Pretty awful food - Shangri La Hotel IWFS APZ

The stage is set...

June 28th 2013

I have had a number of less than pleasant experiences of late at the hands of the Shangri La (see elsewhere in this blog) but this one felt like a real overcharging for very mediocre and low quality food. The occasion in question was the IWFS APZ Welcome Dinner at the Selangor Room in the Shangri La Hotel. It should have been a showcase of one of Malaysia's best food and service experiences for the foodies of the world. But it failed. Boy oh boy, how it failed...

IWFS APZ Chair Yvonne Wallis flanked by IWFS KL Secretary Dato Jeremy Diamond (left) and IWFS KL President Dr Rajan

In brief, the canapes were forgettable, the jumbo prawns were far from jumbo and equally far from fresh, the salad was fair but the mains were quite bad. To expand, the prawns were painfully small and could in no way have been fresh. Tough and dry, they were difficult to get out of the shell and tasted awful. Their texture had that recently unfrozen feel about them. The Orange salad clearly had a Japanese influence and in fairness was not bad. Fruity crisp with fennel, endives and lettuce. Okra tempura was cute, salmon had a good firmness to it and paired nicely with the oranges and citrus mayonaisse. Wasabi would have been bolder, but there you go. 

IWFS APZ Festival Organiser Dato' Jeremy Diamond

The chowder was creamily acceptable, though I had to pass (personal history with peppers) but the lamb was massively overcooked to the extent that all the people on my table who had ordered it found that they could not eat it. My taste of the lamb found it supermarket standard quality and with that nasty lamby smell and taste. It was overcooked to the point of tough and indeed pretty indigestible. Hmmm.  I ended up needing to share my beef with them so that they at least had something to eat. Not that the beef was spectacular - far from it; ordinary, firm and chewy, soaked in jus and lacking anything resembling the Angus that presumably it should have been. Finally, the Clafoutis was stodgy and dry and reminiscent of a bad school dinner pudding. I had to eat it since I had eaten relatively little else during the meal. I think I finished off someone's sorbet and now stale bread in an effort to soak up the wine. 

IWFS Chair Yvonne Wallis 

This and other experiences would suggest that the kitchen cannot maintain quality when there are too many functions on at the same time - we were fighting with about 500 oil and gas people in the main ballroom. Yes, one expects a degree of lower standard when trying to feed the five hundred plus. But not to the extent that the food is inedible, as some of our table felt about the lamb. 

Added to this, the staff that the Shang had allocated us felt hugely under trained with little to no knowledge of either wine or its distribution. We are used to having students serve us at the Shang but usually the old hands help the new ones. I think all the old hands had been commandeered for the other dinner, leaving the newbies to fend for themselves or get helped out by us. One wine bypassed us completely. There was probably an F&B manager overseeing everything, but I guess he or she was probably being pestered by the organiser of the other dinner to have too much time to do anything. Did not appear to be anywhere in evidence.

Making friends

I find it a stunning lapse of judgement that a hotel of the Shang's standing could have served a dinner like this to a society with such clearly refined culinary expectations and standing as is the International Wine and Food Society. Everyone applauded the wines but I don't recall any of the overseas guests complimenting or commenting on the food. Presumably too polite to criticize the hosts. Except for one KL Expatriate veteran who decided to bend my ear for ten minutes on how bad he found the food and that it was the worst he had ever tasted and how could anyone justify the RM700 he had stumped up for the privilege. He had possibly turned to the wine for solace. Other attendees have grumbled similar comments at subsequent get togethers. Difficult to disagree. Overall, the food was pretty awful and just somehow very sad.

Lenglui with Stephanie

Sad because the Shang used to be the standard by which all other hotel ballroom functions would be judged. Based on this and other recent experiences, it has fallen far from this position. Whilst there may be reasons for this, there can be little in the way of excuse. I have many memories of wonderful times at the Shang stretching back over twenty years. Sad thing is that I seem to have little real desire to see whether it can regain its position. This felt like a massive overcharge for the standard of food and service received and, coupled with recent negative experiences documented elsewhere, a sense of injury at somehow feeling my patronage was being taken for granted. Result: any goodwill I might have had for the place has been pretty much dissipated by this night's experience. Enough is enough. The other hotels in the city can offer far better Ballroom food for half this kind of money and be more warm and efficient in their quality of preparation, presentation and service (compare the recent note in this blog on The Westin). Having said this, the service we got at Arthur's for a pre-dinner glass of wine was friendly and efficient, as was the delivery of a tasty pizza from the Lemon Garden earlier in the day to our reception station.

I really hope I don't have to go back to the Ballroom soon - you know what it's like, one of your friends decides to hold a function there and because of the friendship you cannot avoid attending. Maybe I can just give face for the starter and ask if someone can bring me a pizza.

The Wines for the Evening

Wine notes

NV Bollinger Rose Brut - maybe a note of oxidation on opening. Blood orange in colour with a Sour plum nose, excellent bead, acidity a bit high but overall a very classy glass of bubbles.

2010 Puligny Montrachet Jacques Carillon - light, creamy, peach nose, grannysmith apple with granite minerality.  Good acidity, medium finish. Good, not great.

2011 Ch Vieux Telegraphe CdP Blanc La Crau - belter. Rich, pepper spice, full rounded mouth feel with walnut and and honey. New friends on the table who say they would never had tried a white CdP were pleasantly surprised. We could have drunk it all night. I think some people did.

2007 Vosne Romanee Domaine d'Eugenie - light, fruit driven, fresh clean bouquet. Balance could have been better, tasting of sour fruit and a bit harsh on the finish.

2006 Ch Malescot St Exupery - smooth and better balanced, cherry and blackcurrant nose with menthol and breezes. Not spectacular, but not bad at all.

2007 Ch Coutet - nice. Good balance of acidity and honey with apricots, apricots, and apricots on the nose, mouth and finish with a hint of burnt caramel gula melaka spice feel.

The Prawns. So sad.

Opening Black Tie dinner – 28th June Shangri La Hotel

Menu

NV Bollinger Rose Brut

Canapes

Fried beef Tataki in Asparagus with wasabi mayonnaise

Vegetable Spring Roll with green tomato jam

Prawn Satay with spiced pistachio chutney

Bell Peppers Chowder. Give me the wind they do...

*****

Seared Jumbo Prawns with lemon butter sauce

2010 Puligny Montrachet Jacques Carillon

*****

Confit Poached Atlantic Salmon with

Fennel and Orange Salad, Citrus Mayonnaise and Okra Tempura

Beef Short Ribs and Medallion. Ho hum

2011 Ch Vieux Telegraphe CdP Blanc La Crau

*****

Red and Yellow Bell Pepper Chowder

Olive and Pistachio Crouton

*****

Slow Cooked Beef Short Ribs and Australian Beef Medallion

Creamy Potatoes and Mushrooms

Or 

Roasted Lamb Loin glazed with Herb and Walnut Crust

Potato Gratin and Green Asparagus Bundle

Cherry Clafoutis. Stodgy but edible

2007 Vosne Romanee Domaine d'Eugenie 

2006 Ch Malescot St Exupery

*****

Clafoutis with Marinated Cherries

Vanilla Ice Cream

2007 Ch Coutet

*****

Mignardies

*****

Coffee and Tea  

YOU'RE THE TOP! Marini's On 57

Amazing view of the Twin Towers from Marini's

Lenglui and I always look forward to the Amante della Cucina Italiana dinners. This informal group of foodies focus on Italian cuisine in Kuala Lumpur and the evenings generally get quite rowdy and laughter filled. They look to fix dinners at KL's Italian Restaurants for members and generally succeed extremely well. 

We had been itching to try Marini's on 57 for almost a year but for some reason the timings weren't quite right. Lenglui had found that Chef Federico Michieletto (whom we had first encountered during his time at Pietro Restaurant) was head chef. So it was with delight that we received the email saying that the next Amante dinner would be hosted there July 9th. Naturally, we signed up pretty quickly. 

Named after owner and operator Marini Modesto who built his name in KL on a chain of tasty pizza restaurants, it is located on the 57th floor of the third Petronas Tower at KLCC. Unless you know how to get there, the entrance is a bit hidden. The store staff at the Suria all know where it is though, and you basically pass Chanel on your right and head for the corner to the left. There you will see curtains and a smiling bouncer type gentleman who escorts you to the elevator. In less than twenty seconds you are whisked to the 57th floor where Marini's is located. 

Marini's on 57 interior

Half of our Amante group were already seated and we welcomed Datuk and Datin back from seven weeks overseas travelling. A welcome and unexpected glass of Prosecco greeted us, which was found to be slighly unbalanced on the wrong side of sweet but pleasant nonetheless. We had brought our Italian house red Le Volte 2010 Chianti and a spicy Sicilian Barrua 2005 for the occasion. Normal corkage at Marini is RM100 per bottle but organiser Jing had used her massive charm to persuade the management to give us free corkage on the second bottle. Which meant we simply HAD to open it. Yes. Now I understand why buy one free one is so powerful a marketing tool. 

The restaurant itself is long and felt a bit dark, but on reflection necessarily so since too much light would take away from the incredible view we get of the north side of KL City. As we arrived the sun was in the final stages of setting and we sat down to the gloaming dusk to watch the night come to life. This is the premium that you pay to dine at Marini's. And for me it is worth most of the extra ringgit one pays for the privilege. I have been blessed to have sat in a few rooftop restaurants around the world and watched the sun set on those various cities with a glass of something. But when it's your own (or at least the one that has adopted you) there's more of a connection. It becomes personal; this is your town that you're seeing, and it's one heck of a town. Or at least it is when there's no haze or rain, as was the case on our visit. Couple that with no nose bleed or altitude ear pop sickness from our rapid ascent into the heavens and things were looking good.

Amante della Cucina Italiana

All duly arrived and photos were taken and Chef Federico came out to say hello and introduce the starters. Chef continues to be a fantastic supporter of our Amanti della Cucina Italiana group and a cursory look at the menu he had prepared for us showed he was yet again pulling out the stops. As said, we first experienced Chef at his preivous gig at Pietro's through the Amanti and were most impressed with his clean and refined home style of cooking yet with clear leanings toward the fine end of dining. Hopefully Marini's would clearly give him the licence and resources needed to take this to the next level. 

Our menu had been colour printed on frosted paper in the black and red master colours of the Marini's restaurant, nicely complementing the uniforms of all the staff. On reflection, perhaps this colour scheme was a shade too bold, but it melted into the dark ambiance of the restaurant and became a backdrop rather than an influence. 

The service was very good throughout the night. Only faults would be a dropped fork at the start and a slight mix up on the cutlery placing (out to in, I was wondering why I had a spoon to eat the Lobster when I figured it was for the following Pappardelle) but no one else seemed to notice or bother too much so I guess best to just let it pass. 

Ricotta, Zucchini e Vin cotto

The Ricotta was very good - nice and light creamy crumbly with the zucchini lending an acetic quality, I guess from being quickly sauteed in some balsamic reduction. Champion with a chunk of bread.

Goose, Duck Salami with Shallot 

The salami was brilliant, especially the goose - more delicate in taste and texture than its traditional porcine brother, it retained that unmistakeable salami combo of cured meat and fat that we in the West have loved since childhood. The pickled Shallots lent a nice onion crunch and zip and the pan toasted sweet brioche was genius, giving a sweet carbo undercurrent to the meat. Wonderfully filling, this is a perfect option for those in this nation who are not able to take the pork. Could happily have ate this all night, but then I am a salami monster - one of the most perfect foods on the planet. Whilst it went well with our Chianti, it would have been a good match with a nice glass of something bubbly to clean the fatty salt gunk from the tongue and throat. Bread and water had to do and well it did. Most of the plates got cleared, though I reluctantly felt a need to leave a few slices. There was a lot of food yet to come. 

And come it did and what a belter the Blue lobster and Burrata with Cream Form proved to be. Sweet crisp and crunchily good lobster blended masterfully with the creamy burrata, with the rind offering a slightly different texture to contrast the flesh. The sweet chew on the meat was delightfully endless, whilst a splash of olive oil on the plate lent a necessary and welcome cut to the cheese. Given its colour, I'm guessing that Chef added some pureed lobster to the Cream Form, so the colours on the plate had a harmony. The cream form was magnificent, giving the lobster and cheese that milky bite to bring the burrata to perfect texture and taste. Contender for dish of the night. 

Blue lobster and Burrata with Cream Form

Well, it was until the Pappardelle ai Piccione made its way to the table. It must be said that pigeon is not something that has loomed large in my gastronomic adventures. When it makes an appearance on a plate, my standard reaction is "why?" I've never got what pigeon is supposed to be about. Texturally snuzz, bland tasting and rarely much of it - well, it is a small bird, yes? Now thanks to Chef Federico, I think I understand it somewhat better. Tonight's pigeon felt as if it had been treated as a game bird and hung for a while to give it that hint of what can only be called "gamey". It's like fermented eggs and aged cheese - the hanging gives the meat an element of taste that makes it less of a bland experience. Which was what I got from this bird - a light taste that was not oppressive in the mouth and showing great balance. Presenting it Ragout style with simple mushroom gravy style sauce lightly seasoned let the gamey element come through beautifully. Close your eyes and you were transported to a countryside farm in the Veneto. Paired with a freshly made long flat papardelle pasta, this was a real authentic taste of Italian soul food at its best - filling, tasty and satisfying. I think there was a bit of Chef Federico's own soul in this one. I cleared the plate and sopped up the sauce with the bread remains. Perfecto and so, so good. 

Pigeon ragut, Papardelle and Barolo Wine

Our 2010 Le Volte had gone very nicely with the food to date - solid and workmanlike, smoother tannins than previous bottles but still bold and tasty with good fruit, pepper and spice. But in order to take advantage of the corkage deal we had to crack the 2005 Barrua. How could we not? Actually, if thought had been given, we could have shared corkage with others on the table who had also brought wines and saved the bottle. But we were not thinking clearly. Wine and great food will do that to you. As it was, the Barrua had a lovely balance of fruit, tannin, alcohol and acidity. Dried fruits on the nose with prunes and raisins, and a plum jammy sweet mouth with a clean lingering finish. We passed a glass to Chef who looked somewhat stressed and in need of a reviver. The restaurant is clearly doing well, with about 90% full on the night. 

Roasted Veal Tenderloin with Summer Truffle Puree and Roasted Tomatoes with Smoked Duck

And the food kept coming. Some of the table were flagging at this point, but a quick stand and walk up and down the restaurant helped clear a bit of space in the system. By way of introduction here, it should be said that Chef's Veal Tenderloin at the Pietro was legend. We had it one time with the Amanti and it was gorgeous - great texture, and milky meat that just evaporated in the mouth. Tonight's was even better. Done rare with a salt crust in a cream truffle sauce, it had that slight raw firmness that was textural heaven. Total wow. In contrast, the duck had been shredded and somehow packed into a poached tomato to create an amazing juicy sweet and slighly sour tomato bite with a salty crisp duck crunch. Most interesting combination of tongue tickling tastes with this one. Not quite total wow, but still wow. 

I might have a question as to pairing the tenderloin and the duck on the same plate, but possibly Chef was looking to showcase his talents to his Amante. In a fine dining context, they can clearly be separated for degustation and wine pairing purposes. The veal was absolutely stellar. 

SELEZIONE DI FORMAGGI

And so were the cheeses that came out. We had three on the main plate - the hard Bagoss made from skimmed cow milk, the hard Pecorino made from ewe's milk and the soft goat milk Caprini, all of which seem to originate in the Langhe region in the Piedmonte. All of these were fabulous in their different ways, especially the milky sour Caprini with some toasted brioche. But the cheese star was the Barolo Cheese. This semi firm mixed milk cheese is aged like wine in oak barrels and then pressed with fresh Nebbiolo grape husks. As a result, the wine flavours seep into the cheese to produce an amazingly rich and brilliantly complex taste that went gangbusters with our Barrua. Seems the origin of this cheese was a happy accident as a result of hiding the cheese in a wine barrel to prevent it from being stolen and then forgetting about it until its discovery some months later. As a result, it became legend. It was an absolute stormer - a full rich sweetly chewy and sour salty assault on the back of the tongue and cheeks. A wonderful and totally new experience that gives a whole new meaning to a cheese and wine tasting. Brilliant. 

Cotton Candy

The desserts of a massively sugary Cotton Candy and a somewhat texturally heavy Chef's Grandma Cake (as he called it) were nice enough and we tasted out of courtesy for Chef. But we were all hugely full and it was very difficult to follow the cheese with these desserts. Either one or the other would have been enough but maybe not both. That aside, somehow the dessert didn't quite match up to the standard set by the preceding dishes. As said, the cake was a bit on the heavy side when something lighter might have been more palatable. Having said that, had our preceding dishes been lighter then a heavier dessert would have made sense. Will have to try the Grandma cake in a different context. 

Traditional Pie with Pine Nuts and Cream Pasticcera

And then came the chocolates. Oh my lord, the chocolates. Delightful looking little dainties being offered and suggested according to guest  preferences, these were a stunning end to the night. Chef suggested one of the soft dark brown plain creations should be tasted with a little olive oil and salt. Unbelievably, it totally worked with the salt freshening the tastebuds and the oil coating the throat to let the tongue taste the full chocolate without any gunky residue. Another totally new experience. Double brilliant. 

In sum, one of those totally amazing dining nights full of fantastic food and amazing new taste experiences. No complaints whatsoever about food quality, preparation, presentation or temperature - everything was excellent. Service was very good - clean, quietly efficient, unobtrusive. One staffer had even learnt my name - don't know how he found it. Everyone at our table was pretty quiet at the end of the night, probably too full to do anything else except sit replete with full belly and contemplate life above the streets of our twinkling city below. Chef certainly pulled out many stops for us on the night, yet was still able to manage a room full of paying guests. He remains hugely supportive of the society - a very special Amico dell' Amante - and should be commended as such.

Chef Federico's skills have clearly grown. Being in command of a restaurant with the clout and organisation of Modesto behind it, I guess he has been freed up to experiment with and command the best ingredients for his creations. He creates brilliantly tasting dishes that satisfy and excite.  All the other cities in the Pacific Rim seem to have a chef with a Michelin star and it's way about time that Kuala Lumpur joined that particualr fraternity. Is Chef Federico in that frame? From what I have seen of Michelin graded chefs, he is probably a little too paisano to satisfy the nobs. Michelin seems to require innovative refinement in preparation and presentation, chefs who take the culinary arts to other levels. But then what does Michelin know? Chef Federico has superb culinary chops and is already a star. It doesn't get much better. Just close your eyes to the prices and enjoy the food and the view. Totally the top.

View from Marini's on 57 overlooking Kuala Lumpur

MENU PER AMANTI DELLA CUCINA ITALIANA

Menu  per amanti della cucina  italiana

SCAPECE DI ZUCCHINI RICOTTA CON VIN COTTO

Ricotta , Zucchini e Vin cotto

SALAME D'OCA E ANATRA

Goose, Duck Salami with Shallot  Agro Dolce Pan Brioche

ARAGOSTA CON BURRATA

Blue lobster and Burrata with Cream Form

PAPPARDELLE AI PICCIONI

Pigeon ragut , Papardelle and Barolo Wine

VITELLO AROGOSTA CON PATATE ESTIVE

Roasted Veal Tenderloin with Summer Truffle Puree and Roasted Tomatoes  with Smoked Duck

SELEZIONE DI FORMAGGI

Langhe Cheese, BagosS DOP, Pecorino DOP, Caprini DOP

ZUCCHERO FILATO

Cotton Candy

TORTA DELLA NONNA

Traditional Pie with Pine Nuts and Cream Pasticcera

CIOCCOLATINI

Fine Selection of home-made Chocolate

Chateau Cantemerle wine dinner Sage - not bad, had better

The Cantemerle dinner is slipping into faded memory. Well, slipped. Can't remember much about it now. Which might suggest that there was not a lot to remember. Which is not true - the following bears wintess to the fact that memory is an odd thing. Just when you think you have forgotten, by writing a stream of words some of the memories come back. Not much in the way of conversation, as seems to be a skill that most writers have in abundance. But sensations, shared moments, laughter. 

The dinner was organised by newcomers to the wineselling block S&W Wines. Seems it is a subsidiary of the Sunway group and friends have been pleasantly impressed with the operation in Plaza Damansara. Old Nam Lee Cheong worker Jacky found my email and sent details of the new setup and the dinner they were organising. On paper, Chef Daniel's menu looked a bit thin in comparative terms to what we'd get with the IWFS for RM250, but with the wines included it it seemed a fair proposition. The usual gang had little problem in signing up, with ten takers confirming within two days. 

Cantemerle Director Phillipe Dambrine was in town, which seemed a bit close after the unveiling over in Bordeaux for a classified growth. We knew this because we had just returned from Bordeaux and the week prior to our visit had seen the wine world descending to taste the new babies. We also tasted the new babies. Yes. But that is another story.

Cantemerle Director Philippe Dambrine

Mr Dambrine gave a brief talk about Bordeaux and Cantemerle. Standing at the gateway to the Medoc, the 94 hectare estate is now in the hands of a large French insurance company which is in the process of upgrading the vineyard's equipment and replanting the vineyard.The wine is a blend of 60% Cabernet, 30% Merlot, 6% Cab Franc and 4% Petit Verdot matured in oak and bottled at the Chateau. Cantemerle is not one of those vineyards that leap to mind when Bordeaux is mentioned, though it does seem to have some fair penetration in a range of markets. We have dranki it on occasion during our time in Kuala Lumpur and it came across as not stellar but far from low end. It was served at various Godfamily birthday celebrations which suggests to me that it is good value. The Godfamily tend toward the careful. Very Eng Choon and Scotslike. 

We were to try three vintages of the Cantemerle offerings. First out of the blocks though was the second label Les Allees De Cantemerle 2007. Like many of its competitors, Chateau Cantemerle offers a second label alongside its first. Second label wines are made alongside the First labels using the same fermentation and production techniques but often retail at a snip of the price of the First. The ethos is to let punters get a taste of the style and sense of the main wine but who find it difficult to stump up for the main.  It is not the same wine, but it is similar in style and approach - the difference is in the quality of the grape which is still good but not quite good enough to make the cut for the first label. 

The notes say the 2007 was not an easy vintage but that this offering is "a supple wine with finesse and elegance, showing aromas of wood, leather and black fruit." We liked this one. Drinking quite well, with somewhat bold cassis, it came across as a good solid full bodied Bordeaux wine with sufficient tannic teeth to warrant a couple more years in the bottle. Went nicely with the appetizers though paled a bit with the carpaccio. 

The carpaccio seemed to have a lot of truffle, though beef and egg is always a god mix. It made for a refreshing gooey and gunky chew in the mouth with the arugula adding a tang to cut through the goo and give the insides of the cheeks a friendly pinch. 

We had the Cantemerle 2010 to pair. The notes say it is complex, concentrated and structured. Elegance without heaviness, lively and fresh, and with a finish that doesn't finish. Well, it did for me, and quite quickly at that. This garnet purple number was deep and dense, showing rich full fruit in the mouth with good balance though somewhat light on the finish. Alcohol felt a bit on the high side. Not quite as tannic as I would have expected from a three year old, which suggests there might not be a lot longer in the bottle for this one. 

In pairing terms it was a fair match, but raw egg is always going to kill wine. The best it could do was to swish the cheeks clean of the gunk, which it did.  

Normally the foie gras at Sage is top end. For some reason, tonight's felt a shade gamey. There was an artichoke sauce which came over as sweetly sour with a hint of mustard or horseradish - when paired with the foie gras is was massive - the sweetness of the gooseliver getting jazzed by the sour cream artichoke to create a wiz of a whizz on the tongue. If ever a whizz there wuz. The duck felt a bit on the firm side and somewhat lost in the gamey foie gras blitz, but the notes say it was okay. 

Paired with the Cantemerle 2006, the notes say it is one of the most beautiful Cantemerles of the decade. Powerful, black and with great aromatic complexity. Opulent, with a clean lively and fresh finish. It was certainly a lot smoother and less intense than the 2010. Nicely balanced, with a chocolate nose and good firm damson and plum fruit leading to an elegant lengthy finish. A lovely drop, drinking nicely, though again given this not sure how much longer left in the bottle. 

No notes on the match of the food and the wine. 

The Granny Smith sorbet was crunchy and zippy and quickly zapped the tongue clean of all that had gone before in preparation for the Wagyu. Chef Daniel had decided to do it Pane style, by which the meat gets coated in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and presumably pan seared. It had the texture of a fishcake, the taste of salted sweetbread that was bit through to release the liquid fat of the Wagyu Karubi beef within. It was a somehow odd yet not unpleasant mouthful, crunchy sweet and fat but ultimately missing something. Certainly not karubi beef as we know it. Our normal style is to marinade in barbecue sauce and quickly pan fry and serve with the barbecue sauce poured over the lovely bits of beef. The egg and breadcrumb crust somehow neutralised the meat into meek submission. The Doc and I poured some wine over it which did improve matters somewhat. But not really enough to save it. Sorry Chef, missed the mark a bit with this one. But the crust had a longer finish than most of the wines - I was still tasting it ten minutes after. Where is the sorbet when you need it?

Lenglui with favourite nephew

This got paired with the 1996 which on its own still had great balance and enough tannins to let it cellar for a few years longer. Good standard mid range Bordeaux wine, a workmanlike journeyman wine - lacking the degree of aristocracy that gets associated with much of the product from Bordeaux, it nevertheless held its own as a very approachable and drinkable wine.  It was totally wasted on the wagyu croquette. We happily quaffed it till closing time. No notes on the dessert. 

Lenglui with the Hustler

So...  okay, I guess. Wines were fair, food was a bit strange, ultimately not so memorable. What was memorable was bumping into our friend the Hustler. He had forgotten it was smart casual and had turned up in white shorts. Such is his standing there that they let him sit down on condition he would be the last to leave so no one would see his legs. Naturally he ignored this instruction. His friend had nicer legs.

Menu

Canapes

Mushrooms on Toast with Mixed Herbs

Croquette of Black Truffle

Entree

Carpaccio of Wagyu Rump 

with Eggs Molet, Truffle Aioli and Black Truffle

Chateau Cantemerle 2010

Second Course

Confit of Cured Duck Leg

with Foie Gras and jerusalem Artichoke Cream

Chateau Cantemerle 2006

Sorbet

Granny Smith Granite

Main

Etuvee of Chliean Black Cod with Wasabi and Cress

OR

Pane of Wagyu Karubi with Yuzu Citrus Sauce

Chateau Cantemerle 1996

Dessert

Crepe Suzette

with Home Made Blueberry Ice Cream

Coffee and Petit Fours

IWFS APZ Westin - Stellar night!!

July 1st 2013

Making friends at IWFS APZ

Coming off the horrible food that was the Opening Dinner at the Shang and into the fun that was the Chinoz on the Park, we were all togged up again in our tuxedos and best baju and dresses for the farewell dinner for the IWFS APZ Festival in Kuala Lumpur.

The Westin Hotel had been chosen, possibly as a result of The Governor having seen his daughter get married there recently and maybe being able to negotiate a decent deal on having a second function there. It's sometimes all about leverage, isn't it?

Whatever, we left home at 7pm and arrived at 7.40pm thanks to some slow traffic across town and the reception area was still quite empty. A bare few familiar faces dotted here and there from the Kuala Lumpur branch snacking on the canapes and sipping a glass of the lovely Duval-Leroy "Rose de Saignee" NV Brut. This was a fruit driven crisp clean and refreshing drop of fizz that zapped the tongue tip and cheeks with seething and scintillating bubbles. It had one problem - too darn easy to drink and too darn friendly waiting staff eager to pour. I must have downed a bottle pretty much on my own during my walkabout pre dinner photoshooting. O, the hardships we sometimes endure…

The Champagne Station, well patronised

As intimated above, the Canape Experience was distributed during the Aperifif session. Having a camera in one hand and a glass in the other means I often miss the canapes, as proved to be on this occasion, though they looked quite delightful and inventive. I did manage a couple of the quail egg and caviars - this was a lightly chewy bite through the egg with the caper and caviar giving a thrill to the fizz. Most pleasant. Everyone else seemed to scarf them down quite quickly because the charming ladies bringing them around seemed to disappear. Hungry lot, the IWFS.

The well photographed Traditional Chinese musicians

Suddenly the doors opened and everyone from the hotel entered the room. The hotel had smartly erected a champagne station so that everyone was able to walk past and grab a glass rather than hunt for the person with the tray as we had to do at the Shang. There was a wandering magician and a Chinese duo on Guqin (seven stringed zither) and Erhu (two stringed fiddle) who proved more a photo opportunity rather than a musical treat since they could barely be heard above the din of the chattering and clinking. We spotted the Governor who again bemoaned his previous sins for having landed him with organising the festival but who significantly cheered up when handed a glass of fizz. Good fizz has that effect on people. 

IWFS APZ Members at the Westin Hotel Ballroom

A gong announced that dinner was ready to be served and after a swift bathroom call into the ballroom we dutifully trotted. The Governor gave a brief speech of welcome and we were off.

First out was the Trio of Boston Lobster, a triple helping done in three styles to showcase. Of the three, the Lobster Thermidor was absolutely off the map and one of the best I've had for a long time. Totally fresh lobster, the flesh was crunchy, sweet and supple. Having that bisque feel in the jus set it off perfectly. 

The poached was okay, showing a different texture, lighter and less aggressive sweetness - somewhat more crab like than strict lobster but still excellent. 

The delightful Trio of Boston Lobster 

Lobster Timbale means it is baked in a drum shape mold so the result looks a bit like a Latin Drum. Well, and maybe but we didn't get a great sense of baked. If memory serves, it felt as if the flesh had been grated and packed into a tea candle holder with maybe a hint of radish or cucumber for texture. Well tasty, though, and lovely with the melon and lemon oil adding a slash of acid fire. The melon gave a sweet sticky coat to the throat wthich the lemon oil cut through to combine for a slight grating sensational tickle. The more disciplined had some fizz on the table whose bubbles were still fizzy enough to cleanse.  Bravo chef - stunning dish.

The 2010 Catena Zapata Tilia Torrontes also did a fair job with the Lobster though for some reason felt a bit thin, possibly as a result of its low acidity not helping to cut through the lobster. Also, sweet wine with sweet meat is a lot of sweet. The nicely balanced wine on its own showed fair fruit with a honey and lychee nose and a thinly firm finish. As said, it seemed to lack a bit of body for me, and though its pairing with lobster might have made sense on one level the result was not a cheery match on this occasion. In fairness, it was not supposed to match in the first place - according to the menu it should have gone with the appetizers which, given their sharper qualities, made sense. So it goes. As fate would have it, the Tilia was to prove the pairing star of the night. 

The lobster should have gone with the 2006 Marimar Estate "Don Miguel Vineyard La Masia" Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. As it was, most of us didn't get a chance to check the pairing as the lobster had pretty much disappearded from the plate. On its own, the Pinot had good fruit and a fair body, with dark cherry to the fore and a slight oxidised note. For some reason, got a sense of a rich rosewood feel - like sat in a boardroom somewhere sucking on a newly varnished table - and sweet jammy sugar on the finish. Maybe too sweet, bordering on the sickly. Full in body.

The Scallop Ravioli

Next out was the Herbal Black Chicken Essence with Scallop Ravioli. Essentially scallop ravioli in chicken broth without the chicken. The broth itself was fine, with a nice balance of salt and chicken taste without overtpowering. The scallop felt a bit fishball, and looked like it had been mashed up and reconstructed and the result looked like - stodge. Tasted a bit like it too - firm pasta bite and fish taste but ultimately - stodge. Sorry, chef, not sure what you were trying to do with this one but I missed it. 

It paired quite well with the Tilia, perhaps because there was not much in the way of harsh flavours but enough to take the sweet edge off the wine. The Pinot died. The chicken broth neutralised both sweetness and acidity and the wine went blandly to its sad end. RIP.

The main course was a choice of beef or fish and we normally opt for the beef. The Roast Cod tends to be a bit on the bland side and rarely pairs well with the reds the IWFS traditionally pairs with the mains. 

Decanting the Alma Viva

The 2008 Alma Viva en Magnum had been decanted in a ceremony involving two sommeliers and a degree of pomp and theatre. Still a bit of bottle rust and faust on the nose in the glass, leaning toward an oxidised note. Traditional Cabernet cassis, but with cherries on the tongue, full body with medium finish. 

The tenderloin was very good, with a firm full bite and good chew. Maybe slightly overdone, but to be expected when you're catering to 80 pax. At least it came out acceptably warm. It proved an excellent pair with the Alma Viva, taming the tannins with the result that the fruit and the structure and pedigree just shone through. A most excellent steak wine.

The rich and sweet butternut puree softened the somewhat fierce jus, rendering it nicely palatable, which in turn brought out a softer tone in the wine. Lots of tastes and textures going on with this wine. So good.

The excellent Beef Tenderloin with Foie Gras and Butternut Squash

The Foie Gras was.. not spectacular. Nothing wrong with it in taste or texture terms, just.. okay. Not memorable. Have had better elsewhere in KL. But there was a lot of it and it brought out the Tilia Torrontes fruit, the fat in the FG neutralising the sweet honey that the wine was presenting. The Tilia proved the most versatile wine of the night. Crisp apricots and that sweet crunch that seems characteristic of the Torrontes grape. I think I've seen it in the supermarkets - worth a purchase.

We also had the Foie Gras with the Pinot which also worked on one level - The FG took off the acid in the wine and let its light cherries come to the fore. Somehow the FG refreshed and resurrected the Pinot - it was clearly flagging on its own after its decimation by the scallop, but the FG breathed a bit of life into it. Interesting. 

The 2007 Cheval des Andes had a bit of a bottle stinky nose which needed a bit of time to dissipate. This was even after a decant. It came across as…okay. Aged Rioja with that Spanish terracotta brick feel in the mouth. Light body, nice structure, clean finish. Good, not great.

It was very good with the beef, taking that aged tinge off the wine. Sometimes we forget that it is often the match of the food to the wine that takes the lead in the mouth - great food will lift a middling wine into goodness. But great wines can do little when the food is not quite up to scratch. The food has to come first - only then will a great wine take the experience into the stratosphere.

The ice cream in the Westin Dessert Melody was excellent with the steamed chocolate fondant being a total standout. The strawberry meringue and lemon tartlet were probably excuses to break out a dessert wine, and the 2003 Chateau Suduiraut did admirably - a chilled nectarine and apricot liqueur like unctuous golden cheek pincher that we were able to both sip and chug as the mood took us. We also helped finish off the quite large remains of the Alma Viva which had by now come into its own. Hugely memorable wine, one to look forward to should the occasion arise. 

This is how we do it, do it - party time at APZ Kuala Lumpur Westin

By now the crowd were ready to party and the evening had been helped along by two young band boys on stage belting out oldies like there was no tomorrow. We had heard a whisper that the Governor's Dearest had been a performer in a previous incarnation and tonight she took the stage for a number. Well, stormed the stage more like - could hear the roars of approval as the crowd recognised and cheered her on.

Naturally, the Lengjai took this as permission to take the stage himself to get his Elvis Presley on and belt out some standards. At least it kept the crowd dancing. Shocked a few people too - guess they never realised the boy has chops.

View of the APZ IWFS Members from the stage

The Big Boss One gave a speech of thanks to the organisers and presented a large bottle of nice fizz to the Governor (which we subsequently polished off at a committee meeting) and then it was more dancing or go home. It had been a long week. Home it was. The bed was very welcome that night.

IWFS APZ Black Tie Dinner

Westin Hotel Ballroom

July 1st 2013

NV Duval-Leroy ‘Rose de Saignee’ Brut

Duval Leroy "Rose de Saignee"

Canape Experience

Cured Petuna Ocean Trout, Orange Chutney, Salmon Roe, Brioche Toast

Soft Poached Quail Egg, Avruga Caviar, Capers Gremolata, Blini Pan Cake

Black Truffle and Mascapone Pizzette

Apple and Walnut Macaroon

2010 Catena Zapata Tilia Torrontes

*****

Trio of Boston Lobster

Lobster Timbale, Melon Pearl, Saffron Mayo, Lemon Infused Oil

Poached Lobster, Apple matches, Lime Jelly

Traditional Lobster Thermidor

2006 Marimar Estate "Don Miguel Vineyard La Masia" Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

*****

Herbal Black Chicken Essence with Scallop Ravioli

*****

Char-grilled Tenderloin of Beef, Pan Seared Foie Gras

Pommes au Dauphinoise, Caramelised Shallot, Asparagus

Butternut Squash puree, Morel Jus

Or

Baked Black Cod Fillet and King Crab

Herbs Butter Carrot French Bean, Pea Puree, Fennel Crisp, Sea Urchin Butter sauce, Dill scented Foam

2008 Alma Viva en Magnum 

2007 Cheval Des Andes 

*****

Westin Dessert Melody

Chocolate Fondant with Straccitella Ice Cream

Strawberry Meringue

Lemon Curd Tartlet

2003 Ch Suduiraut

*****

Coffee or Tea

Homemade Petit Four  

Round of applause for the wines!!