WAS over at New World Makati Hotel’s Chinese restaurant, Jasmine, for the hotel’s special wine dinner two weeks ago. The hotel’s new Director of Communications, Nini Icban, had sent an invitation for the wine dinner, which would pair exquisite wine selections from Cullen Wines of Margaret River, Western Australia, with the Cantonese dishes prepared by Jasmine’s Chef Wong Kam On and his crew of expert chefs. I was curious about how Australian wine would go with Chinese food because, normally, Chinese food is taken with Chinese tea, and that’s it. Nowadays, Chinese food has, by force of habit, also been enjoyed with fresh fruit juices and sodas. But wine? Hmmm…
So, besides the fact that Nini’s a good friend and that I haven’t visited New World for a while now, curiosity about how Chinese food would go with Australian wine convinced me to say yes. So, there we were, wining and dining with other guests at Jasmine that evening, and yes, they were serious about pairing Cullen wines with each course of the Cantonese dinner that we were having.
The first course was Seared Scallops and Wagyu Beef Rolls paired with Cullen Margaret River White 2011. The appetizer came in quite a generous portion, with two pieces of Wagyu Beef Rolls surrounded by seared scallops. I usually do not eat red meat, but I ate the Wagyu Beef Rolls, which had the thinly sliced Wagyu beef wrapped in rice paper, dipped in batter, tied with nori strips and deep-fried to a crisp. The batter was golden and crisp and the Wagyu within was tender. As for the seared scallops, I’ve always loved scallops so I emptied my first plate. Since it was a six-course dinner, I went easy on the white wine, which went quite well with the lightness of the first course.
Steamed King Prawn with Garlic and Vermicelli Noodles was served next, paired with Cullen Mangan, Sauvignon Blanc Sumillon 2010, another white wine variant from Cullen Wines of Margaret River. The savory sauce of the prawn made the vermicelli noodles very flavorful, and I could taste the freshness of the prawn as I ate each mouthful with noodles. Then I washed it down with a mouthful of the Mangan wine, swirling it in my mouth and “chewing” on the wine before swallowing it, like I’ve always been told to do by wine connoisseurs. I’ve never become a wine expert after all the seminars that I’ve attended in the course of my duties as editor of FLAVORS Magazine, but I can tell a good wine from a bad one and I know what I like and what I don’t like.
Then came the Deep-fried Fish Fillet with Salted Egg Yolk Batter on Steamed Egg White, served with a bowl of Fried Rice with Diced Chicken and Chinese Sausage. It’s another generous serving of individually portioned dish, with two pieces of fish fillet whose salted egg yolk batter turned out to be a refreshing surprise. I could really taste the salted egg yolk in the batter that it was deep-fried in, and to balance this, the small plate had steamed egg white set on it. The fried rice, too, measured up to standards, but there was just too much of it that I couldn’t finish it. The third course was paired with Collen Mangan, Malbec Petit Verdot Merlot, 2011, a red wine this time.
For the main course, the meat course, Jasmine’s Chef Wong served Beef Short Ribs with Black Pepper Sauce with Steamed Fragrant Rice, paired with Cullen Diana Madeline Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2010. There was no more touching the rice because, fragrant as it was, there was no more room in my tummy for it. I was passing on the beef, as well, but the waiter insisted on serving it, so I took a bite anyway. It was tender , and a lot of flavors were playing in my palate as I took a bite. It was so good that on another day, perhaps, or another occasion, I could easily have forgotten that I do not eat red meat.
Then the first of two desserts was served: Chilled Mango Pudding with a scoop of Calamansi Sorbet on top. The second dessert, Steamed Bun with Milk Cream, came soon after. Both were paired with Cullen Late Harvest Semillon 2012, a sweet wine that really went very well with dessert.
So, you ask me: Does Chinese food go well with Australian wine? The answer is yes. Chef Wong kam On of New World Makati Hotel’s Jasmine Cantonese Restaurant made it possible for diners to enjoy Chinese food with Australian wine. It’s an experiment that went well.
