新年好!

It's the new year! As you can see, buried in cases, Spanish classes, and other (fun) school-related activities. Fun-tivities. Something simple for dinner, away from family. Some pork ribs I had in the freezer, some rice. But I had to drink something that reminded me of wine, as cheap and borderline drinkable as it was. So, a Shaoxing wine normally reserved for cooking. More a symbolic gesture, really, but it worked. Looking forward to big things in the year of the horse!

DF

steaming soft-shell crab

Need some stuff to cheer me up, what with the selling out and shit, doing anything to make some extra money. Anyways . . . I love crab so much. Really the essence of what Chinese cuisine is. Not only important to cook for flavour and texture, but to make sure it achieves balance in the body as well. Crabs are thought of as having a cooling energy - therefore we eat them with rice vinegar and finely chopped ginger, which has a warming energy to balance it all out. And, if we're lucky - we have bottles of the most amazing Shaoxing rice wines to pair alongside.

If we're lucky.

DF

Since it grows together

...then surely it must go together. The most amazing live abalone, gently poached in chicken broth, finished with a sauce reduced from its own juices, and sprinkled lightly with a layer of dried lake shrimp roe. Then, live striped prawns, arrived in the morning of from B.C. Quickly boiled, and served with a simple dipping sauce of soy, rice vinegar, coriander, and a touch of sesame oil. And what to drink with it all? Of course, nothing else but 10 year old Shaoxing wine.

So simply prepared it seems almost . . . too simple. But who was it that said, perfection is achieved not when you can no longer add anything else, but when you no longer can take anything away.

DF

Pagoda Brand Shaoxing

Yet another 8 year old Shaoxing wine, from Pagoda Brand. We've been holding this bottle for quite some time now - maybe 3, 4 years? A gift from an uncle, just sitting in the cabinet. Under those stupid cheap corks that the Chinese seem to like using for these wines. See how dark the wine is? That's oxidation happening. Really delicious actually, just a shame that it's a bit damaged. Alcohol really roaring out of control a bit. A dry, intense rice wine, that was kept for a bit too long.

DF

上海老酒八年陈

I couldn't decide which photo I liked better. A Shaoxing wine I brought back from Shanghai this April, slightly chilled, perfect with a sea cucumber dish cooked in the Shanghai style. Slightly sweet, wonderful grain character, balanced. And in bowls, just begging to be drunk in gulps.

DF

女儿红八年绍兴酒

This is crab season, have to keep drinking Shaoxing wine, one of the great food/wine pairings of Chinese cuisine. This example, not so great - at least not as great as the story behind its name. 女儿红, or Red Daughter, in reference to the varietal of Shaoxing wine. What my ancestors in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces would do (centuries ago) was bury huge earthen jars of this wine upon the birth of their daughters. The plan was to unearth the jars to drink at their marriage - thus giving birth to its name (red is an auspicious colour in Chinese tradition).

This particular wine, aged 8 years, is awful. So awful I don't even want to find out exactly who produces it. Obvious signs of a heavy syrup used in its production, skanky in flavour and aroma. Took a sip and used the rest for cooking.

DF

古越龙山五年陈花雕

Chinese cuisine does not have many famous food/wine pairings, but this one is sacred - crab and Shaoxing wine. I love this wine, I love crab, and thousands of years of tradition must mean something. Crab has a cooling effect to the body - the wine has a warming energy, balancing everything out. You warm it slightly with indirect heat, and as you can see here, I enjoy it in bowlfuls. Delicious as can be - the sweetness of the crab pairs beautifully with the slightly oxidative quality of the wine.

This particular bottle, 古越龙山, was one I bought back from Shanghai. Sort of a connoisseur's wine, it's slightly sweet, with lovely balancing acidity, and a very round palate. It's almost a shame to warm it, as it emphasizes the oxidative flavours that characterize Shaoxing wine, but this is a very, very good wine. This producer makes bottlings of various ages - this particular wine is aged 5 years, the most humble example for a humble drinker.

You're missing out greatly if you've never experienced crab and Shaoxing wine. As I said, a sacred relationship.

DF

Shaoxing Wine

We went to a well-known restaurant in Shanghai called ShanghaiRenJia after we visited the 2010 World Expo. It was late at night, I was famished, and at this point, I was hankering for a drink. What better than Shaoxing wine to warm you up? I ordered a bottle of GuYueLongShan. A bit of sweetness, very elegant. It feels good to slowly begin writing about food again.

Our server brought out these glasses for me. You know you're an absolute alcoholic when even the servers know to bring you a shot glass to drink your rice wine with. Yes. The food was delicious, very satisfying. And our server was such a sweetheart. Very pretty, kind, very genteel. Wonderful. She made me wish I lived in Shanghai.

DF

Shaoxing, in a bowl

Forgot to include this photo in, when I wrote about this Shaoxing wine. The decanter/bowls were brought over from Japan. Whether they were meant for rice wine consumption, I don't have a clue. But I like drinking Chinese spirits out of a bowl.

DF

Shaoxing wine

石库门上海老酒

We drank this wine just before the New Year, with friends for a hotpot dinner. I love these wines. Shaoxing wine is the absolute perfect fit for Chinese cuisine - as they say, if it grows together, it goes together.

Slightly heated in decanter. You can't apply direct heat - that completely destroys the chemical makeup of the wine. If you heat it directly, such as in the microwave, the wine begins to break apart, and all you're left with is a mess of alcohol and acid. I decanted the wine, then placed the decanter in a lightly simmering pot of water. A slow, easy, indirect heating process. You only want it warm, not hot.

This has a beautiful aroma. The producer is a large one, and enjoys a strong reputation in Shanghai. Amber colour, with a fading rim. The palate is quite sweet, with a beautiful silky texture. Complex, spicy, sweet. Finish lingers in the mouth. A beautiful wine, perfect with traditional Chinese dishes.

DF

Hot wine

My cousin brought over this bottle last night for dinner. Lovely, another bottle of aged Shaoxing wine. Heated in decanter, this is dark amber. Rich, sweet, with some barley characters and spiciness to keep things interesting. There is nothing more impressive than drinking rice wines with Chinese cuisine. I would risk the wrath of Canadian customs to smuggle some bottles in.

Shaoxing

What's the perfect drink to serve in the middle of a winter storm? Shaoxing wine of course!

A rice wine from the town of Shaoxing, without a doubt my favourite Chinese spirit. Decant it, warm it in a simmering pot of water, and serve piping hot. I guess proper serving dictates that you drink it warm, not hot.....but I love it when it steams a little. This bottle was my last - a very fine example of how exquisite the flavours in this wine can be.

Dark bronze, rich and lustrous in texture. Such a mouth-filling, silky transition into a lovely sweet finish. The face flushes, the heart pumps a bit harder, and your insides thank you for the warmth.

Blue Crab Part II

Wine always follows cuisine. Always. Old World wines are a certain way because they pair with the local cuisine. It's only in the New World that we have these vulgar sipping wines.

Roquefort with Sauternes. Duck with Burgundy. Oysters with Sancerre. So many fantastic, classic, wine pairings. But they're all French. I love French food and definitely love French wine, but what about Chinese cuisine?

Chinese cuisine has only one true classic food and wine pairing that I know of. And that is crab with Shaoxing wine, a rice wine that I absolutely love. The sweetness of the wine pairs beautifully with the sweetness and subtle flavours of the crab. Of course, the pairing calls for much better crabs, but what can you do...this is, after all, Canada.



I love drinking this wine warm. You decant, then place the entire vessel in a pot of warm water. Indirect heat - you never heat it too high, because the flavours disappear and it becomes bitter and tart. I love this set...instead of cups, there`s bowls to drink out of. Classic.

Don't mess around with perfection. Steam the crabs, with a dipping sauce of rice vinegar, minced ginger and sugar. Don't make it all pansy...simplicity is the key.

In true Chinaman style. I love this dish. Steamed crabs with Shaoxing wine, absolutely delicious.