The wine guy

Some of modern tze char restaurant New Ubin Seafood’s most endearing features are its wine dinners and free corkage charge. Vinophile and COO Pang Seng Meng shares his tricks on wine pairing.

I began my love affair with wines in 1988. A very good friend bought a case of Howard Park Cabernet Sauvignon while in Phuket on a family holiday; we opened a few bottles and, as they say, the rest is history.

I know my food and my wines, so I always go with an initial gut feel at the start, followed by final confirmation through a taste test, which is empirical and analytical.

The key word is complementary. We’re already pairing what is seen as a European beverage with Singaporean cuisine, which is a hotchpotch of influences on its own. One should bring out the best qualities in the other, and not stifle each other to become something they are not.

The hardest pairings to me are ingredients with strong flavours like sambal, while grilled meats and fish tend to be easier to pair.

We serve a Durian Crème Brûlée and a Seafood with Chinchalok Sambal and Buah Petai and I don’t have a problem pairing them. The former should go well with Donnafugata Ben Rye Passito 2016, while the latter will complement the Raymond R Collection Chardonnay 2014 from California.

A tricky pairing? E. Guigal Ermitage Ex-voto Blanc 2005 and Ika-no Shiokara. The Rhone Valley blanc has a remarkable straw yellow hue and extreme minerality, and is the only wine I’ve come across that can hold its own next to Ika-no Shiokara, a type of salted, fermented squid that’s typically paired with beer.

Truly Singaporean Wine & Makan Sessions ($98) take place monthly. Next event 27-28 Aug. newubinseafood.com