If you love Bordeaux wine as much as we do, make sure you book yourself for the world’s second Sweet Bordeaux Night on Wednesday, 2 November 2011. The event features 11 different Sweet Bordeaux wines paired with à-la-mode canapés and is being hosted in the garden of Mariners’ Rest at Hullett House.

After a hugely successful first Sweet Bordeaux night held on the Champs Elysée in Paris in September, Hong Kong will be the second global venue to host a Sweet Bordeaux Night. Anticipating a large turnout, organisers have split the night into two sittings – one at 6.30pm and the other at 9pm.

The best way to serve this tasty wine is ice cold in a special rounded glass aptly named the ‘Couple’s Cup’ and is a trend that’s taken off across Europe with fashionistas in the know.

You can purchase your ticket for the Sweet Bordeaux Night at any of Aqua Group’s establishments (see below) for the opportunity to sample unlimited wine and canapés, in addition to taking home the Couple’s Cup. Spaces are limited so book ahead.

How much?

Tickets for 6.30pm to 8.30pm cost HK$250 and for 9pm to 11pm cost HK$220.

How much?

• Date: Wednesday 2 November
• Time: 6.30pm – 8.30pm, and 9pm to 11pm
• Venue: Mariners’ Rest, Hullett House, 2A Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
• Price: Tickets for 6.30pm to 8.30pm cost $250 and for 9pm to 11pm cost $220
• Tickets: From Hullett House at 2A Canton Road Tsim Sha Tsui, at Tivo at 43 Wyndham Street Central and at WasabiSabi at 13F Times Square Causeway Bay.
• Facebook: Join the Sweet Bordeaux Hong Kong Facebook page to keep up to date on the latest Sweet Bordeaux tastings and news in Hong Kong.

As an Oenologist for Conseil Interprofesionnel des Vins d’Alsace (CIVA), Mr. Thierry Fritch has been lecturing in Asia about Alsace wine (France) since 1997.

Based in Alsace himself for most of the year, Mr. Fritch spends two months of the year in Asia and another 3-4 months travelling the world talking about the beauty and elegance of his local wine.

We had a chance to sit down with the connoisseur when he was attending the big Alsace promotional push at a grand dinner at Tsui Hang Village and at the Alsace Wine Fair in Causeway Bay.

Besides handling the promotion in Asia from Japan to China to Singapore and Hong Kong, Mr. Fritsch spends most of his time training with the Alsace wine producers about how to talk about their wines. In turn, he teaches what he learns and, most importantly, brings back information from Asia to Alsace.

One of the funny stories he shared when he first stepped into Hong Kong in 1997. He was holding a seminar on Alsace wine at the old Furama hotel in Central, explaining about the grape varietals, when someone stood up and unapologetically announced to the room that they had no interest in hearing about the wine-making process and to just wanted to know the most expensive and famous wine so they would buy it immediately…with the entire room nodding in agreement.

That gentleman came up afterwards and explained it was a joke, but Mr. Fritsch learned a lot from that seminar fourteen years ago – namely, Hong Kong wine drinkers only wanted red wine and labels as white wine represented lychee wine.

In the almost decade and a half since, Hong Kong wine drinkers have changed so much – he notes that Hong Kong people have learned very quickly and are thirsty about information from Alsace.

Some other points we discussed:

The wine consumers are quite young in Asia, while in France they are much older.

CIVA builds the maturity and the image of Alsace in new markets: their first aim being to find potential, then to start the communication process with wine dinners – when the market is ready then the wine makers will come over to promote directly.

In Mr. Fritsch’s mind, Alsace ranks as number 6 in terms of visibility in the world market:

• Bordeaux
• Champagne
• Burgundy
• Loire Valley
• Rhone
• Alsace
• Provence

75% of Alsace wine sales are in France, with the first 4 markets outside of France are Germany, Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands.

When people think white wine or “Grand Blanc” they think Alsace where 90% of the wine produced is white and only 10% red.

Trends he see’s happening in the next year in Hong Kong include education levels continuing to grow until the Hong Kong market has nearly completely matured.

Three points about Alsace wine to remember: 1. freshness and elegance 2. the majority of whites go well with spicy foods and 3. best news yet, they’re great value for money!

Finally, Mr. Fritsch reminds you that while it’s hot outside would you really prefer a deep red with lots of tannin, or a nice white Riesling?

Visit the CIVA site here for more on Alsace wine.

Sopexa Hong Kong put on its 5th annual Alsace Wine Fair at the Nice Restaurant in Causeway Bay last week that brought out all of Hong Kong’s wine distributors carrying wine from Alsace, France.

The event was such a huge success that it garnered the biggest turn-out yet, showcasing the growing popularity of Alsace wine in Hong Kong.

Some of the companies included Altaya Wines, ASC Fine Wines, Concord Wines, Cottage Vineyards, Links Concept, Summergate Fine Wines and many more. See them in our photo gallery below:

The 28 companies that were pouring showed off a majority of the best Alsace has to offer in Hong Kong and, with the blazing summer sun beaming down, we have to “Alsace” it was the perfect time to taste and buy wine from the region. Especially those looking for quality for money (and who isn’t?)

Learn more about Alsace wine here, and stay tuned for an interview with CIVA’s Oenologist Thierry Fritsch later this week.

Some pairing suggestion for Alsace wine in the video below:

Sopexa Hong Kong put on their annual French Wines Trade Show 2011 earlier this month at The Langham Place hotel that put a spotlight on some new boutique wineries from France looking to break into the Hong Kong and China markets.

Winebuzz.hk was there with our video cameras and we talked to some of the winemakers and export managers from Clos Monicord, Alliance Alsace and Champagne Charpentier to learn more about what their wines are all about and what they think of the local market.

Following up on our previous post about the Alsace Wine Seminar on July 22, (details here) we’d also like to introduce you to an Alsace Wine Dinner that evening with an accompanying Wine Fair open to all this Saturday, July 23.

Alsace Wine Dinner

• July 22nd, 2011
• Time: From 19.00
• Venue: Tsui Hang Village in Central
• Entrance price: HK$650
• Information: Come and experience 6 Chinese courses accompanied by 7 Alsace wines at the famous Tsui Hang Village – a perfect matching between Asian and French gastronomy cultures that you will never forget.
• RSVP: Email us your name and mobile number to reserve a seat.

Alsace Wine Fair

• July 23rd, 2011
• Time: 13.00 – 19.00
• Venue: Nice Restaurant / Causeway Bay
• Entrance price: HK$180
• Information: Set your date on July 23rd for the 7th edition of Alsace Wine Fair – the Alsace importers will gather to present their exceptional Alsace selection available in town and to offer special discounts.
• For each wine purchased, you may get a chance to win more Alsace wines.
• Also take the opportunity to enjoy a glass of wine with the oenologist and famous wine expert from Alsace Wine Board, Mr. Thierry Fritsch, who will travel from France especially to share his rich knowledge of the beautiful Alsace region and wines with the wine lovers.
• RSVP: Email us your name and mobile number to reserve a seat. Chinese details here.

Sylvaner, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Muscat, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Gewurztraminer, Crémant d’Alsace, Vendanges Tardives – all these words awake your senses and make you want to jet off to Eastern France – but on Friday, July 22 you can experience all of this and more at the Novotel Century Hotel in Wan Chai.

If you’re in the wine trade, come and experiment all the freshness and complexity of Alsace wines during a lunchtime food and wine seminar hosted by Thierry Fritsch, Alsatian wine specialist from the Alsace Wine Council (CIVA).

Email us your name and contact phone number to reserve your seat now.

The Paris Tasting of 1976 shocked the world and now Hong Kong is doing the same with a special blind wine tasting of French and Portuguese wines in aid of The Sovereign Art Foundation.

Simon Tam, one of Hong Kong’s leading wine critics (not to mention iPhone app developer) sat alongside Charles Curtis MW, head of Asia wine sales for Christie’s, Nigel Bruce, publisher of several wine books and member of The Hong Kong Wine Society, Filipe Santos, President of the Wine Society in Macau, Paulo Pong from Altaya Wines and Benoit Allauzen, head sommelier from L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Hong Kong, to view this historic tasting with all ticket proceeds going to the Foundation which is a group supporting programmes in Cambodia and India, using art as therapy and rehabilitation for disadvantaged children.

The judges ranked the wines in the following order:

1. Mouton Rothschild and Lynch Bages
2. La Mission Haut Brion
3. Latour
4. Leoville Barton and Quinta Vale Dona Maria
5. Beychevelle
6. Quinta da Leda
7. Quinta do Noval
8. Pintas
9. Chryseia
10. Batuta
11. Esporao

The public also ranked the wines and were very close to the judges’ results who gave the winning wine an average of 18.33 points. However, the best Portuguese wine which came equal 4th received a very close average of 17.67 points. Even the lowest ranked wine received an average of 16.17 points from each judge, attesting to the quality of all the wines tasted.

The tasting showed that Portuguese red wines can compare favourably to 1st growth French wines. Portuguese wines have fantastic ageing potential and show real depth of flavour and character, with unique grape varieties. Not to mention they are tasty and pair well with different types of Chinese cuisine.

To find out more about the Sovereign Art Foundation, check their website www.SovereignArtFoundation.com.

We attended yesterday’s launch event at La Villa in Tsim Sha Tsui East where the Consul General of France, Arnaud Barthelemy opened Le France GourMay Wine and Food Festival for its 3rd year running in Hong Kong.

In the past, GourMay has honored the wine from a different region of France, and this year, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) will be the focus.

Throughout Le French GourMay, ten renowned restaurants Amber, Aqua, l’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Caprice, French Window, Hutong, Petrus, Spoon, St George and Whisk will join the festival to create one-of-a-kind gastronomic feasts with the theme of Provence.

From 1st May to 31st May 2011, these restaurants will offer a mouth-watering French GourMay menu specifically paired with wines from the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region.

The Consul General, Mr. Arnaud Barthelemy (centre) and other members of the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau.

Besides the 10 restaurants mentioned above, more than 25 other restaurants/bars will also participate in Le French GourMay.

• AQUA Group: Ayuthaiya, La Marmite, The Parlour, Shiro, Stables Grill, Wasabisabi, Yunfu, Aqualuna
• Café Deco Group: Café Deco
• Chez Patrick Group: Chez Patrick, Chez Patrick Deli
• City of dreams Group: Horizons
• Dining Concept Group : BTL Steak, Bouchon
• Epicurean Gourp: Steik world Meats
• HKCEC Group: Congress Restaurant
• Igor’s Group: Café de Paris
• Pressroom Group: The Press Room
• 798 Unit Co Group: Bistro, JAR
• Brass
• Didier
• Chez nous
• Fleur de Sel
• La Villa
• Metro Par

Some of the supporting restaurants

Wine will come from Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur this year

It doesn’t stop there:

• Retail stores throughout Hong Kong – like Park’n shop, International, Fusion, Great, Taste, City’super, Market Place, Oliver’s, Three Sixty stores, as well as Mr. Chatté, Red Dot Dot, Wine World and Voici – will offer special Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur products and wine promotions throughout the month of May.

• 3 specialized workshops will also be organized by AWSEC, Vinvautz and l’Atelier du gout.

• Heather & March will be running a series of Art de Vivre workshops focusing on the French art of living and French cuisine.

For the latest information check out the official site (yes its in English and Chinese too) at http://www.frenchmay.com/events/le-french-gourmay

‘How long should I cellar this wine?’ is one of the most asked questions when one is selecting, buying, cellaring and drinking wine. We found this article from Snooth, written by Gegory Dal Piaz that provides a great guide about cellaring wines from France, their characteristics, how long you should cellar them, and their average price range.

Bordeaux: The world’s most famous wines, based primarily on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Cellar from 3-40 years, US$10-$1000.

White Burgundy: White burgundy is primary a Chardonnay-based wine. Certainly many age-worthy whites are produced, though stylistic changes may make them less durable than in the past. 3-30 years, US$25-$1000.

Red Burgundy: is Pinot Noir and is usually a fickle wine, stubbornly resistant to falling into a rhythm; in particular when any one bottle might be open or closed for business. 3-50 years, US$25-$1000

Wines of Southern Rhone: Mostly Chateauneuf du Pape and Grenache-based. Not only has the style of many wines changed from somewhat rustic, if complex, to super-clean and packed with fruit and alcohol, but prices have sky-rocketed. 3-25 years, US$25-$600.

Beaujolais: has really grown into a respectable region over the past two decades. In the past, the yoke of crappy Beaujolais Nouveau had kept interest here at a minimum but small producers have created some ageworthy Cru Beaujolais masterpieces. 3-20 years, US$12-$50.

Champagne: Champagne is a cellarable wine! In fact, few wines benefit from cellaring as much as Champagne. Most non-vintage blends are rushed to market and improve with a few years in the cellar, gaining depth, complexity and a bit of creaminess. 3-35 years, US$25-$1000.

Read more

Import duties have been abolished and the UK has officially overtaken France as the biggest wine exporter to Hong Kong. This news has surprised a few, but that doesn’t mean Hong Kong has lost its signature taste for fine French wines.

The twist? London is actually a major hub of fine French Wine – and no one would deny Hong Kong’s appetite for Bordeaux. So, despite the fact that the UK is not a major wine-producing region, Hong Kong imports from Britain showed a huge annual increase during the first seven months of 2009:

Imports from Britain showed an annual 146% increase during the first seven months of 2009 to almost US$80 million from Jan-Jul 2009, which was around US 69.5 million for the whole of 2008. UK has increased its share of this wine market from 20% to 33%, while France’s has slipped from over 35% to 31.6% at around US $72 million for the comparable period. The fine, expensive French wines are exported from the UK, explaining the phenomenal increase in dollar value.

Australia, in third place this year, has an 8.7% share totalling US$ 21 million followed by the US, Chile, Switzerland and Italy.

What’s responsible for the steep increase? Abolishing import duties made the fine of course, expensive French wines we love so much coming to Hong Kong duty-free. We call that cause for celebration: let’s make a toast with our favorite Bordeaux – to fatter wallets!