Jacob’s Creek Heritage Wine Collection Wine Pairing Dinner

A Harmonization of Jacob’s Creek Wines and The Restaurant’s Cuisine at The Club, Saujana Resort & Hotel

Mentioned Australian wines and Jacob’s Creek comes to my mind at first thought. Australia’s leading global wine brands with over 160 years of winemaking expertise, offers quality contemporary wine styles with great varietal expression. Jacob’s Creek history traces back t0 1847 when young Bavarian immigrant Johann Gramp planted the first commercial vineyard in the Barossa Valley in South Australia. Today, it is led by Chief Winemaker Bernard Hickin and great care is taken by each of the skilled and passionate individuals behind the brand, to deliver the highest quality wines possible within each range.

No stranger to the Malaysian scene, Asia’s leading winery recently held a memorable wine pairing dinner in honors of Jacob’s Creek Heritage Wine Collection at The Restaurant at The Club, Saujana Resort & Hotel. It was truly an honor to receive an invite to this distinguished soiree for the exclusive fine wine pairing.

The evening took off with a delightful weather that sets the mood for a lovely evening to follow. Arriving early, guests mingled at the open foyer of the restaurant where they were handed glasses of Jacob’s Creek Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir along with some servings of canapes of Smoked Duck with Mango and Vegetable Spring Rolls.

Jacob’s Creek Sparkling Chardonnay Pinot Noir, a sparkling bubbly, has gorgeous refreshing lemon citrus aroma and is well enhanced with creamy nutty notes. I enjoyed this so much that I had a second round of this bubbly. The sparkling wine goes really well with the salty smoked duck and the sweet vegetable spring rolls as it has such a rich and refreshing citrus note.

The evening featured a pleasurable three-course wine pairing dinner set in The Restaurant’s intimate and candlelit setting. Pristine table settings filled with lots of wine glasses and beautiful blooms graced the room, igniting an air of elegance as well as grandeur.

The Heritage fine wine collection, consisting of Reeves Point Chardonnay, Centenary Hill Shiraz, Steingarten Riesling and Johann Shiraz Cabernet, is distinctive for its individual personality style. Setting a benchmark in regional Australian wines of exceptional quality, each wine is named in honour of a special person or place in the proud winemaking history of Gramp & Sons.

Dinner commenced with an exquisite Marble of Lobster and Tomato Confit with Avocado and Grapefruit Segments, Pomegranate Truffle to be paired with Jacob’s Creek Steingarten Riesling.

A luscious start to the wine pairing as the well balanced and intense Jacob’s Creek Steingarten Riesling complemented the sweet king of crustacean beautifully. The citrus refreshing note and aroma of Riesling managed to enhance the lobster medallions along with its other citrusy and creamy ingredients that I actually ended up enjoying a second round of the elegant Riesling. It is my favorite wine of the Heritage Wine Collection for that evening.

The next course showcased White Tomato and Smoked Rolled Quail in Young Coconut paired with Jacob’s Creek Reeves Point Chardonnay.

At first taste of the Jacob’s Creek Reeves Point Chardonnay, I tasted subtle notes of peaches and melons with a light citrus note. The aroma also has a nutty and buttery note that lingers pleasantly along with the sweet and fresh citrus fruits. Because of its sweet and vibrant fruity notes, the wine goes really well with the creamy coconut based soup that also had slivers of young coconut flesh in it. Perched carefully on the coconut shell was a smoky rolled quail and lightly grilled white tomato that added a rich meaty note to the soup course.

For the main course, there were two choices of main to select and both were paired with different wines since it was a meat or fish course. I opted for the grand Grilled Black Angus Beef Tenderloin with Sarawak Pepper & Rosemary, Mushrooms Polenta and Vegetables paired with Jacob’s Creek Centenary Hill Shiraz.

Jacob’s Creek Centenary Hill Shiraz is a great match for rich meat as the full bodied wine has luscious rich berry and plum notes laced with a spiced aroma. Although it is a full bodied red, the Shiraz also has a wonderful soft and supple aroma that enhanced the gorgeous rich medium rare Black Angus tenderloin served with a roust pepper sauce. The smooth Shiraz also has a long finish, easing off the aftermath of the red meat flavour well.

My partner opted for the Pan-Fried Blue Eye Cod Fish with Fern Shoot and Seafood Saffron Velouté paired with Jacob’s Creek Reeves Point Chardonnay. Again here, the luscious ripe sweet peach and melon complemented the cod fish well. Despite the robust notes of the lightly spiced and creamy saffron velouté, the dish wasn’t heavy at all as the white refreshing Chardonnay lifted the flavour well.

The evening’s dinner ended with Jacob’s Creek Johann Shiraz Cabernet paired with a sinful Royale Chocolate Gateaux with Berries. Creamy and decadent, the gateaux was heavenly on the palate. Tangy and fresh berries added a good dose of freshness to balance out the heavy Gateaux. The complex red is well structured and proved to be a solid match for dark chocolate notes and berries since it has its own blackcurrant and liquorice notes.

Such a memorable ending to the evening soiree of Jacob’s Creek Heritage Wine Collection!

For more information on Jacob’s Creek Heritage Wine Collection, visit their Facebook www.facebook.com/JacobsCreekMY or website: www.jacobscreek.com/my

An Asian Food Channel and Pernod Ricard Collaboration: Great Dinners of The World!

The World is their Oysters!

The Asian Food Channel is proud to announce the premiere of its latest original production, Great Dinners Of the World, on Tuesday, 13 December 2011 at 10.00pm, Astro Channel 703. Produced in collaboration with Pernod Ricard Malaysia (PRM), the exciting AFC original production will air new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

As AFC’s first-ever fully produced series filmed outside of Asia, Great Dinners of the World features four chefs who bring the best of Asian cuisine beyond the region. The four maestros Chefs – Chef Sho Naganuma, Chef Malcom Goh, Chef Johnny Fua and Chef Sherson Lian are selected from Singapore and Malaysia’s diverse culinary scene and were put to a challenge by travelling to faraway places with varying lifestyles, cultures and gastronomic palates!

In all the six episodes, food lovers are treated to an intriguing showcase of Asian flavours and dishes, amidst picturesque settings of Scotland and France - the homes of Chivas whisky, The Glenlivet, GH MUMM Champagne and Martell cognacs. With the goal of bringing the flavours of Asia to their European dinner guests, The team of chefs cook for the rich and famous while pairing their signature dishes with the finest cognac from the House of Martell, from the distilleries of Chivas and The Glenlivet whiskies, as well as the vineyards of GH MUMM champagne.

The launch set off with a tribute by Maria Brown and CK Tan on the makings of Great Dinners of the World.

Maria Brown, Co-Founder and Managing Director of AFC said, “As the region’s first 24-hour food channel, AFC is committed in airing the best food and lifestyle programming from around the region and the world. We have pushed new boundaries with the premiere of Great Dinners Of the World, offering our 45 million viewers in eight territories a programme that gives a unique take on the diversity of Asian cuisine. Not only is it a travelogue that showcases the beautiful landmarks in France and Scotland, the series also has the element of reality to it – which makes this programme such an exciting and thrilling show to watch! The challenges, disagreements, triumphant moments and team dynamics seen among the four chefs, as well as all the mouth-watering Asian dishes, together contribute to the overall enjoyment of the programme. Great Dinners of the World encompasses all the best genres that we have to offer in one fantastic series.”

CK Tan, Managing Director of Pernod Ricard Malaysia shared, “It is rather apt for Pernod Ricard Malaysia to play a part in nurturing young talented chefs. Gourmet and culinary have become important components in marketing our cognacs, whiskies and champagne. As we have already a 3-Star Michelin kitchen and staff, we knew we could afford to expose these chefs and enrich their perspectives towards work and life in general.”

The Chefs

In the true AFC style of featuring Asian chefs, the programme introduces Japanese maestro, Sho Naganuma, who is currently the Executive Chef at Michelin-starred restaurant, Hide Yamamoto, located at the luxurious integrated resort, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. Chef Sho’s culinary talent is undeniable and is shown through his ability to create inspired fine dining dishes.

Malaysian chef, Malcolm Goh, joins the team, bringing his vast knowledge of ingredients to the team. Chef Malcolm is currently a lecturer at Berjaya University College of Hospitality and is highly recognised in his field. He has won countless awards. Most recently, he won the silver award at the Hong Kong International Culinary Classic 2011.

Adding a little rock and roll experience to the mix, is Malaysian Chef, Johnny Fua, who currently holds the position of Executive Chef at Tanzini Restaurant, GTower, Kuala Lumpur. Having worked in the restaurant business for over 20 years, Chef Johnny is able to command a professional kitchen with ease.

Rounding off the team of four is television cook and Malaysian national, Sherson Lian. Sherson is no stranger to the camera, starring in his own cooking programme, 5 Rencah 5 Rasa. A playful extrovert by nature, Sherson brings his own flair to the kitchen with his personal take on traditional Malaysian street food.

We were truly fortunate to taste all four chef’s dishes inspired by their travel!

Duck Confit, Mushroom Emulsion, Pickle Daikon by Chef Malcolm Goh

Impressed by the fine French cuisine, the duck confit terrine was a beautiful piece of art in flavors! Tender and moist duck confit was satisfying and rich in a very good way. The woody and light mushroom emulsion enhances the terrine very well while the pickle daikon added a hint of fusion to this dish!

Foie Gras Veloute by Chef Sho Naganuma

Chef Sho was inspired by both the country local produced product, their market, people and the other 3 chefs’ contributions in their menus prepared in Europe. The ultra rich and creamy foie gras was very luscious on the palate. Definitely an opulent dish fit for royalties…

Pan Seared Fish with Rambutan and Crab Meat Salsa sautéed in French Beans and Lemongrass Sauce by Chef Sherson Lian

During an episode in Scotland, Chef Sherson was inspired by the freshness of the seafood near Chanteloup, therefore, the dish was aim to blend the best quality seafood with rich Asian flavours. The lemongrass sauce was Chef Sherson’s concoction and it was definitely a nice fusion of Asian herbs and creamy flavors that went well with the lovely fish and chunks of crab with roes and served on an heirloom tomato.

Braised Beef Short Ribs and Monk Fish Live by Chef Johnny Fua

Surprised by the wilderness of Scotland, the scenery, the people and their love for whisky, Chef Johnny created tender braised short ribs to be paired by a creamy almost pate textured seared monk fish liver. Another rich and lavish dish with a unique touch!

We ended our menu with desserts from all over the world! Desserts were made by Tanzini’s chef and team under Chef Johnny Fua.

During the dinner, questions were asked to the guest and guess who won a Chivas Regal 18 Scotch?

I was mesmerized throughout the night through the preview of the two episodes and coupled by great food and company, the night was simply fabulous in every way!

AFC will be launching a microsite dedicated to the production at

http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/greatdinnersoftheworld. The site will complement the series by offering up-to-date information about each as well as in-depth information about each brand of alcoholic beverage that is featured each week. In addition, an online contest where visitors can win tickets to an exclusive dinner prepared by the four chefs will be held when the series premieres in December.

Save the date, you would definitely want to sit down for this!

Great Dinners Of The World

Premieres 13 December 2011 / Tuesday at 10.00pm at Astro Channel 703
New episodes premiering every Tuesday and Thursday at 10.00pm

Episode 1- The Ultimate Tribute Ducal’s Dinner
Episode 2- 1824 Malts That Started It All
Episode 3- Celebrating Pioneering Spirit Of James & John Chivas
Episode 4-Celebration of Pure Gourmet
Episode 5- Connoisseurs Spicy Encounter
Episode 6 – An Asian Gourmet Ritual

*Thanks to AFC, Pernod Ricard and Sid for invite!

** Some pictures are courtesy of Asian Food Channel