A New Trend?

I know I've been rather slack lately and I do apologize...I know work should never be an excuse for ignoring my poor blog but I have been rather caught up with writing at the magazine along with taking up some additional freelance projects.

I did come across something last Friday at a wine tasting event though and I just HAD to share it with you...have you ever heard of sparkling red wine?

Well I hadn't right until last Friday night...I walked into this wine tasting I was invited to with no prior knowledge of what I would be sampling...I straight away noticed two very weird things going on...

Firstly the red wine was sitting in buckets of ice...yes ICE...sacrilegious!

Then the server picked up the bottle from the bucket and poured the red wine into a champagne flute...but where were the large rounded glasses to allow the wine to breathe? None in sight...

So I decided to take a sip...and just as the wine hit my lips the server said "it's sparkling"...and immediately I felt the bubbles tingle on my tongue and the look of surprise must have registered on my face...because she then she proceeded to tell me that this event was to launch a new wine in Malaysia...a Sparkling Shiraz that has been a common thing in Australia but is now only being introduced to other markets...

The innovative signature Henry Martin Sparkling Shiraz originally from Australia is created using the Charmat process in which the wine undergoes a secondary fermentation in bulk tanks and is then bottled under pressure. It is served chilled in a champagne flute which makes for a sophisticated and trendy drink.
It has an extended middle palate with hints of mulberries, black pepper and subtle vanilla oak complexities with a lingering dry finish.

I was told that it’s fruity smooth balance pairs perfectly with light tapas, spicy Asian dishes, and goes especially well with chocolate rich desserts...yum I gotta try it with that!!

I found it to be very light and a little easier to drink than the traditional red wine...especially in a warm climate where a cold refreshing drink is always a treat!

Has anyone else heard of this before?

Vintry might want to try harder

I'm not an unfair person and usually unless I've had an incredibly hideous experience I'll try a restaurant again...even if the food isn't amazing. This is what I did with Vintry...three times over the past 8 months to be exact...and I'll tell you now that I think their selection of wine is good...GREAT even...but it all stops there.

Someone taught me once that before you criticize someone give them a compliment first. Let them know what they are doing right before you tell them all that they are doing wrong. So I'll start on a positive note! Vintry is a small wine lounge with dim lighting and a cosy setting. It's a great place to meet friends after work with a bottle of wine as you catch each other up on the day’s events. The staff are knowledgeable on the wines they carry and are able to give you suggestions on what would compliment the meal . My favorite wine there is the Beringer White Zinfadel. It's a light, sweet and fruity Rose that goes down very smooth. Another great thing about the place is that they serve pork...and a LOT of it. Most of the menu is pork based and I suppose this is one of the main attractions since many restaurants in Malaysia are Halal.

So anyways lets get to the fun part...the criticism...*evil laugh*

My first visit was probably about 8months ago and I decided to go with the deep fried pork strips as an appetizer followed by a pork burger. The pork strips were dipped in batter and then fried...they looked good as they arrived at the table but I took one bite and was disappointed. It was completely tasteless...almost as if I was eating fried batter that hadn't even been salted. So I dismissed it as being a bad choice and looked forward to something more hopeful...the pork burger... It was my first time going for one of these as I'm more of a beef person...and the specialty additions were something along the lines of blue cheese and mushrooms if I remember correctly. I didn't like it...but I can't say much seeing as I've never had a pork burger before so maybe it was just me...

The second visit was 6months ago. I had just finished a long day at work and I decided to meet R for wine and tapas. On this occasion we went for the caramelised roast pork and potato wedges with a bottle of Beringers. The sauce for the pork was good but the pieces were pure chewy gooey FAT! When I read caramelised roast pork I was expecting tender flavorful meat...not cubes of fat with a caramelised sauce. So after two bites I pushed the plate away...I could not stand it. The potato wedges weren't crispy and most of them stuck together leaving one side unbattered...therefore leaving it once again...tasteless...seems to be a pattern here.

The third visit was a week ago. My friend called me up and asked if I wanted to join her and a few others for wine, light tapas and dessert. She was the one who had originally introduced me to the Beringers White Zinfadel and we were both craving it. Sadly, they had run out of stock and so the waitress suggested a similar wine which just wasn't hitting the spot. We ordered garlic bread and bacon strips to munch on as we sipped our wine. The garlic bread was hard and had some chemically synthetic taste to it...It was almost as if they had bought frozen garlic bread from the store...forgotten to take the plastic packaging off as they baked it...and then served it to us.

The bacon strips were wrapped around asparagus and carrots...the flavor was OK but the bacon was too fatty, rubbery and chewy. It was impossible to bite through making it a bit messy to eat as I had to start using my hands.

For dessert we decided to share a few different things. We went for the Creme Caramel...

The Tiramisu...
and the Grilled Bananas...

The desserts were honestly nothing to shout about...they were very basic.

In conclusion I don't think I'll ever dine at Vintry again. I'll probably stop by to pick up wine before I go to a friend's place for dinner...or I might even have some wine there...as for ordering food I think I'll stick to eating beforehand.