Updated: 01 November 2005
(These pages are updated early/end each month with
revisions as news breaks - check-in here often)
Sheraton Towers Singapore
26 October 2005
It was an invitation that cannot be turned down. It was an opportunity to taste the culinary creations of 3 of the top Singapore-based Asian Chefs as they attempt to match 3 selected wines from Alsace, France. The First Edition saw Thai cuisine romping home with India close behind. This year, Champion Chef, Khun Chimkit Khamphuang of Patara, makes a return appearance. She matched her skills against Dinesh Rawat of Vansh and venue host Chef, Chung Yiu Ming of the celebrated Li Bai.
The order of presentation of their 3 dishes was by luck of the draw - Thai - Indian - Chinese. They each presented an appetiser dish, a main course and finally, a dessert to match 3 wines that were given to each of them to taste & evaluate. About 150 invited members of the Press, Wine Trade, Food & Beverage professionals and members of the consuming public were invited to judge this year's Challenge.
At the reception, we were served Domaine Paul Buccher's Cremant d'Alsace
Brut Prestige.
It was a perfectly refreshing wine to enjoy after the heat of the day. A small
selection of hor d'oeuvres from venue hosts, Sheraton Towers Singapore, delighted
& tantalised the palate.
A short presentation by representatives of the 3 chefs preceeded the start of the dining Challenge. They elaborated on how they perceived the wines and how their dishes were created to show both to good effect.
The Thai appetiser was "Mild Curry Mousse with Mesclun Salad, Cucumber Shavings and Eshallot, Tamarind Vinaigrette", which unfortunately, seared the lips of many diners by its chilli hotness. If better care was taken to temper the chillies, this dish would have had a better showing being matched with Riesling Comtes d'Eguisheim 2000, Leon Beyer. This wine was dry & austere with typical petrolly nose & slightly gravelly/minerally. A good choice for a starter wine but the Thai chilli simply overwhelmed & distracted from the wine.
Vansh went with
a classic match of sweet shellfish as the main ingredient with Riesling ....
and it worked. The "Smoked succulent minced prawn cooked in tandoor"
lifted both the prawn cakes and added succulent sweetness to the Riesling. On
my table, this was almost unanimously the best overall match.
Li Bai's "Long Jin Tea Smoked Duck with Stewed Live Sea Whelk" needed a wine that is leaner and with more underlying acidity, closer to a Trocken Riesling from Germany or Austria. In this case, the heavy soy-based sauce of the Sea Whelk weighed heavy on the palate. Although the smoked duck was mild & matched effortlessly. Nevertheless, this sumptuous dish, probably also the most expensive, clinched the top appetiser award with the diners.
The
Mains Challenge started with "Golden Fried Herb Marinated Chicken Leg
with Turmeric and Coriander Sauce Egg Nest of Fresh Garden Vegetables".
A very long descriptive dish but was forlornly plain on the plate. The marinade
was nice but the chicken leg looked as if it was fried and oven-heated again
before serving instead of being freshly fried before service. The result was
the meat inside was overdone & quite dried out and there was no crispness
on the outside. A chicken stuffed with richer ingredients (chicken liver mousse
or foie gras) would have done better.The rich & decisively fragrant Les
Grand Crus Tokay Pinot Gris Vorbourg 2002, Dopff et Irion, totally
overwhelmed this dish.
The "Saffron-flavoured Chicken Breasts doused in rich Almond and Orange-base Gravy" was rather better done than the Thai. However, it could not match the richness of the Tokay Pinot Gris at Grand Cru level.
Here,
Li Bai spared no expense and presented a rich blend of "Braised Hairy
Crab Roe and Meat with Li Bai's homemade Beancurd". The affinity of
creamy sweet crab roe & meat with the similarly rich Grand Cru Tokay Pinot
Gris was decadance supreme. Fully endorsed by the majority of diners, thus winning
for Chef Chung Yiu Ming a second endorsement.
Even with the dessert dish, Chef Chung nearly won the honours! He clearly recognised
the light ginger flavour of the Fronholz VT de Gewurtztraminer 2003
Grand Cru, Andre Ostertag, in addition to its many other flavours.
Lacking high acidity, this wine relied on its sumptuous riot of sweet flavour,
among them, sweet ginger, to captivate the drinker. Here, Khun Chimkit Khamphuang
nearly made the grade with a lightly flavoured ginger tea with red dates &
longans. However, she hedged her bets with a poached banana and 3 melon balls.
Offering larger portions of the melons & dropping the bananna would have
earned more points from diners. As such, her "Poached Banana with Palm
Sugar, Caramel Ginger Secented Longan Soup, Trio of Melons" 
failed
to beat the diners' favourite of surprising "Blackberry Kulfi/Faloouda"
from Vansh. Li Bai's "Hasma Egg Tart, 
Glutinous
Ball filled with Mango, Red Bean Paste and Young Ginger Ice Cream"
could have had Chef Chung sweep the awards. However, the heavy-hand on the ginger
ice cream probably turn off many diners. The egg tart & glutinous ball should
simply be dropped.
In a Challenge matching top Chefs in their respective cuisines, I find that there seemed to be budgetary constraints on the Thai & Indian sides. Sheraton Towers Singapore, on the other hand, spared no expense and was most determined to win ........ and they did! I understand that Chef Chung nearly won all three categories as they were tallying the scores. The organisers felt some relief that, with the dessert course, he was slightly pipped by Vansh.
The wines lineup,
this year, was of a very high standard. Two Grand Crus vied for attention. As
such, the corresponding dishes should respect the wine qualities and similarly
contain ingredients to match. The Thai and Indian Chefs failed in this respect.
On the other hand, Chef Chung used premium ingredients to match, thus, winning
this challenge. Overall, though, I feel that the great efforts put in by all
the Chefs made this event worthwhile.
Return to: TASTE Main Page or HappyVines Main Page