Austrian wineries tour Singapore

Sunday 16 June marked the end of the Austrian Wine Experience 2013 in Singapore, where 9 Austrian wineries were featured in 19 restaurants and wine-bars across the island, writes Shiying Huang.

The Austrian Wine Experience ran from May 16 to June 17 in Singapore

Now in its third year, the event seeks to promote Austrian wines to consumers in Singapore through masterclasses, wine-dinners and special tasting menus.

One event comprised a Weingut Malat masterclass at Buyan, one of Singapore’s few Russian fine-dining restaurants and caviar bars.

The masterclass featured a vertical tasting of 20 wines from Weingut Malat, showcasing their Das Beste Riesling and Pinot Noir from 2011 to the 1998 vintage.

Max Sokolov of Unique Food and Wine, the importer of Weingut Malat in Singapore, told the drinks business that Austrian wine has seen an increasingly warm reception from Singaporean consumers in recent years.

However, he feels that it still has a long way to go from gaining a substantial presence in wine bars and restaurants.

Nevertheless, Michael Malat, winemaker at Weingut Malat, sees the potential of Austrian wines in Asia, and pointed out that sales in China are slowly picking up, although Japan is Austria’s fastest growing export market in the region.

Michael Malat after the vertical tasting in Singapore
Michael Malat presents his family’s wines at Buyan, one of Singapore’s few Russian fine-dining restaurants and caviar bars.