One Convivial Dinner at Vin Plus Arcadia

Dimmed light, lines of wine bottles, used corks and oldhouse bricks welcomes me with its warmth. Soon after a few fellow food aficionados came in time: Jenz from Jenzcorner, Dino from Good Food Good Life, Imel Budiman and Erza ST. I had a hunch then and there that it would be a great evening. And all the signs along the way lead me to that very conclusion. 

The first of them is the appearance of Ashbrook Estate Semillon 2011. I've always been a huge fan of white wine, and this particular wine came out with a fresh fruity aroma that tickled my appetite, followed with a sweet palate and a rather crisp end. What makes it even better is the pairing that comes together with it. This Crab Salad is one of a kind. The play of texture with the carrot jelly, crab meat, and salmon egg is a feast in the mouth.

Crab Salad with Carrot Jelly & Salmon Egg

Following it is for me personally the opening climax. A very well cooked and presented foie gras in two ways. Munching the pan seared and the terrine in turns was such a pleasure, cause I had the best of both world. And I'm speaking as someone who don't usually attracted to foie gras. I would come back for this and the Madonna Riesling Kabinett that befriended it. 

Pan Seared Foie Gras & Foie Gras Terrine with Lemon Coulis & Date

Halfway through the dinner, as we were expecting the most awaited Pork Belly, time flies by with half-tipsy conversations. Erza was shocked finding out that I worked in heavy equipment and I can even drove Excavator and Bulldozers. Jen was happily bullied on R-Rated jokes. And many others that I couldn't recall as my brain slowed down that hour. I can only remember the laughs and noises. 

Two toilet visits after, here it comes.

I have to say, this 140 gram, 6-hour slow cooked pork is worth to try. Crispy outer skin, and almost-melt-in-your-mouth lower layers. Fat has never been this deliciously sinful. The only setback was that some find it skewed to a sweet end, while my sweet tooth find its okay. That being said, you know what to expect. 

Crispy Roasted Pork Belly with Baby Spinach & Honey Marmalade Sauce

Coco Jala

At this point of the evening, I had almost lost it to alcohol. My head felt so light and heavy at the same time. But I kept my neck straight and mouth opens for a palate cleansing dessert. Coco Jala. Coconut jelly made from pure coconut water, peeled coconut meat, and topped with vanilla ice cream. It was a B+. I had an A- somewhere, but I'm having a hard time remembering it. 

All sober and clean now. I can sum up the night as I titled it. What a great way to spend my first time ever at Vin Plus. Honored to be invited with the pleasure of your company. I'm looking forward for more in the future. 

In the mean time, if you're up for some dose of my non-food articles you can pop out at Captain Ruby Its my new sandbox. My playing field. I can't promise I'll be sober though. 

Cheers, 

Fellexandro Ruby 

Food Conversationalist & Photographer 

Munch on my #Livebites tweets @Wanderbites

Wine Me. Wine Me Not. (Pairing With Food)

The common and simplest rule-of-thumb is red wine to complement red meat, and white wine to complement white meat. However, as to which red wine to choose for a particular red meat, and which whites to fit a particular chicken or fish menu, that would be up to you. Yes, YOU! Why? The answer is best explained by Chef Will Meyrick & Dean:

"Everybody has their own palette, its about finding one that suits yours."

After all the recommendations by friends, or even your favorite Sommelier, in the ends its your tongue that decides, not anybody else. Of course, there's guidelines, and Sommelier knows it best, however, after trying several wines from Champagne, to German's Riesling Kabinett, to French Viognier in one streak, Chef Meyrick has got his point delivered. And that is everyone's wine experience is personal. From those selections of wine, I like the Riesling Kabinett the most while my friend like the Viognier, the rest might find Champagne most acceptable for their palette.

Same thing when it comes to Asian food. Chef Meyrick had us tried his Roasted Duck and San Choi Boi along with different types of wine. And over the years, he has concluded that when it comes to asian food, there's no such thing as red meat red wine, white meat white wine. With its spicy characteristic, wine as it come close as drinks to augment your palette, what you look for is something that suits you. Dean even stated that its almost like drinking es-teh-manis, he like it and it complements most asian food as our asian tongue usually crave for sweeter cuisine and that explains why I preferred the Riesling Kabinett which was sweeter than the rest of the wines that night.

All in all, when it comes to pairing food and wine, its about opening up your options and giving it a try with different ones. As for my conclusion, I've found that right, and I think once I find that one wine that fits me best, I'll still enjoy it even with various kind of food. Don't you think so? Its like "apapun makanannya, minumnya .... "

One final toast with my favorite Riesling Kabinett,

Fellexandro Ruby
Snack on my tweets @captainruby

Wine Me. Wine Me Not. (Tasting Wine)

Put this in mind before we start, tasting should never be frightening even for starters like me or you. I'll let you know why as we go through, in the mean time relax, enjoy this light reading, and just like chasing girls where one should never be intimidated by her beauty, as it is on wine, you should never be intimidated by its elegance. Appreciate it instead (now that's a hint for singles out there =p) and have fun with it (or her =p).

Alrighty, let's waste no time. Wine tasting is as straightforward as 123 as tried and tested in JCF Roundtable Session and another one-on-one session with Fredy.

One - Observe
Hold your glass and tilt it forward, but don't spill it. It wouldn't be cool if you spill it while having dinner with the beautiful girl. =p If it helps, put a white napkin underneath, and watch the color under the light. Not just see but also observe, compare and contrast the color. If its red, is it closer to purplish grape, red ruby =p, or maroon maybe? Also find hints such as sediments which will indicate the older wines.

Two - Smell
Take up your glass real close to your nose, don't hesitate, dip your nose in, and take a looooong deep sniff. Savor every inch and second of it. Now what you smell is what we call aroma or bouquet. These two terms usually used interchangeably, not for the advanced wine taster though. O well, forget them for a while, lets go back to sniffing. Now right behind our eyes, close to our nose, there lies this amazing sensory called olfactory bulb. It's actually part of the brain, and responsible for transmitting the scent we smell to brain. Here comes the tricky part, since it connects to our brain, it can only tells us the scents that we have smelled before and stored up in our scents-database.

This explains why if you youtubed videos of wine tastings, two people tasting the same wine can have a different hint of smell. One might say it has a hint of peach, the other says apricot just because its the closest fruit smell he can detect in his database. I remember, in one of the session, one of the participants said she smelled 'rubber' ! However, there's no right or wrong in tasting. This what makes wine experience is personal. You and I can have a sip of the same bottle and enjoy it differently. Its totally okay.

Three - Taste
Finally, after all that hustle, you get to drink it. Halleluya!  Take that sip you've been waiting for and let it wander around your mouth a while, let your taste buds savor it before swallowing it. Now swirl your glass of wine for a while, sniff it again, you'll reckon different smell as the wine meets oxygen and take out the subtle scents. And drink it again. When it come to taste, as listed by Sommelier Suyanto, there are several guidelines to describe the subtleties of wine: sweetness, acidity, tannin, body, flavors. However, that's a whole 'notha level. I don't think I have the capacity (yet) to share, but I will, if any of you kind readers be so kind to fund me for a wine study abroad. (notice I said 'kind' twice, yes, you deserve that).

Wow, its been three post already. I hope I don't bore you and help you shed some light on wine. Up on the next post is matching food and wine. Come back for some more if you share the same passion for wine. And feel free to share with your friends by clicking on the Tweet button below. =)

Until our next toast,
 
Fellexandro Ruby
Food Photographer
Snack on my tweets @captainruby
Email me at fellexandro.ruby@gmail.com

Wine Me. Wine Me Not. (The Glass)

Amazing line up at the Jakarta Culinary Festival was it? The four of them has refined my basics about wine and also allow me to conclude my own perspective which I'll share at the end. Let's waste no time.

Glass
The proper use of glasses influence your wine experience. The simplest rule of thumb is that the wider glass complements red wine while the tall-slim glasses complements the white wine. Why? Cause the wide glass allows the red wine to 'breathe' and allows the natural aroma to blossom up. So the next time you see people swirling their glass of wine, you know they aren't just playing around, they're helping the 'aeration' to release their divine smell. On the other hand, the white wine, well known to be best served cold, need to maintain their temperature with the slim and tall design.

Holding The Glass
You most probably see people holding the glass with all fingers and the palm touching the bowl of the glass. Bad news! Those images we see on Hollywood movies are misleading. --" You know you did that. Its okay, Me too. =P The best and correct way to hold a glass of wine is by the stem of the glass (see how Fredy holds it here). Why? Serving temperature is important for wines, when our hands touch the surface it will warm the wine and therefore change the taste. In general, wines are better served at a certain cool temperature (8-10 C for Whites and 15C for Reds).

Alrighty, see I've just saved you and myself the next time we have a VIP event that only serve wine, we'll surely know how to at least 'appear' knowledgeable about wine. =P More serious stuff coming. I hope you have one or two good glass until then.

Cheers with a Sauvignon Blanc
Rubs
Snack on my tweets @captainruby

Wine Me. Wine Me Not. (JCF Chef Roundtable Session)

Wine. For most people this particular beverage sounded foreign, hard to comprehend, and expensive. Me too at the start of my wine adventure! So, friends, you're not alone. However as destiny took me to the new world of wine in Australia, and further to the capital of wine - France, I finally came across my revelation at the previous Jakarta Culinary Festival. I had a chance to sit on the wine appreciation sessions (yes! thats plural, i took three session in a day =p) at the Chef Roundtable with four of the best in their field. What strike my interest was how each and every one of them has their own take and their own enjoyment to wine. I'll lay them out here in several sequential post in hope of bringing out that bright-yellow-eureka-lamp above your head at the end of each post.

Senior Master Sommelier at Four Seasons Hotel - Suyanto
Sommelier is what they call the wine specialist in a restaurant who's responsible for educating the staff about wine and assisting customers with wine selections. In his presentation, he's truly no doubt has a broad and in-depth knowledge about wine - from the winemaking process to tasting the wine. His take on wine is very technical as is required from a sommelier. Kudos. However, I'll be good to you peeps, I'll save the complicated stuff for another time.

Sales and Brand Manager of exclusive glassware & tableware brand such as Royal Doulton, Schott Zweisel and many more - Fredy
He's got a very outgoing touch in explaining wine. With his vast knowledge he tried his best to communicate it in plain language for us wine-rookies. I learned the most from him. I came back the next day to sit on a personal session with him, which I couldn't be more thankful for his humbleness in giving his time and sharing about wine.

Sarong Masterchef - Will Meyrick & The Supercool Guy - Dean
I seriously don't know about the last guy, but this hilarious dude deserve to be the supercool guy, as he and Will Meyrick changed my perspective about wine and asian food. They are the perfect couple that summed up my whole point-of-view toward wine and its world of wonder.

Enough introduction. I hope you're getting as intrigued as I was when I decided to sat on that same chair for three straight session.  Hmm, I hope you are. And as I was at that time wondering "wine me, or wine me not",  these four experts slowly shine me with revelations, I'll slowly uncover in points the light-bulb-moment that I got from them. So bear with me to the next post will ya?

Cheers with a Vouvray,
Rubs