Discovering the wonders of Canadian wines

"Canada boasts of high-quality grapes, excellent growing conditions, and investments in world-class wineries that have contributed to the growing success of Canadian wines both at home and abroad," said Canadian Ambassador Neil Reeder, in his opening remarks during the wine cocktail reception he hosted for food media and representatives from the beverage industry last night.

Featuring a selection of premium Canadian wines at the Makati Shangri-la Sage restaurant and bar, he added that "as we bring Canadian wines closer to the Philippines, we are proud that Canada is garnering well-deserved attention as a wine producing country." The reception gave guests exclusive access to a selection of red and white wines.

"Wine consumption in the Philippines has shown reasonable growth over the past years. From red to white to sparkling to ice, Canada offers premium wine products that can certainly address the Filipinos' growing appreciation for wine," Ambassador Reeder added.

The wine producing regions of Canada enjoy an ideal climate for the slow maturing of grapes which results in the right balance of acidity and sweetness. They said that ninety-seven percent of the Canadian wines are produced in Ontario and British Columbia. And consumers can be confident of the quality and authenticity of the origin through the Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA), which is a government-sanctioned regulatory system.

While the bottles are not yet available in the Philippines, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, and Malaysia are already enjoying the availability of Canadian wine. It is expected though that the availability of these wines in the Philippines is in the not too distant future.

Napa Valley Winemaker Ed Sbragia Visits Manila

Napa Valley Winemaker Ed Sbragia Visits Manila
by Brian Ong

Napa Valley icon and Beringer's Winemaster Emeritus Ed Sbragia visited the Philippines for the first time last week to meet local wine enthusiasts in Manila. Happy Living Philippines, the exclusive importer and distributor of Beringer Wines, took care of this special occasion, with a wine pairing event at Cav Wine Shop and Cafe in Bonifacio High Street.

Ed Sbragia is recognized globally for his significant contributions to Napa Valley. He is the only winemaker in the world to receive Wine Spectator’s “Wine of the Year” award for both a red (1986 Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon in 1990) and a white (1994 Private Reserve Chardonnay in 1996) wine.

Only the 6th winemaker since Beringer was established 137 years ago, Mr. Sbragia spent more than three decades of his career working with the oldest continuously operating winery in the Napa Valley. He is also behind the Sbragia Family Vineyards, a small winery which has been a lifelong dream of his.
 

“We have been inviting Ed to the Philippines since we brought in Beringer in 2000. It is an honor to finally be able to show him Manila and introduce him to the growing Beringer fans,” shares Kathy Yao-Santos, Happy Living Philippines Marketing Director and COO. 

Chef Markus Gfeller prepared a special menu last November 20, the evening that Mr. Sbragia graced Cav Wine Shop and Cafe in Bonifacio High Street. More of the food and wine pairing on my next post. Meanwhile, a portion of the proceeds from the dinner was donated to the victims of typhoon Yolanda.

Of course, I wouldn't let the night end without having a photo with the winemaker himself, Mr. Ed Sbragia. :) Cheers!

Beringer Wines are served in major hotels and restaurants. Among the retail outlets that carry the brand are Cav Wine Bar, Gourdo’s, S&R Membership Shopping, Unimart, Rustans Supermart, SM Supermarket, Landmark Supermarket, Metro Gaisano Supermarket, The Tinder Box in Cebu, Culinary Connection/La Vetta Restaurant in Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo Supermarket and Altura’s in Bohol. Inquiries are welcome at 8956507 – 08, 8960336. Email info@happylivingwines.com or log on to www.happylivingwines.biz for more information. 

The Wine Museum Manila

Wine Museum Manila
28 July 2012
By Nicole


First off, thank you Breakfast Magazine, Mr. Jorge, and Chef John Joseph for a gratifying Wine Museum experience! It was such a treat!

Wine Museum is an establishment composed of a hotel, a restaurant, and a wine education centre. A visit here is definitely worth it because the food is good and NOT too expensive, the people are nice, and the wines are really affordable (the wines in the restaurant have the same price with the ones in their store, Ralph's Wines & Spirits. They don't charge corkage fee!). Plus, if you really want to learn a lot about wine, this is the place to be! I swear! :D By the way, the wine descriptions in this post came from the Wine 101 presentation by Mr. Jorge.

Wine Museum Restaurant

Wine Museum's restaurant offers "colonial" dishes which means a fusion of dishes - Spanish, American, and Filipino cuisine. (Now, that term is controversial. I remember all my classes back in college where you could get into serious discussions by just mentioning that word :D). Anyway,  for the complete menu with price, click here for their website.

For the appetizers, we were served with sliced Vigan longaniza, mushroom vinaigrette, and gambas al ajillo (shrimps with garlic). These appetizers were served with the Chardonnay.

Right wine glass:  Claro (Chilean) – Chardonnay

"This Chardonnay has a nice yellow color with some pleasant notes of grapefruit and tropical fruits on the nose. On the palate, it has volume and refreshing acidity to enjoy it with seafood and slightly spicy dishes."

Left wine glass: Claro (Chilean) – Merlot

"Very bright ruby–violet color. The wine has intense aromas typical of its variety with abundant notes of ripe red fruits, plum, pepper and menthol. Its tannins are sweet and velvety. It has a long and lingering finish."

After the appetizers and the Chardonnay, was the main course!

The Claro (Chilean) – Merlot  (picture above) was the wine for the first half of the main course. The Merlot was paired with the sopa de calabaza, pescado con ali oli (fish with garlic and oil vinaigrette), and the paella colonial.

This sopa de calabaza (squash soup) is absolutely one of the best tasting squash soup I've ever had.

Pescado con ali oli (fish with garlic and oil vinaigrette)

Paella Colonial

Their paella is better than what I had in Madrid! Primary reason: it has a distinctive Filipino touch - it's really tasty.  I liked that they used fresh olives because those olives enhanced the flavour of the dish. The rice in their paella is cooked with beer! And I quote, "the best beer in the world, San Miguel pale pilsen." That is really something! In a Spanish cookbook we have at home, the paella recipes there are cooked with white wine.

It's not easy to find a good paella in this country but now we know where to find one! By the way, I got an awesome tip from The Chef/ General Manager, John Joseph, Jr. Want your frozen fish to still taste fresh? Soak it with milk before cooking! Because milk, according to Chef Joseph, will remove that stinky fishy smell and taste ("lansa" in Filipino) of frozen fish. Ting! Light bulb moment! Will try it next time :D

Left wine glass: Claro (Chilean) – Cabernet Sauvignon

"This attractive violet wine expresses cassis and fresh cherry notes. It has a nice and long finish showing a well-balanced wine with round and ripe tannins. This wine is an excellent complement to spicy dishes and red meats."

The first two wines, the Chardonnay and the Merlot, were light while the Cabernet Sauvignon is "full-bodied and tannic." Of the three, I like the Cabernet Sauvignon best.

Mexican Chicken

Cabernet Sauvignon was paired with Mexican Chicken and their bestseller Crispy Toro.

Crispy Toro

I love the crispy toro - an absolutely unforgettable dish! I don't think you can eat something like it somewhere else. The meat is crispy and yet so tender.

For the dessert, we were served with this Hazelnut Crepes a la Mode.

Hazelnut Crepes a la Mode

Oh these hazelnut crepes are ethereally yummy!!!! Thumbs up that the sweetness is just right! You should not leave Wine Museum without eating this!

Dessert wine: Lambrusco Emilia

A lot of people will sure love this Lambrusco Emilia! It's light, fruity, and perfect for dessert! I had two glasses of it ha, ha!

Wine Museum

View from the second floor

Wine Museum is basically a restaurant museum with a hotel. They have wine magazines that you can read and the walls, especially of the second floor, are decorated with wine facts - history, process of making wine, etc. The second floor is where they conduct lectures. The Wine Museum is also a foundation that was created  to educate people about wines. They provide facilities, including hotel and resto for on-the-job training for students, managers, practitioners and educators.

Mr. Jorge Joseph, the Marketing Manager of The Wine Museum, demonstrating how to use this old wine press

It was really nice visiting this place! Again, thank you Breakfast Magazine, to Mr. Jorge, and Chef John Joseph! And oh before I forget, their annual Grand Wine Experience will be held this November! Watch out for it!


P.S.

Thea, wish you were with me! Our awesome batch should have a get together here. :D They have organic wines from La Rioja!!!


Address and Telephone number:

The Wine Museum Hotel & Resto
2253 Aurora Boulevard (formerly Tramo Road) Pasay City, Manila
+63 2 239 42 78

Corks and Forks

Most of you probably don't know this, but Nicole and I went to Spain (on a scholarship!) last year. While there, we had a wine appreciation class. At that time (and well, until now actually), I didn't know anything about wine, I wasn't used to drinking it, and I didn't know which would go best with which food. I also couldn't really tell the flavors apart. They all tasted quite the same for me.

Nicole, I hope you don't mind that I'm posting these pictures. Hee!

Fast forward to a couple of months ago, some of my international friends suggested we drink red wine. It was the first time I drank (and actually somehow enjoyed) wine. Maybe I'm growing up and... becoming more cultured? Haha! At least that's how I see it. I appreciate it more now.
The Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce is holding a food and wine event at Makati Shang this Saturday (June 23), from 10AM-6PM. They will be featuring a lot of premium wines from Australia and New Zealand, as well as dishes from said countries. Aside from these, there will also be prizes to be raffled off, contests and other activities throughout the day. If you're free, and you want to experience an event such as this, go on over to Makati Shang's Rizal Ballroom.

Here's the poster for further information:

... but wait! There's more! (infommercial at its finest)

There's a deal in CashCashPinoy wherein you can get discounted tickets for the event! It's expiring in 9 hours though so you better hurry if you want to get tickets!

Danne: Murray & D'Vine

One late night I got the chance to stroll through Serendra with our dogs. Because we already ate dinner and we were looking for a place where we could eat midnight snack, we ended up having a meal at Murray & D'Vine Burgers, Sliders & Damn Good Wine.

Personally, the ambiance of the place is more like mature, sophisticated, gourmet. Perhaps a good place to eat with colleagues after a stressful workweek.

The unique thing about this resto is that they serve burgers and wine, which might be an odd combination for burger + soda diners. Nonetheless, the set-up works for their customers! They have gourmet burgers made from different kinds of meat such as the traditional chicken and beef, and the more unconventional fish, ostrich, turkey, among many others.

We didn't really get to try the wine but we were able to try their Chicken Sliders (PhP 375) and their Beef Burger Sliders (PhP 395). Sliders are 3 small burgers served in a skewer.

Sliders come with french fries in a cone-shaped dish, together with the cute little mini Heinz Tomato Ketchup.

I'm not really a wine drinker so I have yet to try the burger and wine combination. I'd love to go back to this place and try their unusual burgers!

I believe they're the only restaurant to serve their burgers with heart-shaped buns. You'd know where to go on a date or on Valentine's day!

Check out their official website here. I believe they also have free delivery with a minimum purchase of PhP 400.

Lezz eat!

Danne

Murray & D'Vine

Address: Space c114, G/F Retail Area, Serendra, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig 1634

Telephone number: (632) 856 3723, (632) 901 3029

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