a large glass, where the intense aromas have space to develop. However, since we came across the Gabriel Universal glass, this just seems to be the right one for every kind of wine, while keeping your wallet in check.

Nice design, nice thin rim, light and machine washable.

Stickies & Cheese

Tags

heaven on cheese, quince eatery & bar, reinhard matheis, wine garage

Pairing of Thai made cheese with sweet wines

Who said good cheese must come from old Europe? There are some great cheese makers in the Yarra Valley, Australia, some nice ones in California, US and now…Thailand?

Reinhard Matheis left the commercial food industry to set up this artisan operation near Nakhorn Sawan, about 3 hours north of Bangkok. The milk he buys from a nearby coop which isnt certified organic, but surely free of additives. He uses French molds and cultures to create these creamy cheese. Each batch can taste slightly differently depending on what the cows have eaten.

The Thai-made Reblochon, Munster, Camembert and Brie are all good, despite being quite creamy. Well worth searching out at Heaven on Cheese.

Below you will find the sweet wine pairing which completed the strong cheeses nicely.

Strong and creamy cheese need sweet wines!

 

Bubbles & Bivalves

Tags

bill marinelli, blair mathieson, quince eatery & bar; the oyster bar, wine garage

 

One Puget sound oyster and 5 dippings

Bill Marinelli talked about sustainable seafood and explained how memoirs (similar to terroirs for wine) makes oysters taste different from one another. It is in fact quite simple, and ultimately the water quality surrounding the oyster bed decides the outcome.

Blair of Quince Eatery and Bar added some variety to the Barron Point oyster by topping them with cucumber granita, lemon black pepper or our favorite spiced tomato jelly.

All 5 samples tasted unique and refreshing, while pairing very well with a prosecco, cremant, US method champenoise, Check out the menu here

Great oyster and sparkling wine pairing

 

Camille Saves Millesime 2004

Tags

bouzy, camille saves, grower champagne, wine garage

Grower Champagne

The Saves are one of the few top growers in the famed Grand Cru village of Bouzy. All their cuvees are made from grapes grown in the Montagne de Reims and are worth searching out, as they represent a relative value.

Always a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the 2004 vintage was at 9 years still too young to fully enjoy. Tight, focused, but not giving much on the nose, this Champagne has class and depth and can be enjoyed over the next 5-7 years.

3.5 out of 5 stars, possibly more when mature.

 

Booza Wooza Workshop

Tags

all about wine, globaal vineyards, hopsession, its riesling, siam winery, wine 5, wine garage

Fairground for the wine-minded

6 high octane tastings

Participating wine & beer importers led a fast paced tasting session to sold out workshops. Shows the need for more wine gatherings in Bangkok.

 

 

Booza Wooza Bangkok

Tags

accidental butcher, Bangkok, cabochon, global vineyards, heaven on cheese, hopsession, its riesling, pasta pasta, quince eatery & bar, siam winery, Wine, wine 5, wine garage

Fairground for the wine-minded

Booza Wooza was created to bring the enjoyment of wine to a fun level. Gather passionate wine importers and restaurateurs together in a nice location such as Quince Eatery & Bar, and you have a good crowd relaxing to live music. Repeat again soon!

 

Hotel Jules & Jim, Paris

Tags

boutique, Hotel paris, jules & jim, Jules & Jim Paris, marais

Paris hide away

Full disclosure! This is a hotel in Marais which is run by my brother-in-law. After leaving the business and a lovely Chateau hotel behind in Normandy, he now emerged with a stylish enclave in the outskirts of the Marais.

Friendly staff, nicely designed, with an amazing courtyard and bar. Just right for a short stop over in Paris.

11 Rue des Gravilliers, 75003 Paris

Tel:+33 1 44 54 13 13

Musashino Beer, Japan

Tags

japanese beer, London, musashino, wild honey

Japan artisan brew

Japanese food is great, Japanese products are perfect, Japanese beer…I am not quite sure. While it tastes pure and balanced, there was something lacking in Musashino’s artisan beer.

At a premium price, a beer like this should have more depth and layered flavor.

3.5 out of 5

Nyetimber Sparkling Classic Cuvee, England

Tags

english sparkling, nyetimber, sussex, wine garage

Classic Cuvee

A welcome to a British home, aka hotel, is perfected by a bottle of English Sparkling wine…I wished the same for Thailand one day.

Nytimber must be the most famous name around, even though there must be more than 20 good sparklers now from Sussex.

Tastes like a Champagne, well made, just lacking a bit of persistence. Brut, quite dry and with good acidity.

3.5 out of 5 stars