Beijing Boyce

Earlier this week, I posted about recent visits to two venues projected to soon open - The Legation Quarter and China Doll (3.3. Building edition). I had hoped to start posting today about two other spots I toured - the new Nali Studio (already home to Ciro’s Pomodoro and soon-to-be-home of Project H20 and the new Saddle) and 1949: The Hidden City. Unfortunately, I got sidetracked the past two days with other projects and with getting my e-newsletter out (it’s free; to get on the mailing list, e-mail beijingboyce@yahoo.com with “sign me up” in the subject line). I’ll post about these venues by Monday at the latest. I also hope to post about another major project that has just popped onto the radar - details to come.

China Daily reports that six establishments at Workers’ Stadium, home of soccer / football matches during the Olympics, will be closed just prior to and during the Games as a security measure:

Restaurants, bars and nightclubs in one of Beijing’s main nightlife centers and celebrity hangouts are to be closed to help ensure security at an Olympic football venue, said authorities.

“About six restaurants and bars inside the Beijing Workers’ Stadium compound will be ordered to suspend operation for more than 20 days before and during the Olympic Games,” said He Zhenxing, stadium vice manager.

The venues, popular among Beijing residents, would suffer lost business, but the order was issued to guarantee security for the Games, he said.

“The stadium will not pay compensation to them, but may extend their leases or give preferential treatment after the Olympic Games,” he said.

According to the article, managers of the establishment had to receive formal notification. They were reported to be - and here is the understatement of the year - “very unhappy” with the situation.

The articles cites Mix and Outback Steakhouse, both at the stadium’s northern gate. Vics and Kro’s Nest are also at that gate.

Speaking of Workers’ Stadium, does anyone know what that boat-like structure being built on the edge of its “lake” will be used for?

Related: ‘Money, money’: Will Sanlitun win some of that Olympics gold?

(Hat tips to M-dawg and Adam “I just bought a chunk of salmon sushimi the size of my fist” S)

This is the second in a series of posts on places that I have recently toured and that are projected to open over the next few months. Previously: The Legation Quarter

Ai Wan (far left) and China Doll vie with Suzie Wong at last year’s TBJ awards. (Photo: that’s Beijing)

Venue: the new China Doll

Stated opening: mid-May

When China Doll opened in Tongli Studio just over a year ago, I quickly associated it with several things: 1) cozy seats and subtle lighting and thus an avoidance of the excessive neon that plagues other places; 2) an excellent four-sided padded bar manned by efficient staff; 3) a looping (to some) erotic video that rapidly got old; 4) a diverse client base of locals and expatriates; and 5) and a spirit that seemed like it would quickly outgrow the venue’s tight confines.

A split between owners last fall saw the creative side, Ai Wan, leave and she is now part of a team set to reopen in new digs on the fifth floor of the nearby 3.3 building (the building’s north face already sports the China Doll banner). The space is bigger - much bigger - with more than 1200 square meters of enclosed space, including an open area of 850 square meters, and an additional 400 square meters of rooftop.

China Doll will include a lounge, a compact dance floor fringed by two levels of seating, and seven VIP rooms and a VIP lounge. Patrons will access the club via two elevators at the back of 3.3.

The slogan is “Sexy - Hip - Cool” and management says there will be a focus on promoting art and culture. The strategy is to start drawing patrons into the lounge from the afternoon on. Ryan Horne, from the Los Angeles clubbing scene, is managing the place.

Ai Wan brings a loyal following from the original venue, a successful track record, and strong contacts and creative design ideas. The downside of opening in a mall is somewhat offset by the private elevators. The big question is whether enough people can be drawn to 3.3 to regularly fill this massive space. That, and the status of the original venue - will both places promote themselves as China Doll?

Previously:
- It’s a bar, it’s a club, it’s a blub, part 2
- Trouble in the Doll-house
- Cat fight: China Doll or Suzie Wong as best club?
- First impressions: China Doll

After the Australia-South Africa wine tasting last Saturday night, The Flash and I perused Super Bar Street. There is no shortage of venues - Afro Arena, Shamba, Back Street Club, Lakeland, Beach Bar, Escape, Qiu’s Roast Oyster, the 5:19 (re-opened by new management), Pili Pili, and - what sounds like a great name for a hotpot restaurant - Boiling Tribe (100 C) Club, among others. We decided to check the German restaurant Wirtshaus an see, which The Flash translated to as “Inn by the Lake.”

This is the only place I have seen with Flensburger Gold pilsener. The Flash notes that Flensburger is a northern German city and famous as the spot where traffic violation records are maintained. You might lose your heart in San Francisco, but if you’re German, you’ll lose your license in Flensburger. Wirtshaus an see also offers Bitburger (RMB25 for .25 L, RMB35 for .5 L) and Weihenstepan (RMB40 for .5 L)

This restaurant is large and airy with comfortable chairs in groups of four to eight. We were the lone customers. The floor manager was polite, efficient and spoke German.

The place has potential, but needs to get over the “too” syndrome - too much dressing on the salad (kidney beans, corn, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, carrot and mushrooms), too much pepper and salt on the seared tuna, and too much time spent by the burger on the grill (translation: it was dry). On a positive note, the baked potato and the French fries were decent, and The Flash found his rump steak to be pretty good and cooked to medium as ordered.

By the way, is it me or is traffic finally starting to pick up on Super Bar Street? If there were ever a street that should be cobble-stoned, studded with trees and made pedestrian-only in this city, this would rank among the top contenders (I’m also thinking of the small pond behind Pili Pili which, if properly cleaned up, could become a mini-Houhai).

This is the first in a series of posts on four places projected to open over the next few months. Tomorrow: the new China Doll.

(Photos: The Legation Quarter)

I had yet to enjoy watching the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, I remained unaware that the Black Eyed Peas provide the ideal beat for apartment cleaning, and I could still fit into my good black jeans - all these things were true when The Legation Quarter, the most anticipated food and beverage project in this city, was first scheduled to open more than a year ago.

How times have changed.

I toured The Legation Quarter last week and ran into the man most associated with the project, Handel Lee (Three on the Bund, The Courtyard, RBL), who outlined several buildings before marketing director Lulu Liu took over. Word is that some venues will open in mid-May (see below).

The Legation Quarter is big and, in many ways, beautiful, so in the words of BEP, “Let’s get it started.”

Like many of Lee’s projects, this venue is laden with history. According to the company brochure, five of the Legation Quarter’s buildings date from 1903 and were built to house the U.S. Embassy during the waning years of the Qing Dynasty. The 170,000-square-foot space later served as the Dalai Lama’s residence, a state guest house, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs offices. Additional buildings and an underground space have been added to house a club, a bar, and other establishments.

Here’s a lineup of some key projects.

Projected opening: mid-May

- Maison Boulud (back center in image above), “a French concept restaurant by award-winning chef Daniel Boulud from New York,” according to the brochure. The ground floor includes a bar, lounge and main dining room; the second floor, accessible by two staircases, holds smaller dining rooms.

- The Legation Center for the Arts (right front), which will host exhibitions, film programs and lectures. The rooftop offers good views of the old post office and train station as well as Tiananmen.

Projected opening: mid-June

- Mission (right top), the 1400-square-meter nightclub portion of Legation Quarter, which will include a lounge, VIP rooms and deck space. Lee says that a New York-London outfit is handling the project. The brochure says Mission “is sure to blaze a trail across the sky of Beijing’s nightlife” (let’s hope they have fire extinguishers).

- Teatro (right middle), an Italian restaurant; this building will include a wine cellar and a shop that sells bread, cheese, olive oil, and other goods.

Projected opening: mid-July

- Shiro Matsu (left top), a Japanese restaurant.

- Tian Di Yi Jian (left bottom, barely in image), a Chinese restaurant “embedded” in a furniture showroom.

The Legation Quarter will also include a 650-square-meter underground theater.

This project is ambitious and, given the delays, obviously not an easy one to complete. I have no idea about the rent, but large expatriate kitchen staffs do not come cheap. Maison Boulud seems especially promising as it could become a must visit for US business and government delegations, among others. The Legation Quarter has potential for event launches, weddings and so on. It’s hard to say how many people will come for, say, Italian or Japanese food, but I guess individual vendors will shoulder at least some of the responsibility of bringing in patrons.

A cutaway of Maison Boulod

Last week, I posted about an upcoming Bookworm seminar on a scuba diving team that went to Mongolia last year and explored ship wrecks, surveyed fish, and came upon a really weird creature (I also griped about the media’s priorities when it comes to stories like this, but what can you do). Anyway, I put my minimal design talents to use and created a poster for that seminar, being held tonight. If you plan to come and learn about the mysteries of Mongolia’s deeps, you might want to arrive fairly early - a large turnout is expected.

Three men, one hundred wines (Photos: GELIPU)

Beijing enjoyed yet another “100 wines for 100RMB” (USD14) event as GELIPU and Winelink teamed up to present Australian and South African wines last Saturday at Tim’s Texas Roadhouse.

Save for occasional rinsing water shortages and a few shaky pours that ended up on hands instead of in glasses, the staff did a decent job. Kudos to the organizers for placing A4-sized printouts in front of many bottles to indicate the producer, vintage, varietal and price, thus saving much squinting. Based on the lively chatter throughout the night, most attendees had an excellent time.

For the South African wines, the very drinkable Stonecross Merlot Pinotage at RMB 65 per bottle stands up to other competitors in that price range, such as Signos and Fortrant. The Stonecross Shiraz is also worth a try. Among the higher priced labels, the 2005 Klien Zalse Shiraz packed a wallop at 15 percent alcohol and offered nice dark fruits - this one isn’t cheap at RMB350.

With the Australian wines, I noticed people enjoying the The Little Wine Co Gewurztraminner 2006, with its ample grapefruit flavors (RMB235), and one patron said her favorite wine of the night was 2003 Bremerton Old Adam Shiraz (RMB1288).

The tasting included over a dozen liqueurs and ports from Castle Glen Vineyards. The Ginger White Port - according to the label, it is aged in American oak - is hot and intense but tasty (RMB239). The Dragon’s Breath liqueurs, all at 30 percent alcohol, were very in-your-face. Numerous people raved about the the chocolate and chili version - suffice to say, save this taste bud-vaporizing liquid until after finishing your wine.

Spicy liqueur is no match for chili-eating champ Gabriel Monroe.

Sampling southern hemisphere wines at Tim’s

GELIPU GM Danny Wu enjoys the evening.

Wait a minute - what’s that guy doing with beer!?

Mare is an excellent spot to sit down and share tapas. The unpretentious surroundings - the simple arched doorways, the decent lighting, the white walls dotted with a few pieces of colorful art - make it a nice spot for a business meeting, getting together with friends, or chilling out with coworkers. Mare also does a great job at catering as I discovered when the place supplied tapas for a Whiskey tasting last year.

The Cellar Rat and I decided last week to give Mare a spin as a bar.  Mare offers a substantial wine list. The list features 55 different bottles, starting at RMB200, with Cambridge Cellars Sauvignon Semillon at RMB208 and Stump Jump Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre at RMB 255. There are nine wines by the glass - one sparkling, four red and four white - with the entry level costing RMB35. Spirits start at RMB38 and cocktails at RMB45. In other words, the place has a lot to offer. The only downside is the bar itself is not very cozy. The layout is too tight, the stools a bit uncomfortable. So, if you go and plan to drink, it’s best to skip a strictly liquid meal and instead sit down to grab some eats.

I’ve been making the rounds with my laptop in search of spots that offer decent food, drink, and online access. This is part seven of my winter wireless wrap-up. (Previously: Aperitivo, Nearby the Tree, The Bookworm, Sequoia, The Rickshaw; Le Petit Gourmand; The Stone Boat)

Bubble Cafe & Bar

The good
- This circular place, wrapping around a stairwell, deserves an award for efficient use of space. The establishment’s inner ring includes high chair seating, while the outer has tables of two to four, with two lounge areas for up to eight, all with simple comfortable chairs.
- Dim lighting, contoured ceiling, and eclectic but not excessive decorative touches - film posters, photos, art, Star Wars figurines, an old Coke machine, etc - with some excellent kitsch.
- A good view of what’s happening outside in Jianwai Soho, a floor below.
- Coffee starts from RMB 22

The bad
- The place offers a lad’s and a lady’s loo, but I’m not a big fan of using velour curtains in place of doors for toilet stalls.
- Watch that four-inch height difference between the inner ring and outer ring of table areas.

The wireless
- The signal is good (coffee starts at RMB22; smoking is allowed)

The Cellar Rat and I dropped into Cafe St. Laurent / Alfa a few days ago to find the latter undergoing renovations, with work being done on the floor and bar. According to management, it is part of Alfa’s annual makeover and the popular eighties night is on as usual tonight. “Let’s hope the renovations include changes to the bathroom,” sniffed The Cellar Rat, a sentiment I - with plugged nose - second.

By the way, Alfa serves up some good food for those in need an energy boost after hours of dancing to Boy George, Madonna, and the like. The roast chicken and the pineapple shrimp are both tasty eats.

Schwankert: Seas the day!

Okay, you have this American guy who teaches scuba diving in Beijing (isn’t that one of the driest major cities?), leads a team last August on a two-week diving trip to Mongolia (isn’t that a landlocked country?) for the most intensive probing ever of Lake Khovsgol (lake what?) – a lake with up to two percent of the planet’s fresh water (no way!) - under the flag of the New York-based Explorers Club (the Antarctica, Mount Everest, Sahara Desert, etc guys?) and discovers on sonar a six-meter-long creature that might be what locals call an “underwater deer” (woah!) or this continent’s equivalent of the Loch Ness Monster (double woah!).

This might be a story that interests the media, especially the American media, right? Alack and alas, no.

Apparently, you need to show up with some dubious map that allegedly shows the Chinese discovered the Americas before Columbus. Then, you get coverage left, right and center.

In any case, Steven Schwankert, who led the expedition, will decompress the Lake Khovsgol findings when he speaks at The Bookworm next Tuesday.

I rarely promote such events, but this is an exception, because 1) the pre-trip talk was so intriguing that 2) I lobbied The Bookworm to do a post-trip follow up (see this Facebook group).

Here are the details, courtesy of the Bookworm Web site:

Tuesday, 26th February, 7.30pm

“Shipwrecks of Mongolia and the Underwater Deer”

A presentation by Steven Schwankert

Back by popular demand Beijing-based explorer and writer Steven Schwankert reveals the findings of the 2007 Dive Lake Khovsgol expedition. Along with locating two wooden shipwrecks from the 1920s, the team may have come face to face (kind of) with a lake monster that lake area residents refer to as “The Underwater Deer.”

Join Steven for the first public disclosure of the expedition’s findings, including the premiere display of the team’s photos, video, and artifacts.

Here is a pre-trip danwei.org post about Schwankert.

Nessie: “I get all the press.”

Garden Books is now open above Sequoia Cafe (Guanghua Lu branch) providing yet another spot in the city to relax with a coffee and a book. The shop takes over the space that formerly held Tim’s Texas BBQ and, before that, John Bull Pub.

There are plenty of books about China, though these tend toward the tourist-y series types, as well as Hemingway, Atwood, Kerouac, Updike, Camus, Grisham, King, and so on. Ford Prefect fans will find Douglas Adams “Ultimate Hitcherhiker’s Guide to the Universe”, while members of the Beijing Barack Obama fan club can pick up the man’s memoirs - Dreams from My Father.

Food and drink lovers will also find some nice stuff, including Larousse Gastronomique, The Culinary Institute of America’s Professional Chef (Seventh Edition), and Hugh Johnson’s How to Enjoy Wine.There is also Harry G. Frankfurt’s “On Bullshit” - the owner says he has sold about 500 copies of this in his Shanghai branch.

I’ve been making the rounds with my laptop in search of spots that offer decent food, drink, and online access. This is part seven of my winter wireless wrap-up. (Previously: Nearby the Tree, The Bookworm, Sequoia, The Rickshaw; Le Petit Gourmand; The Stone Boat)

Aperitivo

The good
- The coffee is fine
- The mini pizza works as a snack
- The bathrooms are OK
- This is a decent spot to do some late afternoon Web surfing and then enjoy a post-work glass of wine with friends

The bad
- The decor is better suited for night than day, as it feels a bit dark
- The service is up and down, ranging from efficient to neglectful, though it tends toward the former. One one visit, I was the sole patron but, despite employees going past my table, no one asked if I wanted a drink. One employee turned on a Chinese  soap opera and, when I noted the volume was loud, grudgingly… switched the channel to horse racing.

The signal
- On my four visits, no problem with the signal

Good times for taste buds continue in Beijing.

Australian wine-focused GELIPU and South African-wine focused Winelink will team up on Saturday, February 23, to present 100 ’boutique’ wines from, you guessed it, Australia and South Africa. The tasting starts at 6 PM at Tim’s Texas Roadhouse on Super Bar Street. The entry fee: RMB 100.

This is the most recent portfolio tasting offered at a low price, following on those by Torres in November and Palette in December and earlier this month.

Intriguingly, the invite says, “In the future, don’t buy from the retailer, don’t buy from the wholesaler, don’t even buy from the importer, it’s the exporter that you need to talk to!”

For more information, contact Garry at tongue.honey@gmail.com.

Last night, I reported that Trader Vic’s in Beijing has pulled the equivalent of getting a divorce during a honeymoon and closed its doors barely two months after opening. Peter Wright, regular contributor to this site’s sibling blog, Grape Wall of China, reports that Trader Vic’s in Shanghai also shut up shop last Friday. Interestingly, a late December post  - “Trader Vic’s to close?” - on The Shanghaiist stated:

Trader Vic’s Shanghai is very likely to close down on January 31st, barely 13 months after opening its doors. Poor market research, choice of a very questionable location of extravagant size and arrogant attitude of the Abu Dhabi-based franchise operators are the main reasons why this USD5 million investment will go down the proverbial drain. Frankies, in the same building and opened by the same franchisees, will apparently also go the way of the dodo, but its death knell will occur on 31st December.

The Shanghaiist later included an “update” that stated that the director of sales and marketing of Shanghai Golden Sands F&B Management Ltd. requested the story be removed. Stated The Shanghaiist: “He also threatened legal action. The author of the post stands by his story, and says his sources included current employees of Trader Vic’s. In his comment below, the Shanghai Golden Sands F&B Management Ltd. spokesman said: “It is absolutely not true the [sic] any of our restaurants are going to close in the future.”

Well, you can’t win them all.

In what should be required reading for those bringing restaurant and bar concepts to China, The Shanghaiist article details what went wrong and why. Live and learn, or better yet if you are pouring your hard-earned cash into a bar or restaurant, learn and live.

Many people have tales of a five hundred or thousand dollar shot of booze, but these tend to involve the consequences of having an over-the-edge-pushing drink that left them so blitzed they lost a wallet full of money or fell in a public water fountain and ruined an expensive suit.

I wonder how many of them have paid that much for the shot itself.

Such opportunities exist in Beijing for those strong of bill clip - at The Ritz-Carlton Bar. The bar stocks a dozen or so vintages of Macallan single malt from the 1950s to 1970s. A 40 ML shot of the 1950 is RMB5000, while the 1952 and 1954 are RMB4500 and RMB4800 respectively. Things get cheaper as you time-travel to the 1960s and 1970s, although no shot is less than RMB2000. Plan to get a second job to finance your drinking if you can’t resist sampling the single malts here.

By the way, I get the feeling that a slightly older vintage of single malt will appear on the scene, say, when 1949: The Hidden City opens.

The Ritz-Carlton Bar is a sedate place, one to talk in or to quietly sip a drink as you contemplate why your wine bar is going down the drain (shameless plug for my upcoming three-part post, “So, you want to open a wine bar”). Dark wood, tans, mahogany, dried mustard and other blood-pressure reducing colors govern, with hints of pool table felt green, fall leaves, and fuchsia. The long narrow bar is illuminated by ambient lighting and scattered candles, although some bigger fixtures remind me of suspended gold-plated tires with back-lit hub cabs.

The Cellar Rat described the place as “Charleston-esque, like a private member’s club in Mayfair, refined and calming, but borderline-sleep inducing. (He also called the staff uniforms “frumpy” and said he would prefer simple, classy outfits, such as those found in Aria or Redmoon.)

At the cheaper end of the menu, a 12-year-old Glenfiddich is RMB 70, while beer starts at RMB 50 per bottle for Tsing Dao, Budweiser, Guinness and Carlsberg.

The bartender, Angelo, is a friendly and informative soul.

Note: In such an upscale spot, the drinks menu would best forgo informing patrons that fruit juices “provide energy to the energy-deficient, protect the immune system” and assist a “flagging libido”, or that beer is “produced by the fermentation of sugars derived from starch-based material.” It just doesn’t fit the scene.

Trader Vic’s, famed for its cocktails, has gone down as fast as a Mai Tai in the hands of The Cellar Rat after a stressful day. Based on a tip from someone in the restaurant industry, I visited and found the kitsch-laden bar/restaurant darkened.

The sales manager for the Beijing branch of the global chain informed me via SMS that, “the company has decided to close forever.”

A patron who signed up for the Trader Vic’s VIP card received the following E-mail:

“First of all, we highly appreciate your always support and presence to Trader Vic’s Beijing. Due to the adjustment of the operations, our head office unfortunately decided to close all the business of Trader Vic’s Beijing since February 19, 2008. We feel extremely sorry for this bad news. Please come to our office to cancel your membership with Trader Vic’s before February 29, 2008 with your remained vouchers and membership card. We will try our best to remedy your loss cause by the closure of the restaurant.”

I suspected Trader Vic’s had a Capone’s-like future, but never thought it would sail off into the sunset this fast.

I have been making the rounds with my laptop in search of spots that offer decent food, drink, and online access. This is part five of my winter wireless wrap-up. (Previously: The Bookworm, Sequoia, The Rickshaw; Le Petit Gourmand; The Stone Boat)

Nearby the Tree

The good
- Table seating downstairs in the bar and cozy sofa areas upstairs in the restaurant
- Good pasta and Belgian beer on the premises
- Above-average service
- Relatively quiet
- A nice view upstairs of trees

The bad
- I feel bad if I am hogging an entire lounge section to myself
- The hard surfaces downstairs means noise travels

Wireless
- While on my first two visits, I had a few problems (one time, I had to move to the far side of the restaurant to get a signal, another time, the signal did not work at all), it looks like the problems have been solved - the signal has been good on my last three visits, making this a nice place to stop for a few hours during the afternoon, after the lunch crowd is gone and the dinner crowd is yet to show up.

Next: Aperitivo

At The Rickshaw and just caught the NBA three-point shooting and slam dunk contests - the “birthday cake” dunk, with Gerald Green putting a cupcake with lit candle on the back of the rim, then taking a pass from a teammate, leaping up, blowing out the candle and stuffing the ball was priceless.

Anyway, according to The Rickshaw management, you can catch the NBA All-Star game at 9:20 AM tomorrow (Monday).

Go Bosh!

The Rickshaw is also looking into showing Hockey Night in Canada games on Sunday mornings (they are shown Saturday night in Canada). In early December, Cafe St. Laurent / Alfa advertised this event, but - shades of that NHL-less season a few years back - didn’t come through.

I hope to have more details on these HNIC games in the next week or so.

In the meantime, and as usual, keep your stick on the ice…

Palette held the Beijing tasting of the year thus far as if offered patrons samples of 100 wines for a mere RMB 100 (USD 14). The seven-hour February 2 event drew more than 100 people who tasted wine grouped primarily by grape variety.

I’m a big fan of the portfolio assembled by owner John Gai, and will have an interview with him on his trials, tribulations and adventures in picking the wines.

Palette is particularly strong in Australian and Italian wine, though the Argentine Michel Torino – newly added to the portfolio - stood out as a highlight for me. The fragrant Sauvignon Blanc 2007 had nice acidity and is good value at RMB112, while the Torrontes has an incredibly (some might think too) fragrant rose nose and checked in at RMB125.

Among the sweeter wines, Peter Schandl Cuvee Beerenelnauslese 2002 (RMB208) and Domaine de Cabidos Petit Manseng (RMB218) offer excellent taste and value.

I also liked the Mercury AOC Pinot Noir (RMB320), Michel Torino CUMA Organic Malbec (RMB125), Glaetzer Bishop Shiraz (a big funky in-your-face wine; RMB390) and Heartland Shiraz (RMB157; among the best values in town), including the Director’s Cut (RMB289).

I asked John Gai which wine in the room he would pick to drink on a long plane ride. After much thought, he went for a Will Taylor Cabernet Sauvignon 2004. I also asked Palette’s Stefan Fleischer, who - after showing shock that I wouldn’t let him take a red and a white - chose the Shaw Smith Sauvignon Blanc 2006, and Leo Liu, who chose the Mercury AOC Pinot Noir

As with the December tasting, attendees tasted some excellent Gouda being made in Shanxi province. Kudos to Palette’s staff, which did a good job overall in pouring the wine and making sure there was plenty of water on hand. Palette’s wines are available via the company’s Shunyi wine shop and restaurant, Central Park outlet, or Web site.

100 bottles of wine on the table, 100 bottles of wine… (Photo: Palette)