We’ve seen it on menus, heard it across the grapevine and seen the pictures on social media. Cheese and wine have known to be great friends and is a true blue French classic. But did you know that not all cheese goes well with a particular wine? Different cheeses pair with different wines, so here are some insights of the different categories:

1) Soft cheeses with a natural rind - Example: Camembert, Brie

Depending on the degrees of maturity, it goes well with quite a few wines. Young cheese is still pretty dry and hard so it goes well with light whites like Chenin Blanc or a dry Riesling. With some age, the cheese becomes stronger with a more ‘runny’ texture, and goes well with light to medium body reds, like Pinot Noir.

2) Soft cheeses with a washed rind – Example: Reblochon, Munster, Epoisses

With a washed rind, the small molding doesn’t develop and the cheese has a rich flavor that gets stronger with age, especially with the Epoisses cheese. Pair this with a richer red wine like Chianti, Sancerre or a young Bordeaux.

3) Goat Cheese – Example: Crottin de Chavignol, St Marcellin

Goat cheeses are usually very soft and delicate, developing great flavors with some ageing – I love them with a crisp Sauvignon Blanc.

4) Pressed Cheeses – Example: Emmental, Comte

Most of those cheeses comes from the Alps Mountains, and develop superb nutty aromas with age. I especially love them with a rich Chardonnay or try a Beaujolais if you prefer reds.

5) Pressed and Cooked Cheese – Example: Gruyere, Tomme de Savoie

Those are fairly similar than the pressed cheese, just that they are cooked for an hour after the pressing. These cheeses are usually denser with more intense flavors, so go with something a tad richer, like a Cotes du Rhone, white or red.

6) Bleu Cheese – Example: Roquefort, Fourme d’Ambert

When it comes to bleu cheese, there’s no halfway path; you either love it or hate it! I think Bleu cheese is an acquired taste and it helps if you grew up eating it as that’s the best way to be acquainted with its exquisite taste. Aged in humid, underground caves that help develop the soft molding, this cheese is a classic match that might seem a bit bizzare. Believe it or not, this goes well with a with a sweet wines like Ste Croix du Mont, Muscat or even Port.

If you are having a nice cheese platter, it would be pretty tough to have a bottle for each individual cheese. The best thing to do would be to pick a wine that appeals to your personal palette, be it red or white. Just make sure that it’s not too strong of a taste that overwhelms your spread. Bon Appetit’!

     The rule of thumb when it comes to food and wine pairing is white wines with fish and red wines with meat. But, I don’t always follow this exactly as I like to match wines with people first and food second.

    How does that work? Well, if you don’t like white and only drink red, then I’m not going to demand you have your fish with a glass of wine you won’t enjoy. Likewise, if you’re having steak, I’m not going to have you drink a full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon if you’re not a Pinot Noir fan. You can always find a wine suitable for both your food and your tasting palette. Food pairing is not necessarily fixed and can be interchanged to ensure you enjoy your meal, wine and the pair.

    Rich white wines like Chardonnay, Viognier, Gewurztraminer, Rousanne or Marsanne can go very well with white meats. While light reds like Gamay or Pinot Noir when served slightly chilled can go very well with fish dishes. 

    If you’re having a dinner party and need to pair your food with wine for a variety of guest, then it’s best to go with common wines like Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir. Popular wines are easier with large crowds and you can use the rule of thumb unless you know the preference of your guest. For recommendations, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at Wine Talk MalaysiaWine Talk Malaysia so we can recommend some from our great selection. 

     Ordering wines in a restaurant can sometimes be tricky. Selecting a good wine is a sure-fire way to impress someone on a special occasion, say, a business dinner or a date! Unfortunately not many places in Malaysia have trained staff to help you choose a proper wine to complement your meal. That is if they even have a decent wine list to begin with.Fret not! Here a few handy tricks you can use to select a more than decent wine:

• House wines are relatively inexpensive wines and usually the simplest wines. Though they can be marked-up to be higher than the rest.  Skip these and choose from the main wine list. Try the bottles that are second or third on the price list. Those are often the wines that the owner/sommelier likes to drink.

• Stick with popular varieties that people are likely to know of. For instance, ordering a Sauvignon Blanc or a Shiraz is a safe bet but better to go safe than ordering the weirdest wine on the menu (I do that, but only when I know the people I will be enjoying the wine with).

•  The “Tasting Ceremony” with the waiter is to ensure that there is nothing wrong with the wine. You do not have to describe it!  If he gives you the cork, smell it and note if there is a weird scent (acid, damp). If you smell nothing, there should not be a problem. The best is if it smells of fruits.  When the wine is served in your glass, smell it again to detect for bad scents (acid, bitter, rotten fruits). If it smells very fruity, there’s a big chance the wine is good.  Just taste it to confirm, and you & your guest can enjoy the wine now!

      Differentiating sweet wines from fortified wines can be a bit of a tough one when you’re standing in the wine section of a supermarket, feeling overwhelmed by the rows and rows of bottles. The labeling system on bottles is not always systematic but some may indicate the method used to produce the wine be it fortified, botrytis or others.

    One way to differentiate this would be by the alcohol percentage. Fortified wines generally have higher alcohol content than classic sweet wines. As mentioned in Part 1, Port wine is a fine example of fortified wine and it contains up to 10% – 20% of alcohol while regular sweet wines maintain a range of about 8% to 14% of alcohol.

    Sweet red wines are usually very rich and sweet, while whites are very light to rich.  The alcohol level can give you clue but the color of the wine is your best indicator. The rule of thumb is that the darker the color, the bolder the wine.  If you’re looking to match your dishes with your wines, it’s best to go by color. Rich chocolate or black fruity desserts match well with Ports and other red wines while fruit-based desserts or simple cakes pair well with lighter colored wines. In terms of local food, the richness and spice of Asian meals go well with sweeter wines as the acidity and chilies (as long as it’s not too spicy) cuts through the sweetness. For an extra flair, try a classic French match by pairing Sauternes wine with Foie Gras (goose or duck liver ‘pâté’)!

Fun Fact: Ice Wine (Eiswein) is also sweet!

   Icewine, or Eiswein in German, is a type of dessert wine produced from grapes that have been left on the vine into the winter and frozen while still on the vine. It’s a German wine but is popularly produced in Canada due to the consistent cold temperatures. For optimal production, the grapes are left on the vines at least until January instead of September (normal harvest) and are harvested at nighttime at a minimum temperature of -5 degrees. The grapes have to be pressed while still frozen by which it would have lost 80 – 90% of its water content, producing a wine concentrate that is extracted from the fruit. The process of making this wine is very difficult and delicate and the production can easily be lost within just a few hours. Due to the time and effort that goes into the making of this wine, it can be rather costly.

Many often confuse sweet wines and fortified wines, assuming they’re the same thing when they’re really not. Fortified wine falls under the sweet wine category but is made using very different techniques. If sweet wines are something you enjoy, then it would be great to know the difference and identity the ones you enjoy the best.

      Classic sweet wines are made from grapes that have a high concentration of sugar and possibly ‘attacked’ by botrytis in which a certain percentage of sugar stays in the wine through the fermentation process.  The fermentation of wine is caused by the yeast that eats away at the sugar, transforming it into alcohol. However, if there is too much sugar, the yeast simply stops working when the alcohol reaches about 13% in volume, leaving what is known as residual sugar which can go from a few grams to about 400 grams of sugar in one liter.  

There are quite a variety of classic sweet wines, the common ones include the exceptional ‘botrytised’ wines from the Bordeaux region, hailing from the villages of Sauternes (usually fairly expensive) or Ste Croix du Mont (great value), made from Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon (Australia produces some great ones too).  Some grapes have more potential for sugar, so Muscat, Pinot Gris or Gewürztraminer make outstanding sweet wines. Wines labelled as Moscato are usually semi-sweet and very light.

German Rieslings are also known for their sweet wines with a range that goes from light and off-dry to rich and lusciously sweet.  The problem here is that it is sometimes hard to figure out if the bottle you’re looking at is too sweet. A little tip on how to distinguish this would be to look at the alcohol percentage. Generally, 12% is what you find in dry, white wines and 10% will be off-dry and slightly sweet while those that go lower than 8% will be much sweeter.  

On the other hand, fortified wines are made using a less natural method. Founded in the Douro region of Portugal (renowned for their Port) where British merchants who were based there were making ‘classic’ wines to ship back home. Unfortunately, uncontrollable factors like the duration and condition of shipping didn’t support the wines well during long travels. The merchants then decided to improve the wine by fortifying’ it by simply adding spirits to the sweet grape juice. This introduced the alcohol and kept the sugar content but prevented the fermentation process. This little ‘trick’ then became a trademark for the wines from the region and worked its way around the world, creating what we now know as fortified wines.   

      The range of fortified wines is fair with the most popular being Port wine. Douro in Portugal is the birthplace of this specific wine but Australia has a great track record of producing some pretty outstanding fortified red wines as well. These used to be called Port as well but due to its link with the province, they had to change it. Other common fortified wines include Madeira (Portugal), Sherry (Spain), Marsala (Italy), Maury & Banyuls (France), but many of the latter are pretty hard to come by in Malaysia.

To check out our range of sweet wines, click here

Stay tuned for our next post on spotting the difference when shopping for wine!

       Unlike a trained sommelier or someone who has gain knowledge about wine and wine drinking, going to fancy events where wines are served can be a bit of an awkward situation. There you are with a glass in your hand, taking swings of divine wine while the Sir over there is swirling his wine and sticking his nose in the glass. Wait, what?

    Learning the right way to drink wine can change the experience completely as wine is delicate, aromatic and has its own character.  Gain your wine confidence and drink like a pro with these top tips from our sommelier, David.

1. Hold the wine glass by the stem, not by the bowl. In my years of serving wines, I’ve probably seen hundreds of people holding a wine glass by the bowl. It’s not wrong per se but doing this exposes the wine to your fingers’ temperature. It’s best is to hold a wine glass by its stem as it reduces the exposure of your wine to heat and it ups your wine appearance.  Classy and elegant.
2. Swirl the wine in your glass but be careful not to spill. Swirling allows the wine to release aromas so just give your glass a gentle swirl. After you’ve done this a few times, you’ll get the hang of wine glass swirling and you will be able to enjoy your wine better.
3. Sniff the wine. Learning to appreciate wine aromas is learning how to appreciate the character of the wine. So don’t be afraid to put your nose in the glass and take a sniff. If you’re with friends, don’t worry if they smell something you don’t. Wine aromas can be completely subjective allowing one person gto get the scent of flowers and another, fruits. The important thing here is whether you like the aromas or not.
4. Look at the color of the wine. The color of your wine can tell you a lot of things about what you’re drinking or tasting. Some white wines might be lighter than others and some red wines can be very dark while types like Pinot Noir might have lighter red color than Merlot and Shiraz.  The color of your wine can tell you a lot about what you’re tasting and smelling.
5. Sip the wine. Take note: SIP not gulp. Sipping gives you a better chance to appreciate the taste. If you are willing to expand your tasting skills, you can explore inhaling air through your mouth while the wine is inside. This can be tricky but perfecting this skill can give you a significant difference in appreciating wine.
6. Take note of the aftertaste. This is where you’ll notice if a wine has strong or light tannins. Tannins are most commonly present in red wine and are the textural element that makes wine taste dry. Observe your tongue when you taste red wine and take note of the ‘dry’ feeling or taste when you swallow wine. Some grapes have higher tannins while some have lower.
7. Swirl, sniff then sip again. This will allow you to rediscover the aromas and the taste for another time.
8. Be familiar with basic wine terms. Looking and sounding like pro needs a bit of research.Some people might talk to you about nose, legs, fermentation, vintage, corked wine, acidity and other terms. Take a few minutes to read about some wine terms before you attend a gathering where wine will be served. If you’re armed with some wine knowledge, you’ll relate to what people are talking about and maybe even add some comments that will help your wine rep and help you understand wine better.

                              

      The best way to learn more about wines is to keep trying different types, varietals and brands. Wine Talk has a special service where wine enthusiasts can discover more wines that will be personally handpicked by our sommelier. All you would need to do is join the Wine Club which has no membership or joining fees and receive 6 or 12 bottles of wines every month or bi-monthly at a flat rate. It’s a convenient way to enjoy wines and you don’t have to worry about picking the wines because our in-house sommelier, David will handpick them based on your personal preference. Our Wine Club guarantees best price and customer satisfaction, so if you’re not happy with the wine you've received, let us know and we’ll change it for you. Cool, eh? To know more and subscribe to our Wine Club, click here. 

Ah, the wines of Bordeaux! A common sight in stores and wine boutiques, Bordeaux wine is a popular choice but isn’t always understood. Starting with the basics, Bordeaux is pronounced bore-doh and is a port city in southwestern France. It’s been known that vines have been growing in Bordeaux for over two thousand years, probably having started their roots before the Romans in year 56 or well, before J.C!

The thing about Bordeaux is that unlike many of the other French wine regions, the wine business in Bordeaux was developed by merchants, rather than simply coming directly from the wineries. At the beginning of the second millennium, the Bordeaux region was under English domination and hundreds of boats loaded with barrels of ‘Claret’ were leaving yearly for England. The ‘Claret’ was a light red wine which Englishmen loved; the word is still used to refer to Red Bordeaux. By the 14th century, half of the wine production was boarded on ships mainly to England.

Bordeaux is probably the most well-known wine region in France. It counts for one third of the quality French wine (AOC, crus bourgeois, Crus Classés), and host about 7,000 ‘Chateaux’, not all of those being fancy proper castles, but it must represent an estate which produces wines solely with estate-grown grapes.  Wines bottled using more generic names are mostly made from grapes coming from across the region, generally purchased for growers. The region is spread out across different appellations, depending of the location of the vineyards.  The higher the classification is, the higher the requirements are (volume of grapes produces per hectares, work in vineyards, etc). 

Here’s a quick lesson based on regions and grapes to fatten up your wine knowledge palette. Are you ready? Let’s go!

First, there’s Bordeaux. Bordeaux AOC wines can come from anywhere within the Bordeaux wine region, which covers most of the Gironde department. The quality of both red and white wine depends very much on the wine makers talent and on the quality of the grapes. This means that the quality goes from very disappointing wines to excellent bargain chateaux.

Then comes Bordeaux Superieur. The Bordeaux Supérieur appellation grows on the same part within the larger area which has similar characteristics than classic Bordeaux, but has better soil quality and tends to offer wines better quality wine which ages better..

Are you still with me? Moving on there are the Sub-region appellation. These appellations represent a great introduction to the area, showcasing the different characteristics of each zone, due to different soil types. They produce wines that are more affordable than say, villages wines. Some examples of these would be Medoc, Haut-Medoc, Graves and Entre-Deux-Mers.

And finally, Villages Appellations. These are the most covered wines, with drastic restrictions on volume, winemaking and ageing methods.  The wines would be much more complex than regular Bordeaux, and have very good ageing potential – the more premium ones would actually require 10-15 years of ageing before reaching a good enjoyment level. Examples of villages appellations are St Julien, Margaux, Pauillac, St Estèphe, Listrac, Moulis (all in Medoc); Pessac-Leognan, Sauternes (Graves); Pomerol, St Emilion, Bourg (Right-bank);  Loupiac, Cadillac (Entre-Deux-Mers)

Now let’s take a look at grapes!

Red wines: There are 6 varietals which are allowed within the region, with the top 2 being the most popularly planted and used, creating a classic Bordeaux blend. These 6 are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Carmenère & Petit Verdot. Due to soil specificity, the left banks are dominated by Cabernets, while the right banks have a majority of Merlot.

White wines: Sauvignon Blanc & Semillon are the large dominants for both ‘classic’ and sweet wines but there are a handful of others that are allowed within the region. These are Sauvignon gris, Ugni blanc, Colombard, Merlot blanc, Ondenc and Mauzac.

My recommendations? Check out the following wines:

• White Bordeaux: Cheval Quancard 'Cuvee Clemence' Entre-Deux-Mers
• Sweet Bordeaux: Chateau Les Arroucats, St Croix Du Mont
• Bordeaux Superieur: Chateau De Terrefort-Quancard
• St Estephe: Chateau Bel-Air Ortet
• Lussac St Emilion: Chateau Moulin de Lussac
• St Emilion Grand Cru: Chateau Franc-Pipeau