September 2003: THE JAMES IRVINE DINNER

It was the night of the Merlot, as 65 of our members and their guests savored what a master of this varietal could produce from this single grape. Being able to taste a vertical of five of the James Irvine Grand Merlot (1994-1998) from James’ personal cellars allowed members to decide for themselves the aging potential of the wine and their improvement with age. James was kind enough, not only to bring magnums of his older vintages, which quickly sold out, but he also personally autographed all the bottles of wine which were purchased during the night. Many thanks to Crystal Wines for bringing James Irvine to dine with us.

The venue also proved to be a pleasant surprise to many who came. One of the oldest of the fine dining establishments in Singapore, it has seldom been patronized by many of our members, who are constantly on the search for newer, more avant-garde locations to satisfy their culinary cravings. However, the food here was very good and many diners expressed great satisfaction with what they were served. In spite of its age, the restaurant was still certainly able to retain a very fresh and modern ambience to dine in, whilst offering a very romantic and beautiful revolving perspective of the Orchard belt to entertain the eyes. Credit goes to Joyce Chang for suggesting and organizing this event.

August 2003: 2003 NATIONAL DAY DINNER

This year, we celebrated our 38th birthday in the resplendent Ballroom of The Four Seasons Hotel and dined on the excellent cuisine of World Gourmet Summit Executive Chef of the Year for 2003, Chef Martin Aw-Yong. The 1989 Château Figeac and the 1989 Château Meyney were both drinking very well, and a informal poll revealed that a small majority preferred the more robust Château Figeac.

We finish with a 1986 Château Rayne-Vigneau, a Sauternes Premier Grand Cru Classé, but not before non-Singaporeans were entertained by the vocal talents of the locals with an impromptu rendition of the National Anthem.

July 2003: WHITEHALL LANE DINNER

In the most intimate dinner to date, 36 of our members feasted on the cuisine of visiting guest Chef Laurent Cantineaux from the much publicized restaurant – The Atlantique in Caracas, Venezuela. His restaurant is widely known as the best French restaurant in Venezuela and Chef Cantineaux is both young and extremely talented, and is well known for his bold and daring dishes. This was the first time during my presidency that we featured a visiting guest chef and members were impressed with the quality and the uniqueness of his cuisine.

We deliberately scheduled the dinner after the 4th of July, which of course, is the very well known date for the American celebration of Independence. This way, we could commemorate the auspicious event with our American members, who form the largest group within our society, after the locals. The wines featured were from Whitehall Lane, a multiple award winning winery and producer of some of the finest wines coming from California. The entertainment was also American, and we were presented with an acappella rendition of The Star Spangled Banner by four of our U.S. members.

May 2003: Burgundy Night @ Sebastien’s

Epitomizing the best of traditional French cuisine, Sebastien’s Restaurant in the Hillcrest Park Housing Estate has been making waves as the hottest newcomer in the local Bistro dinning scene. This Bistro cum gourmet food and bottle shop was conceptualized by Mr. Sebastien Reullier, who was once the Restaurant Manager at Raffles Grill. He started this eponymous Bistro with the backing of the Les Amis group only a few months ago. Leading the kitchen team is Executive Chef Paul Kek, previously the Executive Sous-Chef at Au Jardin.

On the 26th May 2003, 67 of us crowded into a small restaurant that really seats only half that number in comfort. The warm humid weather that we’ve been having recently certainly didn’t help to improve the comfort level. How Sebastien Reullier and Tye Yee Nen were able to squeeze themselves into every available space to serve everyone all the Burgundies on offer was accomplishment to applaud.

Yes, the conversation was loud and noisy. Yes, the dining room was packed and we all felt like sardines. Yes, it was warm, and it got warmer the more the Burgundy flowed. However, the food was good and, most importantly, we all had fun. The theme was to have a simple casual evening in a small neighbourhood Bistro, where the food was good and hearty, not haute-cuisine, and the atmosphere reminiscent of a village Bistro in Burgundy. I felt that we have achieved that aim.

The Burgundies were all drinking very well – ten in all, and nine of them premier cru no less, and from seven different village appellations. Well known producers like Robert Arnoux, Faiveley, Louis Jadot and Domaine Tollot Beaut et Fils were featured. We finished the night with a very fine 1990 Coteaux du Layon from Dom de la Roche Moreau.

April 2003:

No functions were organized due to the SARS virus outbreak in Singapore.

March 2003: 2003 (37th) ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING & DINNER

About 60 members attended our 37th AGM at the Four Seasons Hotel at the 20th Floor, where a pair of cozy function rooms flank the hotel’s roof-top swimming pool. We started our AGM in one of these rooms, before adjourning to the other for our AGM Dinner.

Members started arriving promptly at 6.30 pm, and soon the Laurent Perrier NV Champagne was flowing freely, enhancing our view of city skyline, which was silhouetted by the amber glows of the disappearing evening sun. All this made the mood somewhat casual, if not a little nostalgic The AGM ended about 9.30 pm, and we retired to the opposite room for our well deserved dinner. Our feast for the night was orchestrated by Executive Chef Martin Aw-Yong of The Four Seasons Hotel. It was certainly well executed and the dinner was enjoyed by all.

In a slight departure from our normal dinner practice where all wines are clearly printed on the menu, four mystery wines were served, in order to spice up the evening, titillate the palates and invigorate the little grey cells in the brain.

February 2003 : GUSTO 2003 DINNER

This event proved to be our largest and most significant wine function of the year. About 60 Italian winemakers and winery representatives were in Singapore on the 8th and 9th of February 2003 to present their wines. Each of them brought between 4 to 8 wines to showcase at the tasting event, which was held over two days. The first day’s tasting was exclusively for people in the wine trade, as well as for members of the IWFSS. The second day was opened to the paying public.

The culmination was the Gusto 2003 Dinner, an IWFSS organized event where an amazing 55 wines were served. Each winery donated a case of their best wines for the dinner, and there were so many wines that even with 190 members and guests in attendance, the dinner had to be divided into three sections, each being served with their own list of about 20 wines. All 55 wines were also placed on the side, so that those who were not sufficiently inebriated could help themselves to the wines which they were not served. Moreover, the event was not just about quantity. The quality of the wines were very impressive as well, and many members were very pleased with what they tasted. It was certainly a memorable night of great wine, food, fellowship and wine education.

January 2003, We had 2 superb functions this month:

1.  CORNEY & BARROW TASTING

With only 42 places available, this event was fully booked soon after bookings opened. Hosted by the very eloquent Mr. Adam Brett-Smith, who is the Managing Director of Corney & Barrow, this event featured the wonderful wines of the 2001 vintage from Domaine Leflaive. Our members certainly know a good event when one comes along, and their quick and vigorous bookings meant that no guests were able to be allocated seats for this very prestigious event. The fact that the tasting was complimentary with no costs involved certainly help the enthusiastic response. This time, Adam was again accompanied by Mrs Clare Burke, the Director of Sales for Corney & Barrow.

The tasting went very smoothly, and the quality of the wines shone through in spite of their youth. Being able to taste three very excellent Grand Crus (Bienvenues Bâtard Montrachet Grand Cru; Bâtard Montrachet Grand Cru; Chevalier Montrachet Grand Cru) at ‘tea-time’ from such a respected domaine certainly justifies membership to the IWFSS. The many happy faces at the end of the event reinforced the success of the afternoon.

2.   HUGEL & PAUL JABOULET-AÎNÉ DINNER

Hugel & Paul Jaboulet-Aîné are already very well established and respected names in French viticulture, and ‘La Chapelle’ is probably one of the most famous wines of France. Therefore, even though this event came only one day after the excellent Domaine Leflaive Tasting, the fact that it was held at the very elegant Ritz Carlton restaurant of Summer Pavilion, with MasterChef Fok Kai Ye having crafted a sumptuous 6 course dinner to match the 12 excellent wines to be savored, we had a very respectable turnout of about 50 members and guests for the event.

Nicholas Jaboulet and Etienne Hugel graced the event by their presence and explained more about the wines of the night to our members. The highlight of the night was certainly the 1985 Hermitage ‘La Chapelle’, and we were not disappointed.