Decanter steps foot in Singapore for the first time to present award winning wines from the Decanter Asia Wine Awards (DAWA).
A selection of medal winning DAWA wines were showcased at the first Decanter tasting in Singapore, hosted at ProWine Asia (12-15 April), which attracted thousands of visitors in the wine trade from Southeast Asia.
Our showcase at the Decanter stand included wines from Australia, Canada, France, Italy, and New Zealand
See our tasting catalogue here
Alongside the Decanter stand, DAWA vice-chair Ch’ng Poh Tiong hosted a masterclass on 12 April to introduce six trophy winners from last year’s competition.
He also presented these wines, including a silver medallist from Bauget-Jouette, to 30 wine lovers at an exclusive dinner at the Yan Restaurant located at the National Gallery Singapore.
Read Ch’ng Poh Tiong’s report below.
Decanter masterclass at ProWine Asia 2016
The inaugural ProWine Asia held in Singapore between 12 and 15 April 2016 provided the ideal platform to showcase some of last year’s Decanter Asia Wine Awards 2015 regional and international trophy winners.
It was a full-house at the masterclass which, as a vice-chair of DAWA, I was privileged to lead.
The wines acquitted themselves admirably, expressing quintessential characteristics of their varietals, regions and terroirs.
Piper-Heidsieck, Rare Brut, Champagne, France 2002 is comprised of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir. The Sparkling International Trophy is the prestige cuvée of the Reims-based house. Interestingly, not just the Pinot Noir but the Chardonnay is also from the northerly Montagne de Reims, not the Cote des Blancs. Aged seven years on lees before disgorgement, the extra bottle age has produced a complex fruit that is smoky, appley and with a whiff of honey. Full-bodied and with lots of vigour and energy.
Hunter Semillons are picked early to retain added freshness so that the wines age for a very long time. Our White Single-Varietal International Trophy is Tempus Two, Copper Zenith Semillon, Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia 2007. The relatively low 11 per cent alcohol further enhances the purity of the minerally, citrus zesty fruit that has a hint of ginseng and lanolin. In fact, the vivacity and personality of the wine is easy to mistake for a Loire Valley Vouvray.
Roero, north of Alba (land of the fabled white truffle), is considered the best terroir for Arneis. When unoaked, as is the case here, the varietal combines forward fruit but with freshness to frame and sculpt that delicious exuberance. Tenuta Carretta, Cayega, Roero Arneis, Piedmont, Italy 2014 is the White Piedmont Regional Trophy. The finished wine spent six months on lees in stainless steel vats in order to draw out more complexity and flavour. The fruit has tropical notes, including pineapple. The vinosity is nicely checked by freshness.
Santolin, Individual Vineyard Chardonnay, Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia 2013 is the well-deserved Chardonnay International Trophy of DAWA 2015. Hand-picked, the grapes were whole bunch pressed with the juice going straight into new (but just 20%) and used French oak barrels for the fermentation by native, wild yeast. There was no fining and only a single filtration before the wine was bottled following 10 months in oak. The result is an elegant, restrained Chardonnay with flinty, minerally and vanillin fruit.
Kanaan Winery, Pretty Pony, Ningxia, China 2013 is the Asia Red Regional Trophy. The family-owned vineyard impresses with the fact that the owner is also the winemaker. Wang Fang, better known as Crazy Fang, returned to China in 2011 after having lived abroad for a decade. Wang founded Kanaan Winery and although a talented winemaker in her own right, also credits her father – a pioneer of Chinese wine — for imparting his extensive wine knowledge to her. The blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. The fruit is very vibrant and includes green capsicums, blackberries and smoky oak. The crisp tannins and freshness makes this a wine best enjoyed with food. Decant about 30 minutes.
The Garces Silva Family planted their first vineyards in 1999 and produced their inaugural wine four years later. In little more than a decade, their Amayna, Syrah, Leyda Valley,
San Antonio, Chile 2013 has now garnered the 2015 DAWA’s Chilean Red Rhone Varietal Regional Trophy. The fruit was hand harvested and fermented at a very low 7 degrees Celsius for seven days in stainless steel tank. Aged 14 months in French oak, 60 per cent of which is new, this Chilean Syrah is gushing with ripe cherry/blackcurranty fruit The tannins are just as ripe and smooth. Enjoyable now, it will continue to evolve and improve into the next five years and beyond.
Author: Ch’ng Poh Tiong
