The week in Pictures: Hong Kong

Hong Kong wine and spirits importer Grand Cru Cellar hosted an unconventional whisky dinner in collaboration with Edrington Hong Kong, pairing Macallan and Highland Park whiskies with spicy Sichuan cuisine at Fu Rong restaurant, to create an interesting fire-on-fire combination that commands the full attention of one’s taste bud. The idea behind the pairing, as Ian Wo from Fu Rong said, is to to convey a message of open-mindedness and creativity when matching food and beverages. Pictured above are Ian Wo, wine and spirits writer Ronny Lau, Mando Leung and Franky Leung of Grand Cru Cellar.  

According to Mando Leung of Grand Cru Cellar, whiskies aged in sherry casks are more popular among Chinese drinkers as the cask imparts more fruity notes to the spirit. 

The complete lineup of the whiskies showcased at the dinner were: Highland Park The Light, The Macallan 18 Years Triple Cask, The Macallan 15 Years Triple Cask, The Macallan 12 Years Double Cask, The Macallan Edition No. 4, The Macallan Classic Cut, Highland Park The Dark, and Highland Park 30 Years. 

Trebbiano grown from southern Italy’s Abruzzo is looking to usurp the reigning red king grape, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, with well crafted whites such as the ‘Botte di Gianni’ Trebbiano d’Abruzzo Riserva from Masciarelli Tenute Agricole. With only 900 bottles produced, the white is aged in large and old French oak barrel. The wine is only available in Hong Kong at three Michelin-starred restaurant Otto e Mezzo Bombana. 

A press lunch was hosted to announce the new partnership between Hong Kong’s biggest wine retailer Watson’s Wine and Mascarelli in Abruzzo, as Watson’s took on the distribution in the city late last year. The wines available through Watson’s Wine are ‘Castello di Semivicoli’ Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOC, ‘Gianni Masciarelli’ Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOC, ‘Gianni Masciarelli’ Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC, ‘Marina Cvetic’ Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC Riserva and ‘Villa Gemma’ Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC Riserva. 

Japanese ambassador to Hong Kong and Macau, Kuninori (Matz) Matsuda, gave a speech at the Koshu Expert Committee dinner, where His Excellency talked about the prospects of Japanese wine in Hong Kong. The majority of Japanese wines are produced in Yamanashi Prefecture, with only a meagre portion of the country’s total production exported annually. 

A flight of Japanese Koshu and Muscat Bailey A were showcased at the Koshu Expert Committee dinner including wines from Suntory’s Tomi no Oka, Grace Winery and Chateau Mercian. The styles ranging from light, quaffable whites to lusciously sweet wine prove the range and diversity of Koshu. 

Eight new Koshu Experts were announced at this year’s Koshu Expert Committee dinner after a tasting round and written examination. 

Local importer Northeast Wine & Spirits hosted a tasting of Thailand’s leading family-owned winery GranMonte Vineyard in Hong Kong recently.

Launching the 2016 vintage of Symington Family Estates’ ports, Jorge Nunes, its market manager for Asia and the Pacific, lamented that Port has yet to find its footing in Asia, where the region’s powerhouse market, China, is “still far from where it can be”. The wines released from the 2016 vintage are: Cockburn’s 2016 Vintage Port, Dow’s 2016 Vintage Port, Graham’s 2016 Vintage Port, Quinta de Roriz 2016 Vintage Port, Smith Woodhouse 2016 Vintage Port, Quinta do Vesuvio 2016 Vintage Port, Quinta do Vesuvio Capela 2016 Vintage Port, Warre’s 2016 Vintage Port, and Graham’s The Stone Terraces 2016 Vintage Port.