Chateau Daugay Wine Dinner @ The View Restaurant, Hotel Equatorial Penang

Are you looking for a fine dining restaurant with breathtaking view, excellent match of wine and good food to dazzle your loved one? Here is our favorite French restaurant of all time, The View Restaurant. We are delighted to join the Chateau Daugay Wine Dinner hosted at The View Restaurant, Hotel Equatorial Penang in Bukit Jambul. We are exposed to the wonderful world of wines and the ideal pairings of Premier Grand Cru Classes "A" that particular evening...The aftermath? We will never look at our food the same way again... 

During the event, we got to enjoy endless glasses of wines from Saint-Emilion Grand Cru. For our readers' information, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru is a wine-growing region in Bordeaux, France where the vineyard of Chateau Daugay's is located. We have the privilege to interview the owner of wine farm of Chateau Daugay,  Jean-Bernard Grenié on that evening to  explain to us the history of the vineyard, planting density, average age of vines and the winemaking process from harvesting, fruit selection, vatting and ageing of wine (sometimes this is refer as wine maturation which improve the quality of the wine!) According to Mr Grenié, his wine making passion has brought an annual production of Chateau Daugay reaching 25,000 bottles mainly with a grape variety of 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Here at The View Restaurant, we have the opportunity to enjoy a great view of Penang's island coastline through the glass panel and the restaurant's extensive selection of vintage that night. Yes! Red sweet wines from lightest to heaviest!!!

To start off the evening, freshly baked bread dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar is a mouth-watering and perfect hors d'oeuvre for all of us. We were served with our first course: Pepper crusted salmon medallion with roe, Pan-seared Japanese scallop with spicy avocado and Lobster medallion with wasabi caviar. The taste....ah, heaven!

The first course served is typically smaller than the main dishes, and is best to be paired with Chateau Daugay 2005. Chateau Daugay has been notable for its complexity, balance and sophistication, reflecting the high quality of Saint-Emillion's wine. According to our wine experts that night, they hand-selected Chateau Daugay 2005 to be paired for the first course because Daugay 2005 is a straightforward, fruity wine which offers scents of licorice, tobacco leaf, cigar smoke, earth and spice. 

How do you enjoy wine pairing to the fullest? Take a sip of your wine, savor it, and take a bite. Be sure to chew a little bit before swallowing and take in considerations the sauce as well! The experience is simply the best!

Pan-seared balsamic marinated quail breast served with angel hair pasta was our second course. The second course is best paired with Daugay 2007 & Daugay 2008, finely complementing the distinctive flavor of each wine. You can always adjust a pairing according to your taste and you will find the perfect combination of flavor in wine to highlight and harmonize with the flavors in your food, making the overall culinary experience a natural and enjoyable process. I can say... each bite was an ahhh moment, which complement the wine as the wine complement the food.

We were then given a choice of Pan-roasted yellow tail fillet, Jerk marinated chicken breast and pan seared garlic marinated lamb loin to choose from as our main course. I chose Pan-roasted yellow tail fillet and never regretted it! The dishes are paired perfectly to bring out the best in the wines - Daugay 2010 & Daugay 2011. Daugay 2010 & Daugay 2011 is a full-bodied wine, with supple texture and mouth coating density integrating nicely. If you pay attention to the wine's color, you will notice the color seems to be darker because large portion of the flavor comes from the skins of the grapes.

The night ended with a chocolate pave featuring rich chocolate mousse topped with chocolate ganache and pistachio ice cream. Irresistible! What makes it even better is the wine pairing! Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Daugay 2006 dessert wine to pair with the meltingly delicious chocolate pave-Yum! It's probably one of the ultimate wine for pairing with dessert.

Without a doubt, this is the best Wine & Food pairing we have experienced! One of the unforgettable part of this wine dinner - besides the amazing food and wine - is being able to talk and dine with the wine experts. I have to salute the F&B team from The View Restaurant for hosting the wine dinner with specially prepared courses on that evening and special thanks to Ms Debra (PR Manager of Hotel Equatorial Penang) for extending this invitation for an truly extraordinary wine dinner experience. Thanks to the Hotel Equatorial's Chefs for creating a multitude of dishes that evening to match Chateau Daugay wines in pleasurable and perfect harmony. Each dish was perfectly paired and so so tasty! We truly appreciate it!

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Penang Hotel Promotions provide deals and promotions offered by hotels in Penang regularly. Hotel Equatorial Penang provides superb dining experience, combining high quality cuisine and outstanding services. You may visit some of the recommended dining at Hotel Equatorial Penang feature in Nadaba by the poolside, International DJs @ Nadaba and weekend buffets offered at Nada Lama restaurant.

The View Restaurant

Hotel Equatorial Penang

Jalan Bukit Jambul,

11900 Penang.

For enquiries and reservations, kindly call +604 6327000