aly's wonderland

Wyndham Wine Dinner @ Sage Restaurant & Wine Bar

26th May 2010

RM 288 nett per person inclusive of 10% service charge and 5% government tax

Award winning Chief Winemaker Nigel Dolan of Wyndham Estate, Australia was in town recently, for 2 days only, to showcase some of the Wyndham Wines. I felt extremely privileged to be invited by the wonderful Marian Eu to the Wine Dinner at Sage Restaurant & Wine Bar at The Gardens.

It was a truly enjoyable evening, made even more so by the company of Lyrical Lemongrass, Fatboybakes, CumidanCiki, and Alilfatmonkey.

We sat down in the lounge to a charming glass of George Wyndman Semillion Sauvignon Blanc that was light and fruity, and brought out the flavours in the Seafood Platter, served as hors d’oeuvres.

Shortly after everyone had arrived, we were ushered to our table.

This was my second time at Sage, and I was really happy to be back. The restaurant itself has a wonderful ambience, that’s chic but not stuffy. Floor to ceiling windows almost all the way around provide a sense of spaciousness, with a gorgeous view of the twinkling lights below. The semi-open kitchen allows you to watch the chefs at work.

Chef Daniel is now the man in charge of the kitchen, and since assuming his new role, he has managed to retain the clean, European-Japanese Cuisine that has given the restaurant top listing on many lists. On our table alone, I was surrounded by die-hard Sage fans.

The evening kicked an introduction from Mr. Nigel Dolan, who talked a little about the wines we would taste, and the BIN numbering system.

Not really a wine connoisseur myself, I’d always thought the ‘BIN’ stood for a special year how many bottles of wine that were made. I know, it makes no sense that they would only make 222 bottles, and sell them at such affordable prices.

Fatboybakes told us the 222 numbering came about when the winemakers saw three swans swimming in unison, and so was born the BIN 222. I actually believed him! Look at that angelic face – who wouldn’t believe him?

Mr.Dolan cleared that up for us when he came over to our table to say hi, and he was slightly amused at the swan story.

Here’s what we found out:

“The correct origin of “Bin” lies in the 19th century practice of British wine merchants who would buy and import in barrel or cask, mature as necessary and bottle for their own brand or for their private customers. After bottling, the wine was binned, hence the expression.

Private customers had a “Private Bin”, and bins were numbered consecutively — 1, 2, 3, 4 and so on. Australian winemakers adopted Private Bin numbering as a means of identifying their wines. Over time consecutive numbering was replaced by sequences considered memorable, and Private Bin was abbreviated to Bin (e.g. BIN 707, BIN 555, BIN 888, BIN 45, etc.)”

So there you go. A little bit of an education for you, and me! I filled up on bread and kept my mouth shut so I wouldn’t look too ignorant.

Our fist course arrived, and we tucked in.

Tranche of Buri Fish with Avruga Caviar & Japanese Herb

Wyndham BIN 222 Chardonnay

What a way to start the meal. This was a gorgeous cold, fresh dish with velvety Buri Fish and rich Avruga Caviar. Pop, pop, pop went the caviar in my mouth. I sipped on the oaky Wyndham BIN 222 Chardonnay, which had a hint of tropical flavour to it.

It was perfect with our starter.

Royale of Abalone with Sea Scallop and Yuzu Citrus

Delicious. A succulent scallop swimming a tasty, clear broth.

Smoked Cooked Venison with Veloute of Mushroom & Foie Gras

GeorgeWyndham Cabernet Merlot

The venison here was a little rare for my liking, but I could appreciated it’s strong, gamey flavour, that was balanced out by the creamy mushroom sauce, and the buttery foie gras.

The George Wyndham Cabernet Merlot is a classic combination of two varieties of grapes, and the wine itself is deep burgundy, with hints of dark plum and a flowery scent.

It really brought out the taste of the venison.

Mango Sorbet

Pureed mango, served icy cold. A refreshing palate cleanser.

Wagyu Ribeye with Truffle Mash Potato & Natural Jus

George Wyndham Shiraz

I could hardly fit this course in, as although the portions look small, they’re very rich and very filling. The Wagyu Ribeye must have been at least a Grade 8, and it was fatty, and rich, and buttery all at the same time.

Cooked perfectly, with a nicely seared ‘crust’ on the outside, it melted in my mouth. The mash potato was smooth and creamy, infused with truffle oil, and doused with natural meat juices. The crunchy giant asparagus spear was a bonus.

The George Wyndham Shiraz was a dark red in colour, robust and spicy. The perfect wine for this dish, enhancing the rich, meaty taste of the wagyu while complementing the taste of the truffle.

Roasted Fig Tartlet with Vanilla Ice Cream

I really liked what I tried of this dessert. It wasn’t too sweet, with a luxurious almond taste. The fig itself was an extravagant explosion of flavour in my mouth, and the homemade vanilla ice cream was very refreshing.

Coffee or Tea

What a delightful evening. The wines, with their fruity flavours, went down easily, as did the scrumptious food. An evening at Sage is always memorable. Paired with Wyndham Wines, it was unforgettable.

CONTACT

Sage Restaurant & Wine Bar

The Residences Level 6

The Gardens, Mid Valley City,

Lingkaran Syed Putra,

59200 KL.

Tel: 03-22681328