Hotel game to promote wine culture

By Aubrey Buckingham (Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-03 09:59

Matching this first course was a cote du rhone blanc. A blend of roussane and viognier, it was a little oaky (possibly for the American market) but with some tasty crispness.

Executive chef Francois Chevalier, who hails from Lyon, has spent nine years on the Chinese mainland, and has assimilated local dishes into his repertoire. The foie gras mousse and pork confit was served to look like tofu and bore a similar texture.

The gamey nature of the pork made it a good match for the crozes-hermitage. This was a heavy, intense and almost lazy wine, as it did not provide for a very long finish.

The entree (which means fish dish or starter, not main course - Americans take note) was a Cajun spiced Halibut steak with mango and pepper salsa and orange marinated green peas.

While the fish was peppery, the gigondas had 35 percent syrah to give it a round spiciness and the minerality was a nice counter-point to the sweet sauce.

For main course, a pair of lamb filets was served with pain d'epices (gingerbread) and a creamy white bean mash served with port wine sauce. The mutton was moist and made for good eating, while the sauce was cloying and served the meat well.

Chateauneuf du pape is a vastly under rated style, but Meffre's Laurus offering should win over more followers. It stuck to the house style with a gamey nose, although at least there was more than just a soupcon of fruit in this one. The wines served were mostly from the extremely hot "summer of death" 2003, so the grapes were fully ripe. This CDP had nice clumps of black fruit and round, soft tannins which went for ages and stood strong in the glass. An affordable CDP for the masses.

The dessert of green tea tiramisu was an interesting take, but was outshone by the Muscat de beaumes de venise. These are vin doux naturel, fortified wines where grape spirits are added to stop fermentation at 10 percent alcohol.

The tropical nose was full of lychee, pear and apricot, yet the wine was remarkably still fresh and not sticky. Not as seamless as suggested, it was still a tasty way to end the meal.

JC Mandarin Shanghai
Address: 1225 Nanjing Xilu
Tel: 021-6279-1888

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