Asia no longer neglecting wine

           The first time I entered a Thai restaurant was in 1969 in New York.
            I was taking out a young friend from Africa who was dreaming of
            becoming a famous painter. We walked hand in hand from East 13th
            street to Chinatown. Almost in front of the Correction Department,
            on Bayard street, we came across this small place. It just said
            "Thai." What we knew of Thailand was very little. It was in Asia,
            had a very beautiful queen and was marginally involved in the war in
            Vietnam. As for its food, we had no idea what it would taste like.
            I cannot remember what we ate, but we loved it. Because I wanted to
            impress the young and pretty painter I asked for the wine list. The
            owner told us that wine would not go well with Thai food. "Better
            have a beer," he said, and then came the first Singha of my life. It
            was a typical New York evening.
            A few days ago I read a piece by Eric Asimov, a food and wine critic
            for the New York Times. In his article he advises Indian, Thai,
            Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese restaurants not to neglect their wine
            list - very good counsel indeed. And as if to prove him right, Asia
            is becoming a serious producer of wine. In recent months I have
            tasted excellent wines from Japan, China, India and of course from
            our own Thailand.
            Asimov makes another remark that explains why a few years ago not
            only Asian restaurants in New York but also in Thailand had
            practically no wine list. Wine was not part of the culture of most
            restaurant owners. But things have changed considerably in the past
            20 years. Wine is now with us, and here to stay.
            So then what goes best with these various food?
            While a cool beer certainly goes well with plenty of Indian or Thai
            food and is still favoured in many Indian restaurants (I bet you the
            climate has something to do with it too), the best Indian
            restaurants in Bangkok (such as at the Rembrandt) do offer an
            intelligent wine list.
            One Indian restaurateur in NYC told Eric Asimov to avoid "Oak and
            high alcohol", because hot food already tends to bring out the
            tannin and the oak is underlined by the spices. Choose instead a
            light red, a good Beaujolais for instance, a young Cote du Rhone, or
            some Vin de Pays. I write "good Beaujolais" because so many are of
            little interest. As for the Beaujolais Nouveau, its life span is
            only a few months at best.
            Fresh and crisp whites go well with almost any spicy food. One of
            the most famous pairings is gewurtztraminer. That very special wine,
            especially the ones from Alsace or Germany, are indeed delicious
            with most Chinese food.
            Riesling, with its lightly metallic flavour is another very good
            choice. Again look for Alsace, German or Austrian riesling, with
            just a hint of sweetness. Asimov mentions a riesling spatlese from
            the Nahe; I would also add many Austrian Grune Vetliner or even some
            of the new English versions of Muller Thurgau; but just try to find
            that in Thailand. They are hard enough to get in London.
            And our own wine? Unless it is a very specific dish I would go for
            whites. Good ones from Siam Winery, GranMonte, PB and the very
            pleasant rose from Kao Yai winery will all do very well. Most are
            reasonably priced and I have surprised more than a few foreign
            guests by serving them incognito with Thai food. But I would rather
            drink a Chateau des Brumes with French or Italian food. After all,
            there is a touch of French grapes in these bottles.
            Sparkling wines are also quite agreeable with mildly spicy cuisine;
            no need for great champagnes, a nice Spanish cava will do very
            nicely.
            One last remark, or piece of advice, if you like. Don't be afraid to
            experiment. Creating marriages of wine and food is after all a
            legitimate pleasure of life.