Guess who came for lunch?

I was thrilled to have my first taste of the notoriously quirky d’Arenberg wines yesterday. This Aussie brand may have stuck in my head for its cool names but I'm now a firm believer that its infamy comes from honest-to-goodness bottles... the kinds that landed it a Winery of the Year Award and a cult following for Dead Arm Shiraz (beating the $550 Penfolds Grange bottle).

Arriving at Purple Feet, I saw the table set for 10 and was curious to see who the surprise guests were that Stephan invited for lunch.

While waiting, I began dipping my hand at the ice-filled wine buckets to see what’s in store for the afternoon. (Ok, partly because it just looked enticing in the heat of the day) We were going to start with a very cold glass of the Money Spider Roussanne. (Roussanne being a white wine grape originally French grown, and known for its russet or reddish brown color called “roux”.)

I took my seat at the end of the table and lo and behold, joining us was Colin Mackay, the man behind the city’s chic trinity of dining spots - Sala, Sala Bistro and People’s Palace; Oliver Kreuzer, EAM F&B of Mandarin Oriental Manila and Eddie Sarton, the new F&B director of New World Hotel.

Suddenly, I got excited to see what they had to say about the pairings, and which wines and courses in particular they would come back for.

An apple melon mesclune salad topped with alfalfa and drizzled with jasmine green trea dressing for starters. Juicy, grainy fruits with some chopped pistachios set off the taste of the Roussanne. Paired with this was the Money Spider, which was Oliver's wine pick of the day. 

Eddy, Oliver, and myself

Across, Brett, Colin and Stephan take in the aromas.

The unanimous choice was the second course! All of our guests chose this Iberian Pork loin as their favorite dish.  Its an exclusive offering at Gourmet Depot, where you get the highest quality meat from the Spanish Iberian pig which feeds only on acorns. Its meat is ridiculously tasty and an absolute must try.

I would dare say its even tastier than rib eye with the fat content and the buttery texture. The trick is, you try to get everything in your fork for a complete flavor experience -the savory porkloin that melts in your palate, the rhubarb cherry plum sauce falling off the sides, then the crispy, feathery thin arugula leaves. Then you dig in for another bite. 

This was served with d'Arry's Original Shiraz Grenache and The Stump Jump.

Though a bit Intimidating to look at, the third course had all the makings of a hearty three-way turf dish. Though an off cut, the piece of grain-fed oyster blade beef proved that its the cooking that matters in making the meat tender and succulent. The lamb chop had a subtle taste to it while the Wagyu medallion was very tender. Giving the meats a richer taste was the tobacco leaves it was smoked in and a decadent topping of chocolate, wild mushroom and truffle sauce.

To accompany the dish, an equally robust red wine like the Coppermine Cabernet Sauvignon that's Eddy's choice and the Dead Arm Shiraz which got Colin's thumbs up.

For Dessert, a buttered peach, green apple and orange rind crepe topped with vanilla ice cream and butterscotch. Probably my favorite part. Especially because we drank it with the Sticky Chardonnay that's so sweet it feels like syrup you can pour on top of fruits or ice cream. Coincidentally, I researched serving suggestions of this wine and found that it is meant to be dribbled over dessert. Yumm!

Why does the sticky Chardonnay have such a high sugar content? Apparently its grapes are affected by a fungus that sucks the moisture out and leaves behind a concentration of all the sugar, nutrients and minerals in the shriveled up fruit... Kind of like why raisins are saccharine.

I'm definitely looking forward to the d'Arenberg Garden Party next week featuring more food and more of these wines.