Perfect match
Stir-fried rice vermicelli with shredded pork and preserved cabbage is a humble dish but it can be sublime if quality ingredients are used. The rice vermicelli adds bulk, texture and a basic platform to soak up other flavours while the shredded pork lends sweetness and a savoury meat tone. Just about any type of preserved cabbage will work with this, from the spicy to the sweet to the salty.
This dish needs to be accompanied by a wine that is flavourful without being too assertive. The sake choice shows how well international flavours can be blended if we ignore traditional cultural boundaries.
Terrazas de los Andes Reserva chardonnay 2008, Mendoza, Argentina
On the Chilean side, the Andes Mountains dive steeply into the Pacific, but on the Argentinian side, they gently cascade onto the flats. These cascading terraces are of varying altitudes and temperatures and are wonderful for growing a variety of grapes. The water from the mountains' melting snow is some of the tastiest, cleanest in the world. This wine has plenty of fruit. The soft peach and stone fruit chardonnay tones are wrapped in a medium-bodied wine that is a superb match with fried noodles.
Available for HK$145 at Rare & Fine Wines (tel: 2522 9797)
Yoshinogawa Daiginjo sake, Niigata, Japan
This is a super-premium, exclusive and delicious sake, making it all the more interesting when it's taken out of the confines of Japanese cuisine. It's pure and exquisitely fragrant; the texture is as fine as silk but it offers layers of savoury, minerally and fruit tones. As with any good drink, the length goes on and on. It goes very well with the noodle dish and helps the preserved cabbage take on a different expression, drawn out of the muddy earth to an intriguing, complex sweetness.
Available for HK$298 at Fine Vintage (tel: 2896 6108)
Charles Melton Ros? of Virginia 2009, Barossa Valley, Australia
I've written about this versatile wine several times - that it's both a fine drop and modestly priced makes it a good choice for frequent drinking. It's made from a blend of Barossa staple grapes - grenache, cabernet and shiraz - and, curiously, some pinot meunier. It has some gamey notes, berry fruit and, with more than 13 per cent alcohol, it's a pretty serious rose that's a great match for the fried rice vermicelli. The grenache dances perfectly with the preserved cabbage and the lively but firm ros? acidity and drying alcohol rounds out the combination.
Available for HK$209 at Oliver's (tel: 2869 5119)
