Wine guides

So,it would only be a matter of time before the trend moved to Pune as well. This wine pairing took place at Harajuku,a Japanese restaurant situated at the O Hotel.

As people were ushered into the restaurant,we sat facing the live counter with anticipation. Live food and a discussion on wine by the sommelier was bound to make for a good show,right? In theory,yes. So when a gentleman walked in and stood in front of the ready audience,we expected a long discussion on wines and Japanese food and why the pairing the two had become all the rage. As it turned out,the gentleman was Sumedh Singh Mandla,the chief operating officer of Grover Zampa,the group of vineyards which had supplied wine for the evening. He did go on to speak about their varietals and how they had begun exporting to Japan,but for those looking to learn about wine or Japanese food,the speech fell short.

There were several courses that ran through sushi,sashimi,tempura,and main course items like duck yakiniku and tenderloin teppanyaki. Each of these courses was introduced with different wine. The sushi and sashimi were combined with a sauvignon blanc,a fruity,light-bodied white wine. Sushi and sashimi are traditionally served in a manner that keeps the ingredients as close to their original nature as possible. So there was nothing to mask the scent of salmon in the Shake sashimi,or to spoil the bite and crunch of the asparagus sushi. It took a little getting used to,of course,but the wine went a long way into helping with the new palate. The sushi and sashimi are left bland,to be eaten with wasabi which is pungent and spicy. The fruity and sweet wine complemented both these tastes,adding flavour and masking the scent of fish,while soothing the after-effects of wasabi.

Similarly,in the main course too,the duck yakiniku — served in a light broth with pineapple and fried rice — went quite well with the Zampa Syrah,a dry,medium-bodied red wine. The wine helped bring out the meaty taste of the duck,and added a lovely acidity to the sweetish dish.

The evening served as an interesting gourmet experiment,and participants were free to explore the tastes as they wished,without a rigid schedule or structure of a guided pairing. But perhaps we could have learned much more about wine and Japanese cuisine if it had indeed been a structured,guided session.