In the wine business there’s an acronym called OPW (other people’s wine). It’s used when you work for a company that distributes and/or sells specific lines or brands and it’s how you reference bottles that aren’t yours. It can be used as a term under the auspices of discussing the competition or when you go out and need to either consume or show wines that aren’t yours under the guise of ‘research’ or ‘education’. Sometimes you will drink OPW when you are trying to impress someone and demonstrate how secure you are with your own wine in the presence of these alien OPW or simply because, god forbid, you are yearning to expand your own horizon by getting a sense of what others are doing. Continue reading »

This recent few weeks has found me (again) in Asia but this time not in Korea, rather Hong Kong followed by Singapore. As the MS ‘brand’ continues to grow, Hong Kong is a new market for us, the nightly table provided great fodder for recapping the day, planning for tomorrow and of course letting our proverbial hair down after being in classroom and/or examination mode all day.

While the jet lag is tough and the work load formidable, the local dining makes up in part for the wear and tear on the body. Impeccable Chinese food in Hong Kong (the whole roast pig was extraordinary) and a delightful mix of cuisine in Singapore (including my de rigeur share of Char Kway Teo, a sublime noodle dish), all washed down with tasty wines and non-stop great stories. On one of these occasions, with a bunch of folks in tow, I did what I so often do and asked the table about their memorable food and wine experiences. Continue reading »

The 1980’s birthed the advent of so-called fusion cuisines, bringing together multiple cultures and traditions on a single plate. Asian fusion led the pack with intricate melding of Western and Eastern foods that are still with us (from the now-almost-pedestrian Chinese Chicken salad, to varying conjoining Asian noodle dishes with Italian stalwarts). Many of these efforts have become very successful as witnessed by my good friend Mourad Lahlou’s Aziza restaurant in San Francisco (Moroccan inspired but not your basic couscous house), Floyd Cardoz’s efforts at Indian inspired Tabla in NYC and Vikram Vij’s equally inspired Vij’s in Vancouver.

But Korean meets Mexican. Hmmm… hadn’t thought about that one. During the last week in Seoul I have been eating my weight in kimchi and kalbi (grilled beef short ribs, Korean style), and wondering why it is that Korean food hasn’t taken off in the US outside of Los Angeles. Continue reading »

It dawned on me as I was writing this blog that it’s been, in essence, a full year since we launched this site (and with it this blog) and here I am again… back in Korea and judging the now 5th Annual Korea Wine Challenge. It’s been a crazy year and it’s amazing what a difference twelve months can make… not the least of which is that the dollar has appreciated significantly against the Korean won (980’ish to the dollar last year and over 1500 per dollar this year… yikes!). New times, and (this year) new wines… Continue reading »

I was lunching recently with a dear friend and one of the industry’s most prescient individuals, Randall Grahm, of Bonny Doon Winery (among others). He’s a brilliant and forward thinking gent who has generally chosen to go left when others go right and has been ultimately rewarded for many of his strong and opinionated positions. Three tangible examples which come to mind are his stance on screwcaps, his love of producing wines made from alternative French and Italian varietals, and his recent position on aromatic white wines in Washington State. Randall is always inquisitive, naturally curious and, as I have learned over the years, a few steps in front of us all.

As we lunched, we chatted about two main items, firstly the world of publishing and book promotion, as we share the same publisher (University of California Press) and luckily for both of us, the same ab fab editor in Dore Brown - a professional gem. However, the back and forth on those subjects isn’t the fodder of this blog. It was our second item, and robust discussion about our shared belief in the ongoing importance of the maturation of the Asian wine market. Continue reading »