Sherpa's Pairings: October 2012
By Michelle Ozier
Ordering in for the night? Shanghai’s most popular delivery service not only has the food, there’s also a load of wine that they’ll bring straight to your door. Sherpa’s wine consultant Michelle Ozier dishes out on what wine pairs well with your order.
With the nights drawing in and the extra luxury of closed offices for a few days early this month to celebrate the Chinese National Day holidays, it is a great time to spend a cosy evening at home. A lovely way to stretch out a good meal is to pop a bottle of Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon, which will naturally achieve its optimum drinking temperature of around 20oC at this time of year, and enjoy it with a selection of cheese and fruits or a rich dessert.
This multi-award winning red wine from the Chilean Concha y Toro winery is made from grapes grown in the fertile soils of the Maipo Valley. It has a large structure owing to its strong smooth tannins and the lasting finish provides big bursts of plum and cherry with a rounded hint of toasted vanilla from being aged in American oak barrels. These are all great qualities when matched with red meats, but become somewhat sublime when paired with a deeply rich and gooey chocolate cake or the toffee nuttiness of a caramel vanilla flan.
Big Bamboo’s Chocolate Brownie served warm with whipped cream on the side (RMB 45) or Cantina Agave’s House Flan (RMB 35) should do the trick, although if you do go with the latter you probably want to add the Churros with Hot Chocolate Sauce (RMB 35) while you are it. The sweetness of the dessert will be a real treat when paired against the ruby cassis of this Cabernet and if you don’t have a sweet tooth, then the strong fruit elements mean that it will work equally well with a wedge of salty blue cheese or creamy brie.
Purchase Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon from Sherpa’s at RMB 131 plus an additional RMB 20 discount for weekend purchases of two bottles during October and a free iPhone cover with each bottle while stocks last.
