It is easy to appreciate a good wine, but whether it complements your meal is the key. If wine appreciation consumed in conjunction with local fare grows to become popular in Singapore, we'll be seeing wine glasses on hawker centres' tables.

 

Although the unlikely alliance of a fine French wine and greasy local "cze cha" cooked dishes may seem like an odd combination to some, Makansutra sets off again to enjoy a glass of wine in a hawker centre whilst appeasing our tastebuds. It's still a rather brand new experiment to cultivate a healthy appreciation for this unusual and not-yet-popular duo, what with Singapore's hot and humid weather. Certainly I found sipping wine in the middle of a hawker centre a foreign but relaxing experience! However, satisfaction is guaranteed once you find the right combination of wine and food to please your palate. Armed with three bottles of wine from www.winehomedelivery.com, we headed towards East Coast Park Lagoon Food Centre.

First, I advise everyone to bring his or her own cooler, ice bucket or esky for your wine (remember to chill your whites longer than reds). Otherwise, an unchilled wine will give a stronger taste to compete with equally strong tasting cze cha dishes. Not to mention our notorious climate can unknowingly warm things up at an alarming pace. For maximum satisfaction you may also want to bring along proper wine glasses instead of plastic cups. Providing companionship on this particular evening were the following:

White French Bordeaux , Blason de Maucaillou 1999
White French Bordeaux Entre-deux-mers, Chateau de la Tour 1998
Red French Bordeaux, Dourthe Numero 1 1998

The dish of the night (not to mention the most impressive-looking dish on the table) definitely goes to the salted vegetable and duck soup (kiam chye ark) served piping hot in a claypot, consisting of an entire duck immersed in soup, ensuring that every bit of essence doesn't go to waste. Whilst the soup may be overwhelming on the tastebuds and a little on the strong side for some, it manages to keep a delicate balance between being too sour and too salty.

Literally avoid picking a bone with the steamed Teochew fish head. This fish is a devious little goldmine for bones and potential choking accidents. As Florence, our makankaki, declared partway through the meal, "As a housewife, I wouldn't buy this fish at all." The gravy would be much more authentically Teochew if it is slightly clearer. Also, it emanates a rather muddy flavour common to many freshwater fish.

The fried oyster egg has a fair number of oysters piling on an egg omelette with a little light gravy to enhance an otherwise dry dish. Definitely a healthier alternative to the traditional or luak that's fried with starch.

The kai lan fried with liver is another favourite as the liver is cooked to a right texture with the kai lan resting on a delicious gravy. We also savoured a very well done plate of sweet and sour pork ribs which are sometimes considered a westernised Chinese dish. The meat is cooked just right and tender though the sauce maybe a on the sweet side.

OVERALL WINE VERDICT
These three bottles of wine are available at www.winehomedelivery.com.

White French Bordeaux, Blason de Maucaillou 1999
Two words to describe this fruity white are "easy drinking". It has a pleasant bouquet and is an equal pleasure to drink as described by our wine reviewer Tony. It slips down with a clean finish, and boasts fairly good acidity…this is a good wine to start for a wine novice! One doesn't have to be a wine connoisseur to appreciate a glass of this. This wine washes down particularly well with Chinese food, especially seafood dishes such as the oyster omelette and Teochew steamed fishhead. The Blason de Maucaillou '99 was definitely the unanimous favourite of the night!

White French Bordeaux Entre-deux-mers, Chateau de la Tour 1998
The Chateau de la Tour is the marginally weaker wine when compared to the Blason de Maucaillou although it can still be used to complement the same type of oily dishes (oyster omelette, fish head) as the Blason de Maucaillou. However the strength of the fish head gravy nearly nullified the taste of the wine in my mouth. The bouquet is not as strong as the Blason de Maucaillou - "I've smelled lighter ones!" states Tony - but don't let your nose fool you, it goes down much better than it smells. This particular wine has a lighter body but is laced with a slight bitterness. A gentle warning though: it may inadvertently be overpowered by your meal (as it suffered the wrath of the salted vegetable and duck soup).

Red French Bordeaux, Dourthe Numero 1 1998
The lone red for the night can be described as a "very drinkable", full-bodied young table wine. It was subject to several colourful descriptions such as gluggable. Someone commented that we were, in fact, drinking this wine before its time, however the Numero Uno '98 shows some shining potential for the future. Although it is perfectly capable of holding its own, it went beautifully with the meat - in this case the liver and pork ribs. It would be an indefinite success if we had ordered a black pepper beef to go with it.

Overall, attempting to match the wine to the food was a thoroughly enjoyable experience… It is easy to appreciate a good wine, but whether it complements your meal is the key. If wine appreciation consumed in conjunction with local fare grows to become popular in Singapore, we'll be seeing wine glasses on hawker centres' tables! Gung-ho Makankakis eager to try this combination could try taking a dessert wine too!