Asia Loves Great Wines of Italy Hong Kong 2015

The success of this year’s Great Wines of Italy Asia event in Hong Kong from December 1 to 3 highlights the continued excitement for fine Italian wines in Asia, with sold out crowds to all the public events at the Four Seasons Hotel. More than 90 wineries, from Piedmont to Sicily, attended the Central Hong Kong event as well as more than 1,000 selected trade and VIP wine lovers.

It was the fourth annual Great Wines of Italy event for JamesSuckling.com and Hong Kong Tatler magazine. James Suckling, CEO/Editor of JamesSuckling.com, is wine editor for Tatler’s nine editions in Asia with more than two million readers. Great Wines of Italy Bangkok occurred with similar success on November 29 and 30.

“Hong Kong loves great Italian wines and Great Wines of Italy has created that love,” said James to representatives of the wineries during a private outdoor dinner on December 1 on the terrace of one of Hong Kong’s new chic restaurants, Beef Bar. “Every year, more and more fine Italian wine is drunk here and in Asia at large.”

The casual get-together in the cool Central Hong Kong restaurant on Duddle Street lead the massive grand tasting of Great Wines of Italy in the Four Seasons Hotel ballroom the day after with both a trade session in the afternoon and a consumer/trade session in the evening. Participants gazed out the massive ballroom windows across the beautiful Hong Kong bay towards Kowloon as they tasted hundreds of great Italian reds and whites, all rated 90 points or more by James. Plus, they enjoyed an amazing selection of cheeses and cold meats from Four Seasons’ Michelin-starred restaurant Caprice, not too mention the hipster sound of a well-know local DJ with accompaniments of percussion and wind musicians. “I never thought I would be tasting great Italian wines to bongos!” tweeted one participant during the event.

The event included a master class tasting workshop on Chianti Classico Gran Selezione the morning of the grand tasting. More than a dozen Italian vintners from the region poured and discuss the virtues of Italy’s newest super premium wine designation. Gran Selezione began with the 2010 vintage and highlights the best vineyard-based wines from the famous Tuscan area located between Florence and Siena. “These wines are the new Brunello-busters,” said James during the tasting to the crowd of almost 100 people.

The Asian wine trade continues to flock to the event with more than 400 members turned away because of a lack of space. Wine merchants came from all over the area, from Mainland China to South Korea to the Philippines and Thailand. “You don’t get the chance to taste these wines or meet these wine producers all at one time unless you go to Italy!” said an importer from Manila.

The real celebration to the end of Great Wines of Italy Asia came in the evening on December 2 at the Four Seasons ballroom when more than 240 attended a collector’s dinner that included top wine trade and wine collectors from the region, not to mention a few wine-loving movie stars and celebrities. A wine bar with hundreds of fabulous bottles from the more than 90 Italian wineries was the center point of the evening. Winery owners and vintners poured the wines themselves in a fun and entertaining way throughout the night. Many wine collectors brought their own bottles from their cellars, including such rarities as 1970 Pio Cesare Barolo and 1964 Borgogno Barolo Riserva. One “cheated” and brought a magnum of 1979 Domaine de la Romanée Conti Richebourg and 1990 Domaine Dujac Clos-de-la-Roche. Everyone loved it anyways! Entertainment include a seductive acrobatic act over the wine bar as well as the same hipster vibe of the grand tasting the day before.

The multi-course Italian meal, which included a fabulously creamy risotto and decadently flavored braised beef cheek, was prepared by one-Michelin-starred chef Massimo Mentasti from the superb Piedmont resort of Villa Sparina in northwestern Italy. “It was beyond my expectations to be in Bangkok and Hong Kong with these two events and see the enthusiasm here for Italian food and wine,” he said.

Indeed, many of the vintners commented on the gusto of Asian wine and food lovers for the great Italian wines and food during the events. “These events are more than just events about wine and food,” added James. “They are about the greatness of Italy as a country, from history, art, landscape, food, wine and everything else. Wines are evocative and take you to where they are made with every sip.”

Next year’s Great Wines of Italy Asia will be from December 4 to 9 in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Bangkok.

Photos from top to bottom: James giving a speech at the Grand Tasting held at the Grand Ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel; Guests at the Grand Tasting; A wine lover tasting Italian wines at the event; Wine lovers discussing wines with Italian producers at the event; More than 1,000 trade professionals and VIP guests attended the Grand Tasting; VIP dinner guests enjoying some superb Italian wines (second from left: Zita Ong, CEO of Edipresse Media Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia); Acrobatic performance during the dinner event 

You can watch the video on top to get the event vibe, and check out the event photos of the Grand Tasting and Wine Collector’s dinner below:

Grand Tasting: 

Wine Collector’s Dinner: 

– JamesSuckling.com staff