GRAPE EXPECTATIONS

As the year draws to a close, the season of parties will be in full swing. While champagnes and wines are the choice drinks for most revellers, what are teetotalers to do?

This is where the 1688 Grand Rose from France and Inah from South Africa premium non-alcoholic beverages aim to fill the gap and make their flowing presence felt. Made from pure fruit juices, the twist in these imported drinks by Ambrosia Trading Sdn Bhd lie in the luxurious product packaging - at first glance the labels, foil coverings and wire cages holding the corks in place are dead-ringers for the real wines that are prevalent during revelries.
 

Unveiled with some fanfare at Dato' Chef Ismail Ahmad's Rebung restaurant in Bangsar, Mr Remi Rossano, Principal of 1688 Grand Rose believed that both products will be the toast of our multi-racial country. Because the beverages contain absolutely NO alcohol at all, people from all walks of life regardless of their age and race can raise their glasses of these drinks without fear of being intoxicated.
 
Besides drinking it straight from the bottle, the beverages can also be used to create interesting dishes such as Mediterranean Roast Chicken, Seafood Skewers, Stewed Lamb, Prawns Nyonya Style, Assam Pedas Fish and Steamed Caramel Apam as demonstrated by Dato' Chef Ismail.

With its salmon pink hues and fine bubbles, the 1688 Grand Rose is perfect as a pre-dinner aperitif that's not unlike a sparkling rose (minus the alcoholic bitter aftertaste). Concocted from 100% red and white grape blends, it boasts a bouquet of floral and fruity notes, and a muted Muscat flavour. Served it chilled at 6-8 degrees Celsius to complement sweet and sour seafood or white meat dishes.

I opened two bottles recently for a dinner party where seasoned wine lovers and teens attended. Needless to say, the drinks were an absolute hit to counter the sweltering heat and prime the palate.

Amazingly, the premium beverages even mimic the real wines. The Inah Merlot has distinctly strawberry and blackcurrant notes; its nectar sweetness best enjoyed well-chilled at 16 degrees Celsius. Goes superbly well with curries and spicy food.
 

Ripe plums and blackberry accents reign in the Inah Cabernet Sauvignon with a subtle oaky finish. Pair this with steaks or rich stews or even a hearty roast chicken.

I like the Shiraz for its berry accent with hints of spice - imagine matching it with some nice cheese.

You can buy the 1688 Grand Rose (RM56.90) and Inah series (RM43.90 each) at major supermarts like BIG, Cold Storage, Mercato, Village Grocer and AEON.

JOIN THE LOUNGE CLUB

Grand Millennium KL relaunched its newly refurbished Club Lounge and Rooms recently with a sneak preview for media and bloggers.

The 3-storey cosy haven boasts contemporary elegance clad in steely greys, muted blues and glowing pendant lights.

With a choice of indoor and outdoor seating, the plush confines offer guests complimentary High Speed WiFi access and choice bites with a wide array of cocktails for privileged Club Room guests. 

Accommodating 60 persons at one time, the Club Lounge is spacious enough to ensure privacy for guests with its integrated office and meeting spaces as well as relaxing lounge seating.

The “Al Fresco" alternative at the patio is surrounded by a rock pool filled with koi and decked with lush plants and shrubs, a serene oasis amidst towering office blocks with the Petronas Twin Towers visible in the distance.

A wide range of daily complimentary food and beverage items is proffered from 5.30pm to 8.30pm daily.

 General Manager Peter Gibbons the new Club Lounge befits the upcoming Club Rooms that will also flaunt freshly updated features in keeping with the dynamism of modern corporate and leisure travellers.

Guests will be well-taken care of by a team of dedicated Club Ambassadors who are tasked to look after their every need. 

 

Another privilege that Club Lounge guests will enjoy is the plethora of tempting morsels rustled up by Executive Chef Steven Seow come breakfast and cocktail time.

 

From this impressive towering display of cream puffs drenched with honey and studded with fresh berries to assorted bite-size appetisers such as chilled avocado with smoked chicken, tuna tartar with wasabi mayo potato, rye bread smoked salmon sandwiches, lemon citron tart and chocolate mousse with pear, guests will literally find it hard-pressed to decide on what to eat.

Don't let these little buns fool you...they're more substantial than you presume them to be; stuffed to the brim with mixed lettuce, pickled gherkin slices and rosettes of smoked salmon.

Expect a clever interplay of textures, flavours and colours at the display counters which are designed to serve hot and cold dishes in addition to savoury and sweet offerings.

 

The chef has no qualms drawing inspirations from around the world. His creation of croissant stuffed with Arabic grilled chicken is a delicious example of how West meets Middle East in a single bite.

 Crisp shrimp toasties, lamb keema pizza, chicken teriyaki balls and a rich quiche are enough to warm the tummy and keep you going until dinner time.

 

 

Of course there is always the inevitable dessert selection - again in dainty servings to lessen the guilt. Fruit tartlets, chocolate mousse with pear and choc shavings in shot glasses, more luscious tartlets of strawberries peeking out from slivers of chocolate, tea scones and miniature tiramisu are just mere samplings that hit the sweet spot.

If you fancy a stay-cation now that the year-end school hols are in full swing, just call the Grand Millennium KL.

PIZZA PARTY

It was a pizza fest like no other thanks to the Lune PR team from IACT. With more than 10 bloggers present, we were treated to an evening of pizza galore...good thing the toppings were as varied as everyone's imagination!

Held at Aria Italian restaurant in the Damansara Heights enclave, we spied a table laid out with assorted toppings for the planned pizza-making contest the minute we stepped in.

Aria which means air, space or melody in Italian is a double-storied restaurant that's perfect for quiet dinner, Sunday brunch, family gatherings or small business meetings. 

 

For that night, we counted 12 types of toppings in all; from cold cuts to fresh greens in addition to the basic condiments of tomato sauce, cheese and what looked like tortilla wraps doubling up as the pizza base.

Since it was our maiden visit, we trooped upstairs to check out the cosy dining area adorned with lots of retro posters and black&white prints.

A long bar and wine room occupy part of the downstairs dining premise. The mellow lighting and warm hues throughout the outlet lend the ambience a welcoming feel.

To get the party rolling, we were given slips of paper to note down the desired toppings for our pizza and think up a name for it. Then the chef helped to place our choice of toppings on each pizza before it was sent into the kitchen for baking.

We were ravenous by the time the first pizza made its appearance. Then it was non-stop feasting as about 15 pizzas were offered up. We naturally loved the first few but as the evening progressed, we found the surfeit of pizzas began to taste more or less the same...although a few stood out for their extravagant and sometime odd selection of toppings.

Still it was a fun-filled evening and the restaurant even fed us its house versions. We had to decline the last 2-3 that came to our table as we were simply too satiated to devour another piece! Overall, there was a couple of hits and misses but frankly, this occasion is not a fair evaluation of Aria's actual menu.

So you don't take my word for it when it comes to the menu. Toddle along to Aria and sample its pizza and other Italian fare at your own leisure. After all, the proof of the pudding is always in the eating!

ARIA, 44G Plaza Damansara, Jalan Media Setia 2, Bukit Damansara, KL. Tel: 03-2095 0016

CLOSE ENCOUNTER OF THE HAIRY KIND

Black, beady eyes, furry, spindly legs and flailing claws adorned with tufts of fine hair provide diners with plenty of hairy moments each autumn in China. These aren't some far-fetched Halloween ghouls but 'da zha xie' or hairy crabs - a seasonal delicacy that makes their appearance during the cooler autumn and early winter months in the populous continent. 

Also known as big sluice crabs or mitten crabs, these greenish-grey creatures are so highly-prized by Chinese gourmands for their rich roe that demand has far outstripped supply for years. Those that hail from East China's Yangcheng Lake and Lake Tai are said to command triple the market price but you'd need to ensure they're the real McCoys. Due to rampant counterfeiting (yes, even for crabs!), the originals come with plastic ID tags to certify their authenticity. 

However, it's not a fail-safe method as vendors are known to transplant crabs from other lakes and let them frolic in the actual Yangcheng Lake for a brief spell (ranging from three months to two weeks) prior to export or sold domestically, hence they're known as 'xi zao xie' or shower or bathing crabs.

Yet such practices haven't dampen enthusiasm for hairy crabs a bit. Most of the crabs are now bred and harvested on contract; it takes two years for mature crustaceans to be market-ready. The palm-size crabs are exported live and has to be kept inside temperature-controlled chillers to ensure their freshness. 

Executive Chinese chef Thian Taik Yong of Di Wei Restaurant, Empire Hotel Subang informed us that the crabs are immersed in ice-cold water twice daily for about 10 minutes and checked to ascertain they're still alive. "The hairy crabs should have a glossy carapace while the underbelly should be ivory-coloured. They should be heavy to the feel. Those with round belly denotes female crabs."

At Di Wei, the waitstaff does most of the tedious work of prying open the Steamed Hairy Crabs (RM88++ each, RM148++ for a pair) for you. The top shell is then placed back onto the crustacean itself whilst the legs and pincers are snipped off so that diners can pick up and devour the individual pieces.

Each mouthful of the crabs' rich, orangey roe taste like a dense custard that's not unlike salted egg yolk. The meat is delicately sweet; its mild fishiness tempered by a tart dark vinegar and ginger dip. Since hairy crabs are considered cooling (yin), most restaurants serve a cup of warm ginger tea to diners as a tonic to balance the after-effects.

Di Wei also serves Steamed Shanghainese Dumplings (xiao long bao) with Hairy Crab Roe - delicate, dainty parcels of soup-filled pouches stuffed with minced pork and crab roe.  

For the impending year-end festivities that herald the months of November and December, Chef Thian has another treat in store: Rock Salt Baked Chicken (RM68.80++ each). Those who spend RM60 and above on a la carte orders stand to land a better deal as it will only cost  RM28.80++.

An updated version of the traditional favourite of Beggar's Chicken, the 28-year old chef decides that the offering could do with better presentation and some dramatic flair; to enhance one's dining experience and add to the merriment of diners' year-end revelry.

Hats off to Chef Thian for his painstaking efforts. First, he fries the whole cleaned chicken first to give its skin that appetising brown hue. Then he stuffs it with three types of mushroom, dried scallops and some Chinese herbs before wrapping it in greaseproof paper and aluminium foil for steaming. This partially cooks the poultry before it is encased within a fine salt and egg white crust, studded with cloves.

Once an order is received, the chef will bake the chicken for about 20 minutes. This gives the rock salt crust a lovely golden brown and for additional oomph, the whole thing is set aflame at the table with some mui kwai loh (Chinese rose wine). Whose mouth won't water once the nose catches a sniff of the fragrant sweet wine?

More droolworthy aromas emerged once the layers of foil and paper were peeled back, revealing a fall-off-the-bone tender chicken with a layer of light, clear broth on top. We dug in and picked at the soft, juicy meat, marvelling at the pleasant woody herbal accent that permeated the flesh.

Di Wei also serves a selection of evergreen broths such as Double-boiled Watercress and Pork Rib Soup that should provide ample succor for the city slicker's soul. Chunky pork ribs lent the sweet clear broth a nice richness whilst the mildly bitter greens are said to be good to combat an overly yang or 'heaty' body.

Another signature dish is the Mushroom and Spinach Beancurd topped with assorted mushroom, a simple but scrumptious creation that has fried jelly-soft beancurd layered with blended spinach. A generous serving of viscous sauce laden with dried scallop and tiny bunashimeiji mushroom lends the dish moistness and flavour.

Peking Duck and dim sum rank among the outlet's highly sought-after specialities.

Di Wei Chinese Restaurant, Empire Hotel, Jalan 16/1, Subang Jaya, Selangor. Tel:+603-5565 1388