Beijing Boyce

Fresh from her UFO, a female alien speaking fluent English, bearing the physique of a comely woman of our own species (with glowing green skin and cute antenae to boot), and holding two still-steaming seven-layer burritos from Taco Bell flown in at supersonic speeds from the U.S. - even that (almost) would have been a less delightful surprise than what I discovered on my doorstep as I arrived at home tonight (last night).

Call it a watershed moment, but it’s not every Beijing day that one receives a 16-page booklet titled “2007 Spring Wine Fair.” This one’s from Carrefour and has deals on wines from 12 countries from six continents. Instead of just listing the wines and their prices, this booklet includes:

- An icon for each wine that suggests whether it would pair best with meat, fish, spicy foods or “desert & sweat” (obviously “desserts and sweets” is meant).

- Write-ups on some of the wines (it’s pretty much the info on the back label, but that’s better than nothing) and a small section called “How to drink Rose wines?”

- Volume deals: buy six bottles of Ruffino Chianti 2004 for 540 kuai and one of them is free.

- A sale on wine glasses, corkscrews and bottle stoppers (although glasses at the flower market are a better value).

This is an excellent way to market wine to customers who might be shy about perusing the hypermarket shelves. Most of the more than 100 wines included in the booklet are entry level, which provides a lot of choice at reasonable prices for beginners. And for those into bubbles, there’s Veuve Clicquot at 388 kuai and the budget friendly magnum (1.5 liters) of Changyu sparkling cider at 22.8 kuai (which attendees at my latest blind tasting of Chinese wines easily polished off).

(By the way, I had no idea that Carrefour was selling wines such as Chateau Margaux or Chateau Latour - RMB 3800 and up.)

Wine Word: Expect to see Edward Ragg and Fongyee Walker, former Cambridge University Blind Wine Tasting Society captains, about town as they have relocated to Beijing. / Ex-ASC Fine Wines Marketing Director Campbell Thompson has headed to Australia to begin work on a Master’s in Wine Marketing, but will return to Beijing in a few months. Adam Steinberg will join ASC as communications director and step down from his volunteer position as co-organizer of Beijing Wine Club (BWC). Jenn Hinkle, who has been active in the wine scene, will become more involved in BWC. / Capone’s is offering two-for-one on two white and six red wines by the glass, as well as all alcoholic drinks, from 5 to 8 PM nightly. / Cafe Europa offers seven wines by the glass (40-45 kuai per) in its regularly rotating lineup. It has started a “lazy Sunday” breakfast menu (10 AM-3 PM): fruit juice, toast, grilled tomatoes, baked beans, two eggs with bacon or sausage, and free flow coffee or tea, for 50 kuai. Other options include pancakes with maple syrup and yoghurt with fruits, walnuts and honey. / By the way, Opener, two flights up from Cafe Europa, is a sedate nighttime getaway. The drinks are pricey, but this spacious artsy place offers a dozen bottled beers and a small Whiskey collection, mellow music and comfortable seating. / As for wine tasting events, Sequoia Cafe is continuing its excellent Friday night gatherings, with this week’s featuring Slovenian wines (6:30 PM, 50 kuai, RSVP required: call Frank at 13701-178-073). The Beijing Wine Club will hold a tasting of Australian boutique wines on March 3 at Hao Feng Cellars in the Henderson Center (7 PM; 150 kuai). ASC will have a Riedel wine dinner at the American Club on March 13 with company CEO with Maximillian von Riedel (6:30, 888 kuai, price includes four wine glasses). Summergate will hold a Chateau Lafite wine dinner at Aria on March 20 with winery CEO Christophe Salin (7 PM, 1888 kuai).

Opening Shots comes from the Beijing Boyce biweekly e-newsletter. To subscribe, send an email to beijingboyce@yahoo.com with “Eat, Drink & Be Merry” in the subject line.

TRIO has taken The Park Grill and The Cellar down a few notches and now offers a more affordable wine list (see Hanky Panky at Frankie’s below). / An investor in The Pavillion, which marks its one-year anniversary on November 16, says the group will open another venue in the Workers’ Stadium area in March. / Tim’s Texas BBQ (formerly John Bull Pub) will open in mid-November, says Frank Siegel, who is eager for the public to try his smoked meat. Frank says Tim’s will retain the popular trivia nights and look at incorporating the Friday and Saturday Mexican food cart. / Q Bar plans a December debut for its website, which will include a game where patrons drink cocktails made by George and Echo at faster-than-life speeds. Back in reality, a special East meets West drink - namely, a dragon fruit margarita - should soon roar into life at the Q (more on this next issue). / As part of the shift from blues spot to gallery and events venue, Icehouse has walled off its bar to create a narrow and intimate zone that could become a nice after-work getaway. The event experimentation continues as the venue hosts the high-energy Central Asian music of Panjir on Saturday night (50-kuai entry fee includes one Tsingdao). / Eddie O reports that Blue Fox, unable to replicate the success of its neighbor Centro, has howled its last. / Cafe Europa, a comfortable place to enjoy wine by the glass or bottle in the Soho district, will hold a tasting of four Cabernet Sauvignons (with tapas) next Thursday (150 kuai, email josefkiang@yahoo.com to RSVP). / Here’s a bar you don’t hear much about - Marine House. It’s on U.S. Embassy grounds, serves up the coldest beer in Beijing and is one place where you don’t want to anger the bouncers. / Tongli Studio’s Top Club is changing into Kokomo Bar and Restaurant. Yay! I mean, boo! I mean, hmmm… Meanwhile, Kebab Nation is now open on the studio’s ground floor. / The City Weekend website has an upgraded bars section that includes editors’ picks and a better directory (with handy phone numbers). As always, the forums on thatsbj.com are a good source of information on Beijing’s nightlife scene, including the recent Halloween bashes. / Add this to the list of drinkable Chinese wines: Grace Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2005.
(From Beijing Boyce XXIV, first emailed on September 21, 2006)

I had planned to review Face, Bed, L’Etage and A-Che in this issue, but have simply been too busy of late and this newsletter is already one week overdue. I’ll aim to include them next time, along with a write-up of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust course I finished last night. I was in the inaugural/guinea pig class and will opine on whether it was worth the 1488 kuai (and yes, unless otherwise noted, I do pay for these things). / I had my first newsletter-related interview with a Chinese newspaper. I have one thing to say: I am WAY better at writing about the bar scene than at talking about it. / Finally, Eddie-O, Kris Tan and I met about the Whisky and Bourbon Society, and came up with a basic plan. I’m now working on a venue and before the next newsletter will send out details to those on the society’s mailing list. / As always, Eat, Drink and Be Merry. BB.

(From Beijing Boyce XXIII, first emailed on August 31, 2006) 

Beijing’s bar scene is picking up, with Browns, Midnight and The Pavillion all recent and welcome additions. I have a feeling that Trio, to open late March, will join them. Roger Dutton, a former partner in Frank’s Place (Beijing’s oldest non-hotel bar until it was chai’d a few months ago), is part of the team behind the three-story, 700-square-meter Trio near Lido Hotel. The top floor will hold the Park Grill, a seventy-seat, seventies-style New York grill and piano bar (Roger mentioned “steak” and “lobster” thrice during our talk). The main floor will have a newer and bigger Frank’s Place with garden areas in front and back, meaning summer barbecue fun.

The most interesting place, though, is in the basement: The Cellar. Roger writes, “Descending the stairs from the entry foyer the visitor should get the feeling of entering an old wine cellar. It will have brick arches, stucco and heavy wood, with torch lighting.” There will be a “cellar club,” with each of the 90 members getting 30 to 60 bottles worth of storage space (not sure of the club fee). Members may bring their own vino or purchase it wholesale from the club. (Note: Only ASC wines will be sold.)

There will be live jazz as well as “wine dinners, auctions, master classes and socials for those that have a love for the drop.” French, Italian and Spanish provincial food and cheeses and other tapas are to be served. New Zealander Chris Adams is the GM. Look for Frank’s Place to open in late March, with the grill and cellar shortly after. Trio is between Pine Hill Korean restaurant and Il Casale Italian restaurant.

(From Beijing Boyce X, first emailed on February 10, 2006)

5:19. Four kinds of wine from Moldova (!) (RMB40 / glass); feels like a 1980s recreation room (where’s the Atari and Pong?); a bit chilly given the stone block floor; still getting in gear, with the beer taps, maple syrup (for cocktails) and name cards expected soon; the dart board is right above the sofa (wear a helmet); four kinds of Moldova wine (!) (sorry, had to repeat that again); happy hour from 5:19 to 8 (PM); bingo nights planned; owner is a former partner in the now-demolished Artifacts.

(From Beijing Boyce VI, first emailed on December 14, 2005)