The BWC has gained a reputation over the last few years of hosting wine events of a high standard. Many of them are sit-down dinners where the leisurely pace helps diners focus on the flavours of both food and wine. This is important when it comes to appreciating wine, believes the committee. "Appreciating good wine at times also involves a certain formality and ceremony," said BWC President Rishad Minocher, "A good setting adds to the experience. Our previous event was a casual one, and this time we felt both the wine and the food deserved a more formal ambience."

The hotel staff, headed by Regional Executive Chef Nimish Bhatia, pulled out all the stops, arranging two formal dining tables seating 50 guests at each table. Damask table linen, white orchids and candles added to the ambience. Members were asked to dress 'ethnic formal', so silk sarees for the ladies and formal kurtas and bandhgalas for the men lent an extra touch of elegance. "We thought the dress code would add colour and magic to the evening," said Minocher.

The menu was both interesting and unusual - cold chicken kebabs with lemon and olive paste marinated in citrus fruit, a Baluchi speciality, was paired with the Reveilo Chardonnay Reserve 2005, while the entrée of yoghurt-marinated lamb shanks for the non-vegetarians and morels stuffed with smoked goat's cheese served with a relish of fresh ground pepper for the vegetarians combined well with the complex fruit notes of the Reveilo Syrah Reserve 2005. Those opting for the mushrooms as the main course (Akhrot Khumb Wah Wah!) commented that it went very well with the Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2005. The finale was the Tandoor Anjeer aur Jim Jim Lachha - baked figs on sweet potato vermicelli and bakarkhani paired with the Late Harvest Chenin Blanc.

Reveilo owner, Yatin Patil and his wife Kiran, who were present at the dinner were very pleased with the ambience and food, which Yatin said further enhanced his wines. "We make just 400 cases of the Reserve wines every year. Almost the entire production is bought by 5-star hotels and not sold in retail," he noted. (Price per bottle: Cabernet Sauvignon, Rs 1345; Syrah, Rs 1045; and Chardonnay, Rs 1145).

Pictured above are Kiran and Yatin Patil

Yatin appeared quite happy about pairing Baluchi food with his wines. “The pairing of food and wine should be just right,” he said. “Syrah goes particularly well with Indian food. The Cabernet Sauvignon was a good match with the lamb, and the Chardonnay with poultry and fish. You really need to know your wine well to get the pairing right."

Later that night, as BWC members lingered over their cigars and fine cognac before heading home, they expressed their appreciation of yet another memorable wine dinner and looked forward to more to come.