Wine
never ceases to be an evolving subject with so many different facets. With
thousands of different types of grapes used for its production, wines of the
exact same grapes will surprisingly have different tastes and aromas depending
on a lot of factors in winemaking. Prices of wines using the same type of grape
might also have big differences. For those who enjoy wine, it’s still a wonder:
is an expensive wine always better than a cheaper one? And this was what
Starhill Culinary Studio’s wine class aimed to enlighten guests about.
The
Wine Studio, located at the Muse Level of Starhill Gallery, is a warm and
welcoming sight. The walls are adorned with shelves of varieties of wines; the
tables are beautifully designed together with matching spittoon in between each
pair of seats. For each guest, there awaits a Starhill Culinary Studio goodie
bag, the wine class tasting notes kit and 6 wine glasses waiting to be filled with delicious beverage.
Themed
Low vs. High Priced Wines, the wine class last 25th July was conducted by Wine Talk’s
exclusive French sommelier, David Stephan. David introduced the students to
three different wines: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Bordeaux. Each type had a
sample of low priced and high priced label so there was a total of 6 different
wine labels tasted (and enjoyed). David started with the Chardonnay: one priced
at around RM50 and another priced more than RM100. This also applied to the
Pinot Noir and Bordeaux wherein each type had 2 labels with very different
price range. He explained the factors affecting the quality and taste of wine
very deeply, even showing different vineyard locations on each country’s map
for fuller understanding on how the ‘terroir’ influences the wine produced from
each vineyard. Terroir, by the way, “is the set of special characteristics that
the geography, geology and climate of a certain
place, interacting with the plant's genetics, express in agricultural products
such as wine, coffee, chocolate, tomatoes, heritage
wheat, cannabis, and tea.”
(Wikipedia)
There
was so much information and knowledge to absorb from David. Some of which are difference between barrel
and steel for storage of wines, weather and climate, some grape disease called
botrytis that help produce good, sweet wines, biodynamic agriculture, and so
much more (this David is really a walking wine-cyclopedia!). But probably the
most interesting part is, of course, actually tasting each type of wine and
discovering that the expensive one doesn’t necessarily mean that it suits your
taste better. The Chardonnay, for one, received more votes on the lower-priced label.
Oh,
and here are some of the canapés served during the class…
What
was supposed to be a 3-hour session (6:30pm – 9:30pm) lasted longer than
expected. Everybody was having a great time sampling the wines and asking David
for more clarification about wine. There are just amazingly so many things to
know and talk about this subject…does older mean better, what wines can be aged
for years, what vintage is good for this certain type of wine, etc. The guests were
very interactive and expressive of their interests and even shared their
personal stories about wine.
One
of the highlights of the night was a lucky draw for 2 bottles of wine: Monte da
Peceguina Rosé (an exclusive label from Wine Talk). There were 2 winners who
each bagged a bottle of this wine from David. Hooray for these guests!
Here’s
the sommelier, David Stephan, with some of the guests…
And
here are the 6 wonderful wines tasted during the class…
This
wine class in Starhill Culinary Studio was truly wonderful and memorable. All
of us had a great time (if only the night wasn’t so short!) and we all met a
bunch of great people who share the same interest with wine. For those who
would like to have better understanding and knowledge about this subject,
attending a wine class like this at Starhill Culinary Studio will surely take
you to a higher level of wine appreciation and experience. Cheers, guys!
For more information about wine class schedule, visit www.starhillculinarystudio.com
or call +603 2782 3810
For inquiries about wine or about David Stephan, visit www.winetalk.com.my or call 1300 88 9788
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