Dear Members,

Its time for the tuxedoes and the lovely evening gowns and join in the society’s gala celebration of Singapore's National Day, which will take place on 8th August at the Four Seasons Hotel.

This year celebration brings us to the Four Seasons Hotel, which is helmed by the renowned Chef Giovanni Speciale and Senior Sous Chef Nicolas Owen.

Hailing from Martina Franca in Italy, Chef Gio’s international culinary career started in a Michelin two-star restaurant in Italy. He then moved on to work at restaurants in the Philippines, United Kingdom, Thailand, Hong Kong and China. In 2001, Chef Gio joined Four Seasons as Italian Chef at award-winning Italian restaurant Biscotti at Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok. To date, Chef Gio has 20 years of Asian culinary experience and has been a guiding light towards embellishing the reputation and success of the restaurants he has been with.

His mission in Singapore is clear: “With my direction and support, the culinary team is developing and designing menus with the freshest produce to reflect the seasonality and trends of food products," says Chef Gio.

We are pairing Chef Gio's menu with Bordeaux from the 1988 vintage. The first in a trio of great vintages and one that has been rather overshadowed by the 89s and 90s. Definitely the most "classic" of the trio, with many of the wines not being overtly fruit-driven but having levels of extract and concentration that that make them perfect candidates for extended cellaring. Some of the wines at the top are memorable, with the finest examples coming from Pomerol. For this dinner, we are featuring 2 Pomerols, the Chateau La Fleur de Gay and the Chateau Clinet.

Most of the wines are now approaching their plateau of maturity with the pick of the bunch being the Cabernet-dominated wines of the vintage and for this dinner, we are featuring wines from Margaux, Pauillac and the Pessac-Leognan region. We are ending the dinner with a First Growth Haut Brion and this promises to be a very interesting dinner with equally interesting wines to match.

In addition, encouraged by the wonderful support that we received from our members last year, we will be holding our annual Charity Wine Auction again at this dinner, with the beneficiary being the Centre for Promoting Alternatives to Violence (PAVe), a Society that is registered under the Charities Act and is currently the key organization handling interpersonal and domestic violence, helmed by our fellow member Mr. Michael Gray as its President. Details will follow in a subsequent email. Do come with your cheque books and do your part in helping the less fortunate.

I invite you and your guests to join us for this special members only dinner. Please book early to avoid disappointment.


The society proudly

Presents

The National Day Dinner 2013

Date: 8 August 2013 (Thursday)
Venue: Four Seasons Hotel
190 Orchard Boulevard
Singapore 248646

Time: Champagne Aperitif -7:30 pm , 8:00 pm (Dinner)

Price: Members only S$310
Dress Code: Black Tie or formal national dress
(Black tie - Tuxedo for men, long evening gowns for ladies -national colours of red and white are encouraged)

Limited to 50 pax
Bookings and reservations: Please email: C T Chen at ctchen@acieslaw.com for reservations.
PLEASE NOTE: Reservations WILL NOT be considered confirmed unless the Booking Form together with Payment is received by 1 August 2013.

Menu:

Aperitif – Pierre Paillard Blanc de Blanc, Acte 1 "Les Mottelettes" 2008

Seafood & Crustacean Salad, Cress & Flat Parsley Sauce
Pierre Paillard Blanc de Noirs, Acte 1 "Les Maillerettes" 2008
**

Slow Cooked French Duck Breast with Smoked Eggplant Puree & Tonnato Sauce
Chateau La Fleur de Gay 1988
Chateau Clinet 1988
**

Yuzu Sorbet

**

Black Trumpet Mushroom Coated Slow Roasted Grain Fed Beef Tenderloin, Caramelized French Shallots, Golden Beet, Baby Parsnip, “La Ratte Potato” Truffle Mousseline
[Beef can be changed to Pork for non-beef diners]
Chateau Rauzan Segla 1988
Chateau Pichon-Longueville Baron 1988
Chateau Haut Brion 1988

**

Open Face Macaron, Manjari Chocolate Ganache, Apricot Compote, “Fior di Latte” Ice Cream
Chateau Rabaud-Promis 1988

**

Freshly Brewed Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee
And Selection of Fine Teas

*For non-meat & vegetarian options, a special menu can be arranged upon request.



Best regards

Joyce Chang
President
International Wine and Food Society of Singapore