Aussie tipples preview at the Gourmet Fest

The recent World Gourmet Festival at the Four Seasons Hotel served both as the perfect introduction for a new chef who is joining Four Seasons chain as well as the launch pad for new wines on to the Thai market.

Back at the festival after an absence of two years, Kazumi Sawada headed up Banreki Ryukodo in Tokyo, which was awarded a Michelin star in 2008, before taking up his current position as executive chef at Hoko in the newly opened Four Seasons Hotel in Guangzhou.

His gourmet dinner was at the hotel's Shintaro, restaurant and paired with McGuigan and Tempus Two wines from Australia's Hunter, Barossa and Eden Valleys, which have yet to be officially launched on the Thai market.

Sawada welcomed all his guests personally, inviting them to enjoy his creative menu, which was a blend of traditional skills and urban touches.

The first course was hassun, a collection of appetisers featuring tuna black rice sushi, smoked salmon with lotus root chip, shrimp bean curd spring rolls, chicken breast and cucumber with mustard miso vinaigrette, sake marinated soft boiled egg, grilled matsutake mushroom and vegetable consomm้ jelly with sesame sauce served with McGuigan Black Label Sparkling Chardonnay NV.

All seven hors d'oeuvres matched well with the sparkling wine, especially the tuna, smoked salmon and shrimp bean curd.

The next course was surinagashi, roasted tomato filled with crab meat, chilled red capsicum sauce with shiso and truffle oil, paired with McGuigan The Shortlist Riesling, Eden Valley, 2009. The roasted tomato filled with crabmeat was delightful and in just the right quantity. The Riesling went well with crabmeat thanks to its zippy acidity and a hint of sweetness. This pairing was quite refreshing.

Misozuke, grilled miso-marinated wagyu beef with foie gras, was the main course and it was paired with Tempus Two Pewter Vine Vale Shiraz, Barossa Valley 2008. A rich dish in itself, the intense shiraz made this beef plate even sweeter and the spiciness and fruit-driven shiraz helped cut the richness.

No Japanese meal is complete with rice, so we were all pleased to see takikomi kohan arrive at the table. This cooked-scallop rice with light soya sauce, mitsuba and egg flake served with miso soup and Japanese pickle was paired with Tempus Two Cabernet Merlot, Limestone Coast 2010. While the wine was a little too young for drinking, it had good ageing potential. On the nose was berry fruit, cassis with a hint of chocolate and cigar box. I found this pairing was a bit weak though after the wagyu beef and foie gras with Shiraz. That said, the texture of the scallop went well with the Cabernet Merlot.

The last pairing was the answer to a girl's dreams: Kuzuriki, kudzu starch noodles with brown sugar syrup, paired with Tempus Two Botrytis Semillon. The effect of the grape mould brought out the dried apricot, citrus fruit marmalade with a note of wild honey, and finishing with a hint of refreshing citrus. This sweet wine won our votes for the night.

Sawada once again excelled with every dish proof of his talent for creation and presentation. All in all, it was a very exciting Japanese dinner enhanced by premium wines from Australia.

Parani Chitrakorn

Special to The Nation