Matching wine with Asian food is an art in its infancy

Mar 6 2009 by Helen Savage, The Journal

Simon thinks the most astute local wine-lovers are beginning to discover German Rieslings, especially gently sweet Kabinett wines. But by far the biggest number of imports coming into Hong Kong are from France, followed by Australia and the USA. Restaurateur and gifted chef Lau Chun, 29, suggests that although some restaurants take wine seriously, they are only a tiny minority and mostly cater for Westerners.

“I tend to concentrate on wines with not too much tannin. We have so many spicy and sour flavours and tannic wines don’t work well with them.”

He uncorked a bottle of red Burgundy for us. “You’ll find that it’s a good match with spicy Sichuanese cooking.”

I was surprised how well it stood up to a very spicy dish of chicken and shredded leek.

John Hepple, the Australian manager of Watson’s Wine Cellars, Hong Kong’s biggest chain of specialist wine shops, says the locals “drink wine in a different way to Westerners”.

Most of his customers are under 45. “They really don’t associate food and wine; they drink it regardless of whether it goes with food or not,” he says. Two-thirds of his sales are of red wine. James Rowell, who has been selling wine in Hong Kong since 1992, says his Asian customers prefer red wine with upfront fruit, soft tannin, low acid and a bit of residual sugar. But he was surprisingly reluctant to admit that an Asian palate really exists.

For what it’s worth, my money is with Lau Chun and Simon Tam, but in a week in Hong Kong, I never saw anyone drinking wine in a restaurant.

Tea rules – and will still arrive on the table even if you do order a bottle of wine.

Wine bites

WITH just one week to go to Red Nose Day, the wine trade has come up with a fun way of raising money through Big Nose red and white wine, widely available in supermarkets at £4.99 each (£1 from each bottle sold will be donated to Comic Relief).

The label featuring Damien Hirst’s specially-donated picture of a red nose is easy to spot. Both wines come from South Africa. The white is a zesty, fruity Chenin Blanc and the red a well-judged blend of South Africa’s own Pinotage and Shiraz.

It’s very juicy and soft, with bags of plum, bramble and banana fruit. Spoil yourself – buy both and do a bit of good at the same time.