iPhone App Pairs International Wine with Chinese Cuisine
Simon Tam brings his food-and-wine pairing philosophy to the iPhone.
Simon Tam‘s take on food-and-wine pairing is truly one of a kind. Rather than simply basing his selections on scientific measures such as sweetness and acidity, the seasoned critic instead employs a holistic approach – accounting, not just for taste, but also mood, expectations and seasonality.
Using these techniques, Tam has managed to group together a plethora of Chinese dishes and international wines into four distinct categories or “flavours,” as he puts it; with each flavour named after and represented by a colour – blonde, tan, brown or ivory.
As of last week, Tam’s recommendations were made available to the public in the form of an iPhone and iPad application named “Flavour Colours.”
WineBuzz sat down with the expert to find out more about his philosophy and the rationale behind the app.
WineBuzz: What was the inspiration for Flavour Colours?
Simon Tam: I simply wanted to bring the delicious West to the thirsty East. The West knows a lot about wine but it knows nothing about the culture here, particularly with regards to how we eat and drink.
The iPhone app is an educational tool designed to bridge that gap.
WineBuzz: How does it differ from other iPhone food-and-wine pairing apps?
Simon Tam: Well, we certainly weren’t the first. Looking at Hong Kong alone, Watson’s has an app, and so does the Hong Kong Tourism Board. But whenever you have a cause to fight for, you can’t only have one voice – it doesn’t work. The more people that talk about Chinese food, the more awareness we can help create.
There are no absolute rights and wrongs, just different philosophies. Jeannie Cho Lee‘s book is true to her philosophy; the Tourism Board is true to their philosophy. Flavour Colours, that’s my philosophy.
WineBuzz: Why base your categories around colours as opposed to shapes or symbols?
Simon Tam: Shapes have been overdone. Some experts are experimenting with using curves to plot intensity against time but that’s too clinical. It doesn’t represent our emotions, seasonality and what we mean.
WineBuzz: And why these colours specifically?
Blonde, ivory, tan and brown represent a large part of Chinese food and wine. But remember, it’s not just about the colours themselves. By using colours, I can generate a feeling. Blonde, for example, is a sunny day where we should all be on the beach drinking lime or lemon margaritas.
Blonde wine-and-food pairings examples include pan-fried dumplings which you could enjoy with a Napa Valley White; Shantung chicken which would pair with German Riesling; or Garoupa and sweetcorn which would go great with a Portuguese Rosé.
Flavour Colours is currently available for free from iTunes.
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